theanine and Depressive-Disorder--Major

Anxiety disorders are highly prevalent in modern societies, and are ranked the sixth most important contributor of non-fatal negative health outcomes.

Topics: Animals; Antihypertensive Agents; Anxiety; Blood Pressure; Depressive Disorder, Major; Glutamates; Humans; Psychotropic Drugs; Schizophrenia; Sleep Aids, Pharmaceutical; Stress, Psychological

Unsatisfactory responses to major depressive disorder (MDD) therapeutics available necessitated up-to-date treatment approaches. This study sought to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of adjunctive l-theanine, a green tea constituent with neuropsychotropic effects, for MDD.. Sixty MDD (DSM-5) patients were equally assigned to receive sertraline (100 mg/d) plus either l-theanine (200 mg/d) or matched placebo in a six-week randomized, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The participants were assessed using the Hamilton depression rating scale (HDRS) at baseline and weeks 2, 4, and 6. Changes in scores, early improvement, response and remission rates, and adverse events were compared between the groups.. Twenty-five participants in each group, a total of 50 patients, completed the study. All baseline characteristics were similar between the groups. The general linear model repeated-measures analysis demonstrated a significant time-treatment interaction effect for HDRS during the trial (p-value = 0.014), indicating more remarkable symptom improvement in the l-theanine group. A greater reduction in HDRS scores was observed in the l-theanine group from baseline to weeks 2, 4, and 6 (p-values = 0.02, 0.03, and 0.01, respectively). All patients responded to sertraline plus l-theanine until week 6. l-theanine was superior to placebo regarding response to treatment and remission rates at week 6 (p-values = 0.05 and 0.02, respectively). The frequency of side effects was comparable between the groups.. The small sample size and short study period were the limitations.. l-theanine adjunct to sertraline outperforms placebo in treating MDD in a safe manner. Further long-term, large-scale studies are recommended to confirm this evidence.

Topics: Depressive Disorder, Major; Double-Blind Method; Glutamates; Humans; Sertraline; Treatment Outcome

l-theanine, an amino acid uniquely contained in green tea (Camellia sinensis), has been suggested to have various psychotropic effects. This study aimed to examine whether l-theanine is effective for patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) in an open-label clinical trial.. Subjects were 20 patients with MDD (four males; mean age: 41.0±14.1 years, 16 females; 42.9±12.0 years). l-theanine (250 mg/day) was added to the current medication of each participant for 8 weeks. Symptoms and cognitive functions were assessed at baseline, 4, and 8 weeks after l-theanine administration by the 21-item version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-21), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Stroop test, and Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS).. HAMD-21 score was reduced after l-theanine administration (p=0.007). This reduction was observed in unremitted patients (HAMD-21>7; p=0.004) at baseline. Anxiety-trait scores decreased after l-theanine administration (p=0.012) in the STAI test. PSQI scores also decreased after l-theanine administration (p=0.030) in the unremitted patients at baseline. Regarding cognitive functions, response latency (p=0.001) and error rate (p=0.036) decreased in the Stroop test, and verbal memory (p=0.005) and executive function (p=0.016) were enhanced in the BACS test after l-theanine administration.. Our study suggests that chronic (8-week) l-theanine administration is safe and has multiple beneficial effects on depressive symptoms, anxiety, sleep disturbance and cognitive impairments in patients with MDD. However, since this is an open-label study, placebo-controlled studies are required to consolidate the effects.

Topics: Adult; Anxiety; Cognition; Depressive Disorder, Major; Female; Glutamates; Humans; Male; Mental Status Schedule; Middle Aged; Stroop Test; Treatment Outcome