Polymorphism and expression of the Dvl3 gene in the etiology of depressive disorder. / Znaczenie polimorfizmu i ekspresji genu Dvl3 w etiologii zaburzen depresyjnych nawracajacych.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the Dvl3 gene in the etiology of depression by comparison of Dvl3 mRNA expression, Dvl3 protein levels and polymorphism at locus rs1969253 located in the intron of the Dvl3 gene in patients suffering from depression versus healthy controls, as well as to search for clinical variables related to polymorphism or expression of the analyzed gene. METHODS: Study group involved 181 individuals suffering from recurrent depressive disorder or depressive episode. Control group consisted of 102 healthy individuals. Sample of peripheral blood was obtained from each participant to measure Dvl3 mRNA expression, Dvl3 protein levels and polymorphism at locus rs1969253. Patients were examined on study entry with the Hamilton Depression Scale and data on the gender, age and course of disorder were gathered. Obtained data were analyzed statistically. RESULTS: Significantly decreased Dvl3 mRNA expression and Dvl3 protein levels were found in patients suffering from depression in comparison to healthy individuals. Expression of the Dvl3 gene in depressed patients was not affected by the patients' gender, age, number of episodes, severity of symptoms, duration of the illness or age of onset. The analysis of polymorphism at locus rs1969253 indicated that individuals with genotypes CA and CC had over 3 times higher risk of having depression in comparison to individuals with AA genotype (OR = 3.3; 95% CI = 1.56-6.99). No relationship was observed between the polymorphism and the analyzed clinical variables. CONCLUSIONS: Changes in expression and polymorphism of the Dvl3 gene may play a role in the pathogenetic mechanism of depressive disorder.

Human neuropsin gene in depression.

BACKGROUND: Neuropsin (NP, kallikrein 8, KLK8) - a kallikrein gene-related (KLK) endoprotease - plays a key role in neuroplasticity processes, since intracellular signal cascades and regulation of gene expression are engaged in long-term synaptic plasticity. The main aim of this paper is to compare expression of the human neuropsin gene on the mRNA level in a group of patients diagnosed with depression and in a group of healthy subjects who have never been treated psychiatrically. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: 291 people, aged 18-67, were qualified to participate in the experiment: major recurrent depression group (MRD) and the control group (CG). Designations were carried out for the human NP gene (hNP). RESULTS: For hNP gene expression at the mRNA level was higher in patients with depression than in the CG (p<0.005). A Spearman's rank correlation analysis did not reveal any statistically significant relationship between the intensity of the disease measured using the HDRS scale and expression on the mRNA level for the hNP gene. Expression for the hNP gene in the entire group analysed increased with age of the examined individuals (p<0.005). CONCLUSION: Expression of the hNP gene on the mRNA level, evaluated based on peripheral blood, is significantly higher in the patients with MRD than in the healthy subjects.

[The use of psychotropic drugs during breast-feeding]. / Stosowanie leków psychotropowych u kobiet karmiacych piersia.

Breast milk is the best source of nutrients and provides much better protection than immune modified milk. In the United States around 500 000 cases of mental disorders affecting pregnant women are diagnosed each year. It is estimated that approximately 1/3 of these women need psychotropic drugs in a period of breast-feeding. Despite the serious consequences of depression and its well-known effect on a newborn, the women are still reluctant to begin pharmacological treatment. The fear of side effects unfortunately still plays an important role in making such a decision. It has been proved that all psychiatric drugs can transfer into breast milk, but their levels are very low or even negligible for the newborn. Most laboratory tests do not reveal an adequate sensitivity to detect these low concentrations. One have to remember that in case of any disturbing symptoms which may result from the use of these drugs, the only procedure is to discontinue breastfeeding immediately. The knowledge of these effects of particular groups of psychotropic drugs in breast-feeding mothers is essential for every practitioner. This knowledge should also be available not only to psychiatrists, but gynecologists and pediatricians as well. For this reason, it seems to be reasonable to summarize the results of previously published studies dealing with the topic.

[Emotional and language prosody and working memory in patients with depression]. / Prozodia emocjonalna i jezykowa a pamiec operacyjna u chorych z depresja.

AIM: The aim of the study was to verify the hypothesis about the relationship between the efficiency of executive functions and emotional prosody and linguistic prosody among patients with recurrent depressive disorder (rDD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study comprised 80 subjects, patients with rDD. Assessment of cognitive function was based on performance of the Trail Making Test (TMT), the Stroop Test, the Verbal Fluency Test (VFT), the Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT), Ruff Figural Fluency Test (RFFT) and emotional prosody and linguistic prosody. RESULTS: Efficiency of emotional prosody is linked to the execution of one part of the test VFT. Efficiency in the language prosody goes hand in hand with the speed of execution of both parts of the TMT, correctness of the implementation of VFT and RFFT. A negative impact of depressive symptoms only for language prosody was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Deficits in the recognition of emotional stimuli in depression are not necessarily limited to visual information, but may also apply to non-verbal auditory stimuli (prosody). The severity of symptoms of depression impairs efficiency of linguistic prosody. The efficiency of frontal functions (both visual-spatial and verbal-auditory) is related to the ability of patients to use non-verbal communication of emotional information.

Cognitive functions in first-episode depression and recurrent depressive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive deficits in the course of depressive disorders affect mainly memory, attention and the frontal functions. They are associated with both an earlier onset of symptoms and prolonged episodes. The main aim of the study was to verify the hypothesis of differences in the effectiveness of cognitive processes between patients with a first episode of depression (ED-I) and recurrent depressive disorders (rDD). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The study comprised 210 subjects: patients with ED-I (n=60) and patients with rDD (n=150). The assessment of cognitive functions was based on performance of the Trail Making Test, the Stroop Test, the Verbal Fluency Test, the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) and the digit span from WAIS-R. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the analysed groups in the severity of depressive symptoms. The negative impact of depressive symptoms on the effectiveness of cognitive functions was observed. The ED-I group recorded better results compared to the rDD group in terms of the speed of information processing, visual-spatial and auditory-verbal memory and executive functions, auditory-verbal immediate and delayed memory, ability to learn and verbal fluency. The same differences were observed with respect to the patients from the ED-I group and the patients with the second episode of depression (ED-II) in the course of rDD. CONCLUSIONS: There are significant differences in cognitive functioning of patients with a depressive episode and recurrent depressive disorders. These differences are already visible from the second episode of a major depressive disorder. Memory, verbal fluency and frontal functions are reduced.

ASMT gene expression correlates with cognitive impairment in patients with recurrent depressive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Recurrent depressive disorder is a multifactorial disease; one of the typical features is cognitive impairment. The purpose of this study was analysis of ASMT gene expression both on mRNA and protein levels in patients with recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) and assessment of the relationship between plasma level of ASMT protein, gene expression on mRNA level, and cognitive performance. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 236 subjects: patients with rDD (n=131) and healthy subjects (n=105, CG). Cognitive function assessment was based on: Trail Making Test, The Stroop Test, Verbal Fluency Test (VFT), and Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT). RESULTS: Both mRNA and protein expression levels of ASMT gene were significantly higher in healthy subjects when compared to rDD. The average ASMT mRNA expression level measured for the entire group was M=0.21 (SD=0.09), and the protein level was M=12.84 (SD=3.29). In patients with rDD, statistically significant correlations occurred between both mRNA and protein expression levels and part A of the TMT (negative correlation) and verbal fluency test (positive correlation). In the group CG, there was no statistically significant association between the analyzed variables. In the entire group there was a statistically significant correlation between both ASMT mRNA and protein expression levels and all the neuropsychological tests used in the survey. CONCLUSIONS: 1. Our study confirms previous results showing decreased mRNA and protein expression levels of ASMT gene in depression. 2. Our data suggest a relationship between decreased mRNA and protein expression levels of ASMT gene and cognitive impairment.

Impact of oxidative/nitrosative stress and inflammation on cognitive functions in patients with recurrent depressive disorders.

Data show that up to 38.2% of the European population have a mental disorder and that recurrent depressive disorder (rDD) is among the most commonly diagnosed disabling diseases. Over the last few years, neurocognitive impairments in rDD have become a new research front focusing on the role of cognitive decline during the course of rDD and in relation to its clinical presentation and prognosis. Both immune-inflammatory and oxidative and nitrosative stress (O&NS) processes potentially play a role in development of cognitive dysfunction in rDD. New evidence shows that chronic inflammatory and O&NS reactions occur in the brains of patients with neurodegenerative disorders and those with rDD. This narrative review presents the current state of knowledge on the possible impact of selected inflammatory and O&NS enzymes on cognitive functioning in patients with rDD. We focus on manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and myeloperoxidase (MPO).

Depression and ways of coping with stress: a preliminary study.

BACKGROUND: Coping with stress is defined as all activities undertaken by a human in a stressful situation. The effect of stress on depression, its role in triggering the subsequent phases of the disease, and the factors that mediate the stress-depression relationship become more and more often subjects of research in psychiatry and psychology. Factors important for the formation of depressive symptoms and disease progression are significantly associated with coping strategies used in the face of stress. The main aim of the study was to evaluate the most popular strategies of coping with stress in people with depression in comparison to healthy subjects. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Initial research was carried on 80 patients aged from 20 to 66 years with a diagnosis of depression. The control group consisted of 30 healthy subjects aged 22 to 57 years. Analysis of the most popular strategies of coping with stress was performed with the Multiphasic Inventory for Measuring Coping (COPE) by Carver, Scheier, and Weintraub. RESULTS: In contrast with healthy people, patients with depression in stressful situations more often use strategies based on avoidance and denial and have more difficulties in finding positive aspects of stressful events. CONCLUSIONS: Depression may be an important factor in the negative assessment of one's own ability to cope with difficult situations and can aggravate a tendency to perceive stressful events as overwhelming.