Oxidant/antioxidant imbalance is an inherent feature of depression

BMC Psychiatry, Apr 2015

Background 50% to 60% of the people who have recovered from the first episode of depression experience a relapse. The immune system of the people suffering from depression is in a permanent state of pathological pro-inflammatory readiness. There are some reports that depressive episodes cause sensitization of immune-inflammatory pathways and that staing of depression (e.g. number of depressive episodes) is correlated with immune-inflammatory markers. The main objective of the study was to delineate whether recurrent major depression (rDD) is characterized by alterations in selected immune-inflammatory biomarkers as compared with first episode of depression (ED-I), i.e. expression of mRNA and enzymatic activity of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD, SOD-2), myeloperoxidase (MPO), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS, NOS-2), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). Methods The study was carried out in a group of 131 patients: ED-I group – 42 patients, rDD group – 89 patients. Depression severity was assessed with the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). The number of depression episodes and the disease duration periods were recorded in each patient. For the patients, HDRS was administered at admission during the symptomatic phase, which would generally be either before or shortly after modification of the previous antidepressant drug regimen. Reassessment of the mental condition was conducted after 8 weeks of the pharmacological treatment also with the use of the HDRS scale. Results No significant statistical differences were found between the analysed groups as regards the intensity of depressive disorders. No differences in the expression of MnSOD, MPO, COX-2 and i-NOS genes on the level of both mRNA and protein were observed between both groups. No significant interrelation was noticed between the number of depression episodes experienced and the expression of selected genes on the mRNA level and protein level. Conclusions There is no significant difference in MnSOD, MPO, COX-2 and i-NOS between patients with recurrent depressive disorders and those in a first episode of depression. These findings suggest that these enzymes are trait markers of depression and are not related to staging of depression.

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Oxidant/antioxidant imbalance is an inherent feature of depression

Talarowska et al. BMC Psychiatry Oxidant/antioxidant imbalance is an inherent feature of depression Monika Talarowska 0 Janusz Szemraj Michael Berk Michael Maes Piotr Gaecki 0 0 Department of Adult Psychiatry, Medical University of Lodz , Lodz , Poland Background: 50% to 60% of the people who have recovered from the first episode of depression experience a relapse. The immune system of the people suffering from depression is in a permanent state of pathological pro-inflammatory readiness. There are some reports that depressive episodes cause sensitization of immune-inflammatory pathways and that staing of depression (e.g. number of depressive episodes) is correlated with immune-inflammatory markers. The main objective of the study was to delineate whether recurrent major depression (rDD) is characterized by alterations in selected immune-inflammatory biomarkers as compared with first episode of depression (ED-I), i.e. expression of mRNA and enzymatic activity of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD, SOD-2), myeloperoxidase (MPO), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS, NOS-2), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). Methods: The study was carried out in a group of 131 patients: ED-I group - 42 patients, rDD group - 89 patients. Depression severity was assessed with the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). The number of depression episodes and the disease duration periods were recorded in each patient. For the patients, HDRS was administered at admission during the symptomatic phase, which would generally be either before or shortly after modification of the previous antidepressant drug regimen. Reassessment of the mental condition was conducted after 8 weeks of the pharmacological treatment also with the use of the HDRS scale. Results: No significant statistical differences were found between the analysed groups as regards the intensity of depressive disorders. No differences in the expression of MnSOD, MPO, COX-2 and i-NOS genes on the level of both mRNA and protein were observed between both groups. No significant interrelation was noticed between the number of depression episodes experienced and the expression of selected genes on the mRNA level and protein level. Conclusions: There is no significant difference in MnSOD, MPO, COX-2 and i-NOS between patients with recurrent depressive disorders and those in a first episode of depression. These findings suggest that these enzymes are trait markers of depression and are not related to staging of depression. Depression episode; rDD; MnSOD; MPO; COX-2; i-NOS - Background Annual prevalence of depression in the adult population oscillates between 6% and 12%, and according to different sources varies from 5% to even 30% among people over the age of 65 [1]. Depression often accompanies other diseases, which means its symptoms are observed in approximately 10% of all adults within one year (this corresponds to 100 million cases). Episodes of lower mood last relatively long from 6 to 9 months. The disease may also take a chronic form, resistant to treatment. Age, at which the first episode takes place, as well as duration, frequency and intensity of episodes are characterised by individual variability [2]. 50% to 60% of the people who have recovered from the first episode of depression experience a relapse. In the majority of hospitalised patients another depressive episode appears within the next two years of discharging from the hospital. It is estimated that some 20% of the affected with diagnosed recurrent depressive disorders experience two depressive stages during their life, and 60% three or more such stages (34 on average) [3]. Every successive episode is associated with a less positive prognosis and poorer response to pharmacological treatment [4]. The first hypothesis that macrophages may play a role in depression was published in 1991 by Ronald Smith [5], whereas the first original reports on activation of immune-inflammatory pathways in depression were reported as of 1990 by Maes et al. Today, it is agreed that the immune system of the people suffering from depression is in a permanent state of pathological pro-inflammatory readiness [6]. The symptoms of an ongoing inflammatory process, like fatigue, sleep disorders, anxiety, low mood, loss of appetite or anhedonia, correspond to the symptoms of depressive disorders [7,8]. On the other hand, not only proinflammatory cytokines, e.g. tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-), the interleukins (IL) and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), but also anti-inflammatory cytokines are released by CNS and peripheral-derived immune cells and play a powerful role in depression [9]. There are data that depressive episodes are accompanied by an increased sensitization of immune-inflammatory pathways and that the number of depressive episodes is correlated with immuneinflammatory markers such as TNF- and neopterin [10]. The main objective of the study was to examine whether recurrent major depression (rDD) is acc (...truncated)


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Monika Talarowska, Janusz Szemraj, Michael Berk, Michael Maes, Piotr Gałecki. Oxidant/antioxidant imbalance is an inherent feature of depression, BMC Psychiatry, 2015, pp. 71, 15, DOI: 10.1186/s12888-015-0454-5