World Journal of Biological Psychiatry最新文献

Objectives: The study aimed to investigate whether involvement in a stable romantic partnership is associated with differences in peripheral brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 60 healthy adults (32 women; mean age 27.4 ± 4.1 years) were classified as in a stable relationship (n = 31) or not (n = 29) after a clinical interview. Morning fasting blood was collected to quantify serum and platelet BDNF using a mature-BDNF sandwich ELISA. Data were analysed with t-tests and two-way ANOVA (group, sex), reporting effect sizes.

Results: Participants in a relationship showed higher PLT-BDNF (4.36 ± 1.22 vs 2.85 ± 0.67 ng/mg; t(58) = 5.90, p < 0.001, d = 1.52) and higher serum BDNF (36.83 ± 6.95 vs 25.47 ± 5.23 ng/ml; t(58) = 7.12, p < 0.001, d = 1.84) than participants without a current stable romantic relationship. Two-way ANOVA confirmed a main effect of group for PLT-BDNF (F = 35.35, p < 0.001, η² = 0.39) and serum BDNF (F ≈ 50, p < 0.001, η²≈0.47), while the sex and group × sex interactions were not statistically significant for both PLT-BDNF and serum BDNF.

Conclusions: Our results would indicate that a stable romantic partnership is associated with higher intraplatelet and serum BDNF levels. These findings support an association between current committed romantic relationship status and peripheral BDNF measures in healthy adults.

Background: Psychiatric traits/disorders and kidney dysfunction frequently co-occur, yet the causal relationships between them remain unclear.

Methods: A bidirectional MR study investigated causal links between psychiatric traits/disorders and kidney function related traits/diseases. Genetic instruments came from large-scale GWAS. IVW analysis provided primary causal estimates, supplemented by sensitivity methods. We further tested whether modifiable lifestyle factors mediated these associations.

Results: The effects of psychiatric traits/disorders on conventional kidney function related traits/diseases are considerably more complex, while the reverse causal effects from kidney on psychiatric traits/disorders tend to be more limited. Specifically, anxiety and MDD reduced CRE; anxiety raised uric acid; schizophrenia showed bidirectional causality with uric acid and BUN. Collectively, these disorders elevated eGFRcrea. Anxiety and neuroticism increased AKI risk, while bipolar disorder heightened CKD risk. Mediation analysis demonstrated that BMI, education, alcohol consumption and smoking serve as significant mediators in the pathways from psychiatric traits/disorders to renal function.

Conclusion: Bidirectional genetic causality was observed between psychiatric traits/disorders and kidney function related traits/diseases, though causal effects from psychiatric traits/disorders on kidney impairment were more pronounced. Modifiable lifestyle factors may be potential targets for prevention and clinical intervention.

Objectives: Both depression and suicidal behaviour have been associated with neuroinflammation. Galectin-3 (Gal-3), a protein involved in microglial activation, has been linked to pro-inflammatory cytokines and the severity of depressive symptoms. The extent to which peripheral levels of Gal-3 reflect neuroinflammation is unknown, as is the relationship between Gal-3 and suicidality.

Methods: Blood and CSF samples were collected from recent suicide attempters and healthy controls. CSF levels of cytokines interleukin (IL)-8, IL-1β, IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were available from a subset of the suicide attempters. The Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) was used for the assessment of depression symptom severity.

Results: We found a strong positive correlation between Gal-3 levels in plasma and CSF (r = 0.77, p < 0.001, n = 22). There were no significant differences in Gal-3 between suicide attempters and controls in plasma (n = 16 and 23, respectively) or CSF (n = 13 and 18, respectively). Among suicide attempters, we found a negative correlation between Gal-3 and IL-8 in CSF (r = -0.40, p = 0.01, n = 39). Gal-3 did not correlate significantly with any of the other cytokines.

Conclusions: Peripheral Gal-3 levels seem to reflect Gal-3 in the central nervous system. Results from this small-scale study do not support the role of Gal-3 in the pathophysiology of suicidal behaviour.

Objectives: To assess the association between sleep and suicidal thoughts in French university students.

Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using baseline data from the i-Share study, i.e. a database of health information for a large cohort of students. Multinomial logistic regression models adjusted for potential confounders were used to assess the association between sleep and suicidal thoughts. Missing data were imputed.

Results: In the sample of 6411 participants, nearly one in five students reported having suicidal thoughts in the past 12 months: 17.7% reported occasional suicidal thoughts (yes, it has happened to me) and 4.6% reported frequent suicidal thoughts (yes, multiple times). One in five students (21.5%) reported frequent insomnia (≥3 times per week). After adjustment, the risk of frequent suicidal thoughts was 50% higher in students with insomnia than in those without insomnia. The frequency of suicidal thoughts increased with the frequency of sleep problems. Similar results were observed for sleepiness, sleep deprivation, and sleep quality.

Conclusions: An association was found between each sleep disturbance and suicidal thoughts after adjusting for depressive and anxiety symptoms. Sleep is a readily assessable clinical marker of suicidal thoughts and may be a more acceptable treatment target than other behaviours.

Objectives: This study aims to explore the potential interconnection among epigenetic alteration, epitranscriptomic modifications, and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Additionally, it tries to identify potential therapeutic interventions in depression by understanding the molecular mechanisms in DNA and RNA-based regulation.

Methods: To achieve these goals, we reviewed the recent and updated existing literature, critical reviews and encompassing studies that fall under the domain of MDD, epigenetic and epitranscriptomic alteration.

Results: These findings highlight a notable association between chromatin-level modifications and RNA-level regulatory changes in the context of MDD. MDD is largely the result of genetic vulnerability conferred by the combined actions of many genes. Additionally, environmental factors, including early-life stress, contribute substantially to the development of MDD. Our review draws attention to the expanding focus in depression research, which includes posttranscriptional RNA modifications alongside DNA epigenetic changes.

Conclusion: MDD is a psychiatric disorder characterised by persistent sadness, diminished energy, and sleep disturbances, that affects millions of individuals worldwide. Besides providing a better and more detailed understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying MDD, information from this review could aid in the identification of chromatin-RNA regulators and pathways as potential targets in developing effective therapeutics for MDD.

Objectives: Methylphenidate (MPH) is a stimulant primarily used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study examined cross-national differences in MPH utilisation among primarily adult psychiatric inpatients in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

Methods: Data were collected between 2007 and 2017 from psychiatric hospitals in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland participating in the AMSP pharmacovigilance program.

Results: Among 102,740 inpatients, 560 (0.55%) received MPH. The sample was young with a mean age of 33.9 years. The proportion of inpatients treated with MPH was highest in Switzerland (2%) and markedly lower in Germany and Austria (both 0.3%). Among MPH-treated patients, depressive disorders, neurotic and personality disorders and substance-related disorders were most prevalent. Overall, only 287 patients (51.3%) had an ADHD diagnosis. Men represented 58.6% of the MPH group and received higher daily doses than women. 87.1% of MPH-treated patients received at least one additional psychotropic drug.

Conclusions: Adult MPH use in adult psychiatric inpatient care was rare, showed marked cross-national variation and was typically embedded in complex psychopharmacological regimens. The finding that only about half of MPH-treated inpatients had a documented ADHD diagnosis underscores the need for more detailed studies on indications, clinical decision-making and outcomes of MPH treatment in routine psychiatric practice.

Objectives: Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) are a significant risk factor for developing major depressive disorder (MDD) later in life, with mitochondria, key sensors of biological stress signals, emerging as a potential underlying mechanism. In the present study, we investigated the effects of ACE and MDD on whole blood mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn), a proposed biomarker of mitochondrial health. In our analyses, we accounted for the platelet-to-leukocyte ratio, recognised as a source of variation in mtDNAcn measurements.

Methods: Whole blood mtDNAcn was measured by qPCR in n = 21 healthy participants without ACE, n = 25 MDD patients without ACE, n = 22 healthy participants with ACE, n = 23 patients with MDD and ACE. None of the participants was taking psychotropic medication.

Results: We observed a significant effect of ACE on whole blood mtDNAcn, while no effect of MDD or ACE and MDD interaction was seen. After adjustment for the platelet-to-leukocyte ratio, the effect of ACE on mtDNAcn was no longer significant.

Conclusions: Our findings do not support an association between ACE or MDD and whole blood mtDNAcn. Considering blood cell composition may enhance the understanding of whole blood mtDNAcn findings in trauma‑ and MDD‑related research.

Objectives: This study was to evaluate the associations between the systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), systemic inflammatory response index (SIRI), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and depressive symptoms in the general population.

Methods: We analysed data from 96,838 participants in a large-scale Korean cohort study. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate unadjusted and multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for incident depressive symptoms across quartiles of hematological inflammatory indices.

Results: During a median follow-up of 6.5 years, 17.3% (n = 16,793) of the participants developed incidental depressive symptoms. Higher quartiles of SII, SIRI, and MLR were significantly associated with slight increase in the risk of depressive symptoms with a dose-response pattern. Sex-stratified analyses revealed that the SII was a stronger predictor of depressive symptoms in men, whereas the SIRI and MLR showed stronger associations in women.

Conclusion: Hematological inflammatory indices including SII, SIRI, and MLR appeared to have a potential in predicting depressive symptoms.

Objectives: Human actions are inherently driven to reduce unpleasant, aversive experiences through physiological and behavioral adaptations. Addictive substances can temporarily fulfil this need for avoidance when conditions are perceived as excessively aversive. However, long-term use can impair cognitive processes involved in self-preservation. Substance use directly and indirectly influences acute and chronic mental states characterized by dysphoria, negative emotions, altered cognition, an altered sense of reality, and diminished awareness of negative consequences, all of which have deleterious effects on the individual.

Methods: A narrative synthesis of the literature was conducted, focusing on neurochemical, neuroendocrine, neural pathway, immune, and genetic mechanisms implicated insuicide risk among individuals with SUD.

Results: The complex mental state seen in individuals with problematic substance use is the result of altered neurobiology, which conveys a strong predisposition to suicidal behaviors. The etiology of suicide among individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) is multifactorial and mediated through several neurochemical modifications that eventually create a transient or long-lasting unique neurobiological state dependent on the pattern of use.

Conclusions: Multiple neuroendocrine and immune response pathways, along with underlying genetic sequences of interest, are a leading focus in identifying individuals at risk for suicide and in understanding disease heterogeneity and universality.