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Inflammatory depression—mechanisms and non-pharmacological interventions

Suneson, Klara LU ; Lindahl, Jesper LU ; Hårsmar, Simon Chamli ; Söderberg, Gustav LU and Lindqvist, Daniel LU (2021) In International Journal of Molecular Sciences 22(4).
Abstract

Treatment of depression is hampered by the failure to identify distinct symptom profiles with distinct pathophysiologies that differentially respond to distinct treatments. We posit that inflammatory depression is a meaningful depression subtype associated with specific symptoms and biological abnormalities. We review several upstream, potentially causative, mechanisms driving low-grade inflammation in this subtype of depression. We also discuss downstream mechanisms mediating the link between inflammation and symptoms of depression, including alterations in dopaminergic neurotransmission and tryptophan metabolism. Finally, we review evidence for several non-pharmacological interventions for inflammatory depression, including... (More)

Treatment of depression is hampered by the failure to identify distinct symptom profiles with distinct pathophysiologies that differentially respond to distinct treatments. We posit that inflammatory depression is a meaningful depression subtype associated with specific symptoms and biological abnormalities. We review several upstream, potentially causative, mechanisms driving low-grade inflammation in this subtype of depression. We also discuss downstream mechanisms mediating the link between inflammation and symptoms of depression, including alterations in dopaminergic neurotransmission and tryptophan metabolism. Finally, we review evidence for several non-pharmacological interventions for inflammatory depression, including probiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, and physical exercise interventions. While some evidence suggests that these interventions may be efficacious in inflammatory depression, future clinical trials should consider enriching patient populations for inflammatory markers, or stratify patients by inflammatory status, to confirm or refute this hypothesis.

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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Depression, Dysbiosis, Exercise, Inflammation, N-3 PUFAs
in
International Journal of Molecular Sciences
volume
22
issue
4
article number
1640
pages
20 pages
publisher
MDPI AG
external identifiers
  • pmid:33561973
  • scopus:85100507381
ISSN
1661-6596
DOI
10.3390/ijms22041640
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
5fc9e7dc-8142-4b5f-876d-ad57c16a4131
date added to LUP
2021-02-18 09:24:55
date last changed
2024-04-18 02:46:00
@article{5fc9e7dc-8142-4b5f-876d-ad57c16a4131,
  abstract     = {{<p>Treatment of depression is hampered by the failure to identify distinct symptom profiles with distinct pathophysiologies that differentially respond to distinct treatments. We posit that inflammatory depression is a meaningful depression subtype associated with specific symptoms and biological abnormalities. We review several upstream, potentially causative, mechanisms driving low-grade inflammation in this subtype of depression. We also discuss downstream mechanisms mediating the link between inflammation and symptoms of depression, including alterations in dopaminergic neurotransmission and tryptophan metabolism. Finally, we review evidence for several non-pharmacological interventions for inflammatory depression, including probiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, and physical exercise interventions. While some evidence suggests that these interventions may be efficacious in inflammatory depression, future clinical trials should consider enriching patient populations for inflammatory markers, or stratify patients by inflammatory status, to confirm or refute this hypothesis.</p>}},
  author       = {{Suneson, Klara and Lindahl, Jesper and Hårsmar, Simon Chamli and Söderberg, Gustav and Lindqvist, Daniel}},
  issn         = {{1661-6596}},
  keywords     = {{Depression; Dysbiosis; Exercise; Inflammation; N-3 PUFAs}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{4}},
  publisher    = {{MDPI AG}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Molecular Sciences}},
  title        = {{Inflammatory depression—mechanisms and non-pharmacological interventions}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms22041640}},
  doi          = {{10.3390/ijms22041640}},
  volume       = {{22}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}