Oxidatively-induced DNA damage and base excision repair in euthymic patients with bipolar disorder.

Oxidatively-induced DNA damage has previously been associated with bipolar disorder. More recently, impairments in DNA repair mechanisms have also been reported. We aimed to investigate oxidatively-induced DNA lesions and expression of DNA glycosylases involved in base excision repair in euthymic patients with bipolar disorder compared to healthy individuals. DNA base lesions including both base and nucleoside modifications were measured using gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with isotope-dilution in DNA samples isolated from leukocytes of euthymic patients with bipolar disorder (n = 32) and healthy individuals (n = 51). The expression of DNA repair enzymes OGG1 and NEIL1 were measured using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The levels of malondialdehyde were measured using high performance liquid chromatography. Seven DNA base lesions in DNA of leukocytes of patients and healthy individuals were identified and quantified. Three of them had significantly elevated levels in bipolar patients when compared to healthy individuals. No elevation of lipid peroxidation marker malondialdehyde was observed. The level of OGG1 expression was significantly reduced in bipolar patients compared to healthy individuals, whereas the two groups exhibited similar levels of NEIL1 expression. Our results suggest that oxidatively-induced DNA damage occurs and base excision repair capacity may be decreased in bipolar patients when compared to healthy individuals. Measurement of oxidatively-induced DNA base lesions and the expression of DNA repair enzymes may be of great importance for large scale basic research and clinical studies of bipolar disorder.

Cavum Vergae, Liability, and Steroid Treatment: Manic Episode, Brain Imaging Findings, and Clinical Follow-up of a Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Case.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or Lupus is a chronic and idiopathic autoimmune connective tissue disease that involves several organs and organ systems. SLE may lead to a group of psychiatric manifestations, including delirium, anxiety disorders, cognitive dysfunction, mood disorders, and psychosis, which are caused by organic or non-organic factors. In addition, it is thought that the most common cause of neuropsychiatric lupus is corticosteroid use; central nervous system involvement and inflammatory processes also have an important role in the development of psychiatric manifestations. In other respects, structural brain abnormalities induce proneness to psychotic and manic symptoms. Along with this proneness, cavum vergae, an anomaly closely related to the anatomic areas associated with mood regulation, may precipitate manic symptoms. In this case report, we present a manic episode case emerging after delirium, with a 1-year history of SLE, which has recently been diagnosed with cavum vergae and discuss the process of infection and corticosteroid treatment, which contributed to the proneness effect of a structural brain anomaly.