Impact of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene polymorphism on cortical inhibition in schizophrenia

Introduction: Neuronal plasticity is a characteristic feature of the human central nervous system to dynamically respond to changes and demands inducing synaptical and neurochemical alterations. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in an intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) protocol, impaired cortical plasticity has been reported to be associated with a val/met gene-polymorphism in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene. Based on neuropathological findings and neuroimaging studies, impaired cortical plasticity has been described as a common, yet not fully understood phenomenon in patie…