Acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) induces depressive symptoms in 50-Acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) is a technique used to study serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) brain function in mood disorders. In this paradigm, 5-HT function is temporarily lowered by deprivation of its precursor L -Tryptophan (Trp), an amino acid essential for 5-HT synthesis. It has been suggested that behavioral response to ATD might be informative about the pathophysiology of clinical depression and the mechanisms mediating antidepressant efficacy.A number of studies have demonstrated that ATD temporarily induces depressive symptoms in remitted depressive patients treated with antidepressant medication (Delgado et al. 1990; Spillman et al. 2001). The recurrence of symptoms appears to be highest in subjects treated with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) (Delgado et al. 1990(Delgado et al. , 1994(Delgado et al. , 1999.However, not all patients react to ATD; even in SSRItreated patients, ATD exacerbates symptoms in 50-60% of investigated patients (Van der Does 2001a). This raises the question of what factors determine response to ATD. It has been argued that induced depressive

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