Altered serum adiponectin and interleukin-8 levels are associated in the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder: A case-control study

Abstract

Background Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a complex mental health condition that results in several obstacles including disabilities, loss of productivity, and economic burdens on both patients and society. Etiopathogenesis of MDD involves several factors such as sociodemographic, genetic, and biological determinants. However, any suitable biomarkers for risk assessment of depression have not been established yet. Alterations of cytokine are assumed to be involved in the pathophysiology and severity of the depressive disorder. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate serum adiponectin and interleukin-8 (IL-8) among MDD patients in Bangladesh. Methods We recruited a total of 63 MDD patients and 94 age-sex matched healthy controls (HCs) in the present study. MDD patients were enrolled from a tertiary care teaching hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh, and HCs from surrounding parts of Dhaka city. A psychiatrist assessed all the study participants following the criteria mentioned in the DSM-5. We applied the Hamilton depression (Ham-D) rating scale to assess the depression severity. Serum adiponectin and IL-8 levels were determined using ELISA kits (BosterBio, USA). Results The mean serum concentration of adiponectin was decreased (30.67±4.43 μg/mL vs. 53.81±5.37 μg/mL), and the IL-8 level was increased (160.93±14.84 pg/mL vs. 88.68±6.33 pg/mL) in MDD patients compared to HCs. Sex-specific scatters plot graphs showed the distribution of adiponectin and IL-8 levels with Ham-D scores in MDD patients. Also, ROC curve analysis demonstrated good predictive performances of serum adiponectin and IL-8 for MDD with the area under the curve (AUC) as 0.895 and 0.806, respectively. Conclusion The present study findings suggest that alterations of serum adiponectin and IL-8 levels in MDD patients might be involved in the disease process. Therefore, we can use these changes of cytokines in serum levels as early risk assessment tools for depression. The present study findings should be considered preliminary. We propose further interventional studies to evaluate the exact role of adiponectin and IL-8 in depression.

Association of pro-inflammatory cytokines with trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder visiting a tertiary care hospital in Kathmandu

“…The sample size was small and comorbidities such as depression and generalized anxiety disorder were prevalent among the patient population. As mental illnesses such as depression [56][57][58] and anxiety [59] have also shown relation with cytokines in several studies that may also have created biases in the result. Since this is a cross-sectional study, we cannot confirm a causal direction or timing of different cytokine levels, and trauma and PTSD.…”

Elevated Serum IL-2 Levels are Associated With Major Depressive Disorder: A Case-Control Study

“…80 Our previous studies also discovered that an imbalance of cytokines, antioxidants, and macro minerals might have an association with depression, which suggests that intake of these supplements might be beneficial for MDD patients. [81][82][83][84][85][86] The sample size and the data collection method were 2 of the primary advantages of this study. Previous researchers conducted their studies on a small scale.…”

Higher serum interleukin‐12 levels are associated with the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder: A case‐control study results

“…34,42 The current study is distinctive in this regard when compared to Firstly, we evaluated the serum IL-12 levels once MDD patients and HCs were enrolled. Secondly, we did not consider the study population's food habits, sleeping patterns, usage of current medications, or tobacco use, 15,57,58 which might have been confounding…”