AUTHOR=Shen Jun , Tomar Jyoti Singh 

TITLE=Elevated Brain Glutamate Levels in Bipolar Disorder and Pyruvate Carboxylase-Mediated Anaplerosis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.640977

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2021.640977

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>In vivo</italic><sup>1</sup>H magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies have found elevated brain glutamate or glutamate + glutamine levels in bipolar disorder with surprisingly high reproducibility. We propose that the elevated glutamate levels in bipolar disorder can be explained by increased pyruvate carboxylase-mediated anaplerosis in brain. Multiple independent lines of evidence supporting increased pyruvate carboxylase-mediated anaplerosis as a common mechanism underlying glutamatergic hyperactivity in bipolar disorder and the positive association between bipolar disorder and obesity are also described.</p>