Neural Correlates for Therapeutic Mechanisms of Lithium in Bipolar Disorder

A Multimodal Brain Imaging Study to Investigate Neural Correlates for Therapeutic Mechanisms of Lithium in Bipolar Disorder: Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3β Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms and Gray Matter Volume Increase Following Lithium Treatment in Bipolar Disorder

The investigators will assess Li-induced gray matter volume changes with regard to the endophenotype of GSK3beta polymorphism. The changes of gray matter are supposed to be more attributable to neurotrophic and neuroprotective characteristics of Li, which were closely related to the inhibition of apoptotic activity of GSK3beta.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Men and Women aged between 19 and 55
• Diagnosis of bipolar I disorder as assessed by the structured clinical interview for DSM-IV (SCID-IV)
• Patients who have not used psychoactive medications for more than 2 weeks
• Individuals who provided written consent for participation

Exclusion Criteria:

• Presence of any major physical or neurological illness (e.g., head trauma, epilepsy, seizure, stroke, cerebral tumor, multiple sclerosis, cerebrovascular disease, narrow-angle glaucoma, drug hypersensitivity, etc.)
• Women who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or planning pregnancy
• Diagnosis of any Axis I disorder other than bipolar disorder
• Intelligence quotient below 80
• Current or past drug abuse
• Contraindications to magnetic resonance imaging (e.g., pacemaker implantation, claustrophobia, etc.)