Despite comparable tendencies in MDD subjects and CUS rats for increased phosphacan and neurofascin detection against their respective controls, there was largely unchanged in situ immunolabeling for neurocan, brevican and versican, and lower Bral1 immunoreactivity in overall and at NRs, while in western blots signal from some neurocan and versican bands were lower in MDD as compared to non-psychiatric human subjects. This evidence concerns the gene VCAN and major depressive disorder.