Adipocytokines levels as potential biomarkers for discriminating patients with a diagnosis of depressive disorder from healthy controls.

BACKGROUND: Depressive disorder is a complex mental health condition in which the etiopathogenesis involves several factors. Suitable biomarkers for the development of depression have not yet been established. Alterations in cytokines are assumed to be involved in the pathophysiology of depressive disorder. Adipokines (also known as adipocytokines) are important factors that not only regulate the energy balance but also regulate the inflammatory and immune responses. This study investigated the serum levels of adiponectin, leptin, resistin, chemerin, and fetuin A and the possible role of these adipokines in depressive disorder. METHODS: We recruited a total of 73 patients diagnosed with recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) and 54 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HCs). Serum adipocytokines were determined using ELISA kits (R&D, USA). The serum levels of the investigated molecules between depressive patients and HCs were compared, and diagnostic values were evaluated using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve method for discriminating depressive patients from HCs. Correlations between the molecules and clinical variables were also evaluated. RESULTS: Patients with rDD had lower levels of serum adiponectin and chemerin and higher levels of serum leptin, resistin and fetuin A (p < 0.05) vs. controls. Moreover, ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) values of above set of adipocytkines were >0.7, with a sensitivity and specificity over 80% in discriminating patients with rDD from HCs. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that circulating adipocytokies may hold promise as biomarkers for the diagnosis of rDD.

Serum levels of biomarkers that may link chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and depressive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Depressive disorder is a common comorbidity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); according to some studies, it occurs in approximately 80% of patients. The presence of depressive symptoms influences the quality of life and affects the course and treatment of this disease. The cause of depressive symptoms in COPD and the linking mechanism between COPD and depressive disorder have not been clearly elucidated, and more studies are warranted. Inflammation and inflammation-related processes and biomarkers are involved in the etiology of COPD and depressive disorder and may be an explanation for the potential occurrence of depressive disorder in patients diagnosed with COPD. The scope of this study was to measure and compare the profiles of IL-18, TGF-ß, RANTES, ICAM-1, and uPAR among stable COPD patients, recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) patients, and healthy controls. METHODS: Inflammation and inflammation-related factors were evaluated in COPD patients, patients diagnosed with depressive disorder, and control individuals using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. RESULTS: Interleukin (IL)-18, transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß, chemokine RANTES, and urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) concentrations were higher in patients suffering from COPD and depression than in control patients. Intercellular adhesive molecule (ICAM)-1 levels were significantly higher in COPD patients and lower in depressive disorder patients than in controls. CONCLUSIONS: Higher levels of IL-18, TGF-ß, RANTES, and uPAR in patients with COPD might indicate the presence of depressive disorder and suggest the need for further evaluation of the mental state of these patients.

Deiodinase Types 1 and 3 and Proinflammatory Cytokine Values May Discriminate Depressive Disorder Patients from Healthy Controls.

INTRODUCTION: Depressive disorders are multifactorial diseases in that a variety of factors may play a role in their etiology, including inflammation and abnormalities in the thyroid hormone (TH) metabolism and levels. The purpose of this study was to evaluate iodothyronine deiodinases (DIOs) and DIO-interacting cytokines as possible biomarkers in the diagnosis of depressive disorders. METHODS: This study enrolled 73 patients diagnosed with recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) and 54 controls. The expressions of DIO1, DIO2, DIO3, IL1B, IL6, TNFA, and IFNG genes, encoding three types of DIOs (1, 2, and 3), interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and interferon (IFN)-γ, were assessed using the polymerase chain reaction in blood cells and an enzymatic immunoassay method in serum. The levels of examined molecules between patients and controls were compared, and correlations and diagnostic values were evaluated. RESULTS: Lower levels of DIO2 and higher levels of IL1B, IL6, and TNFA were found in patients compared to controls. The protein concentrations of DIO1 and DIO2 were lower, while that of DIO3 was higher, in patients than in controls. Serum IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α were also higher in patients than in controls. The area under the curve (AUC) of the IL-1ß, IL-6, DIO1, and DIO3 proteins was >0.7 for discriminating patients with rDD from controls. CONCLUSIONS: The expressions of genes for DIO2, IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α may have a role in the estimation of processes present in depressive disorders. We can cautiously claim that DIO1 and DIO3 and pivotal cytokines, mainly IL-1ß and IL-6, may play a role in depression diagnosis, and further studies are suggested to explain the exact role of these molecules in larger samples with more precise methods.

Comparing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and depressive disorder in terms of inflammation-related biomarkers.

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by the presence of depressive symptoms. Methods: Cytokine and deiodinase iodothyronines (DIOs) levels were evaluated in COPD patients and patients diagnosed with depressive disorder and control individuals. using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Results: Interleukin 1ß (IL-1ß), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels were higher in COPD and depression patients than in control individuals. DIO2 were significantly lower in COPD and recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) patients than in controls. Conclusions: Changes in the levels of IL-1ß, TNF-α and DIO2 in COPD patients may explain the presence of depression in COPD patients.

Leptin, resistin and fetuin a concentration as the potential useful biomarkers in stable COPD - An exploratory study.

Adipokines, which have pleiotropic activities, are known to be involved in inflammation as adipocytokines. The aim of the current study was to investigate selected adipocytokine levels in the serum of stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease COPD patients and healthy controls, to assess a potential association between the investigated biomarkers and selected parameters and to conduct receiving operating curve (ROC) analysis. Twenty-five COPD patients and 30 healthy controls were enrolled in the current study. Serum levels of adiponectin, leptin, resistin, chemerin and fetuin A were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Both leptin and resistin concentrations were significantly elevated in COPD patients and differentiated them from control subjects. Fetuin A levels were lower in COPD patients and may be related to the disease. Further studies in larger cohorts are needed to confirm the findings of this exploratory study.

The Structure of Temperament in Caregivers of Patients with Schizophrenia.

The onset of schizophrenia symptoms usually occurs in early youth. As a result, the parents of these patients usually become their caregivers. The role of a caregiver for a person with schizophrenia is a considerable mental and physical burden. Therefore, an interesting issue is what motivates these people to take up this challenge. It is probable that, apart from the moral imperative or kinship, the factor determining this decision is the personality structure of the caregiver. The aim of our study was to compare the structure of temperament (according to the model of temperament as formal characteristics of behavior developed by Jan Strelau) in caregivers of young adults (age 18-25 years) with schizophrenia with the structure of temperament of parents of healthy young adults still living in the family home under their care. The study group consisted of 64 people (51 women), who were taking care of young adults (aged 18-25 years) with schizophrenia, while the control group (53 people, 42 women) consisted of parents of healthy adults still living in the family home. Both groups were asked to complete a questionnaire of the authors' own design on their demographic data as well as The Formal Characteristics of Behavior-Temperament Inventory to assess the temperament traits. The results were given in the number of points obtained on average in each dimension. Both groups did not differ in terms of size and age, with women predominating. Caregivers of young adults with schizophrenia had higher values of briskness (43.22 ± 4.45 vs. 42.90 ± 3.98, p = 0.032), emotional reactivity (46.02 ± 4.39 vs. 41.01 ± 3.12, p = 0.012) and activity level (44.01.89 ± 4.15 vs. 37.59 ± 4.77, p = 0.022) compared to the control group. The remaining dimensions of temperament: perseverance, sensory sensitivity, rhythmicity, and endurance did not differentiate between the two groups. The temperament structure of caregivers of young people with schizophrenia differs from the temperament structure of caregivers of healthy adults. Caregivers of sick people have higher values of briskness, emotional reactivity, and activity level compared to the control group.

Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 5 (RANTES) concentrations in the peripheral blood of patients with a depressive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Inflammation plays a role in the pathomechanism of depressive disorder. Cytokines interact with iodothyronine deiodinases (DIOs) that are involved in thyroid hormone (TH) metabolism. DIOs are known as modifiers of the inflammatory response. RANTES is a chemokine that has been detected in a wide range of inflammatory disorders, but is less studied in depression. We aimed to investigate the concentration of RANTES in patients with recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) and examine any potential correlation with other molecules, such as interleukins (ILs) and DIOs. METHODS: The levels of RANTES and other molecules associated with depressive disorder, including deiodinase type 1 (DIO1), interleukin (IL)1ß, and IL-6, were measured by enzymatic immune assay (ELISA) in the serum of 43 patients with depressive disorder and 36 controls. RESULTS: RANTES levels were higher in depressed patients than in controls. The level of RANTES was negatively correlated with the deiodinase type 1 (DIO1) level in women diagnosed with rDD. IL-1ß and IL-6 levels were significantly higher in depressed patients than in controls. IL-1ß was positively correlated with deiodinase type 3 (DIO3). A negative correlation between DIO1 and the number of depressive episodes in women with rDD was observed. CONCLUSION: With the observed elevated RANTES levels, increases in ILs concentrations, and a possible link between immune aspects and DIOa in patients with rDD, our study contributes to the current pool of knowledge about the complex aetiology of depression and suggests future studies focus on precision mechanisms that explain the link between TH-related molecules and immune molecules.