Perceived Stress, Positive Resources and Their Interactions as Possible Related Factors for Depressive Symptoms.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to explore how the patterns of interaction between stress and positive resources differ according to the severity of depression and which resources play the most important role among the various positive resources. METHODS: The study included 1,806 people who had visited a health screening center for a mental health check-up to evaluate the levels of perceived stress, positive resources, and depressive symptoms. The participants were divided into a depressive group (n=1,642, mean age 50.60, female 68%) and a non-depressive group (n=164, mean age 48.42, female 66.6%). We conducted hierarchical regression analyses and simple slope analyses to examine the interaction between perceived stress and positive resources. RESULTS: The interaction between perceived stress and optimism was significantly associated with depression in non-depressive groups. In depressive groups, the interactions between five types of positive resources (optimism, purpose in life, self-control, social support and care) and perceived stress were all significantly related to depression. CONCLUSION: Interventions that promote optimism can be helpful for preventing inevitable stress from leading to depression. A deficiency in positive resources may be a factor in aggravating depression in stressful situations for people reporting moderate to severe depressive symptoms.

High Behavioral Inhibition System/Behavioral Activation System Sensitivity, Childhood Emotional Neglect and Their Interaction as Possible Related Factors for Adult Attachment Style in Depression.

OBJECTIVE: Individual differences in attachment insecurity are important in a broad range of mental health problems. However, few empirical studies have examined the clinical factors that contribute to individual differences in attachment style. This study examines the nature of interrelationships among adult attachment styles, sensitivities of behavioral activation system/behavioral inhibition system (BIS/BAS), and childhood trauma in patients with depressive disorders. METHODS: Patients with depressive disorders (n=294) completed self-report questionnaires evaluating adult attachment style, childhood trauma, and BIS/BAS sensitivity. We performed multiple regression analyses to examine the associations between attachment style and other clinical factors, including childhood trauma and BIS/BAS sensitivity. We also conducted hierarchical regression analyses and simple slope analyses to examine the interaction between BIS/BAS sensitivity and childhood trauma. RESULTS: The BAS sensitivity was negatively associated with attachment avoidance. The higher was the BIS/BAS sensitivity, the higher was the level of attachment anxiety. Among childhood trauma, emotional neglect contributed to both dimensions of insecure attachment. The interaction between BAS sensitivity and emotional neglect is significantly associated with attachment anxiety. CONCLUSION: This study used data regarding the interrelationship of childhood trauma and basic motivational systems to contribute to the understanding of adult insecure attachment behaviors, a risk factor for depression.

Sleep problems as a risk factor for suicide: Are certain specific sleep domains associated with increased suicide risk?

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between sleep problems and suicidal ideation in depressive patients. BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Evidence from diverse settings and populations indicates that sleep problems are associated with suicidal ideation. However, relationships between them are not well defined. This study was conducted in order to explore whether poor sleep was associated with suicidal ideation above and beyond depression and whether specific domains of sleep were related to suicidal ideation. We also determined whether the association between sleep problems and suicidal ideation was mediated by depression. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients aged 18-65 years from an outpatient clinic at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital were recruited for this study. From September 2010 to November 2017, a total of 909 participants were included in the final sample. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were used to assess psychiatric symptoms. Independent samples t-test, chi-square test, Pearson correlation analyses, hierarchical multiple regression analyses, and mediation analyses were performed using SPSS PROCESS macro. RESULTS: The majority of participants with suicidal ideation also had sleep problems (94.9%). After controlling for age, marital status, and depressive symptoms, total sleep problems estimated by the PSQI global score were also significant associated with suicidal ideation. Among seven sleep components derived from the PSQI, several components including cough or snore loudly, have bad dreams, and use sleep medication were associated with increased suicide risk. Also, the relationship between sleep problems and suicidal ideation was mediated by depressive symptoms indirectly. There was no convincing direct relationship between sleep problems and suicidal ideation. CONCLUSIONS: Investigating the pathways which connect sleep problems and suicidality is fundamental to the development of suicide prevention. While it might be premature to suggest specific interventions, it would be important for clinicians to consider evaluating and managing sleep problems in the context of suicidality.

Interference with the mitochondrial bioenergetics fuels reprogramming to pluripotency via facilitation of the glycolytic transition.

The switch in cell metabolism from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis is critical for the reprogramming of cells to pluripotency. Here, we demonstrate that the disturbance of mitochondrial metabolism by canonical mitochondrial inhibitors enhances metabolic reprogramming toward a glycolytic state, enabling the highly efficient generation of induced pluripotent stem cells. This interference with mitochondrial bioenergetics resulted in enriched reprogrammable subpopulations and accelerated the conversion of refractory intermediates to pluripotent states without requiring additional genetic or epigenetic modifications. Conversely, the reprogramming efficiency and accelerated reprogramming kinetics promoted by mitochondrial inhibition were obstructed by glycolysis inhibitors. We suggest that changes in mitochondrial bioenergetics are a novel mechanism involved in the regulation of cell fate and, more importantly, in the reprogramming of cells to pluripotency.