Whole blood mitochondrial DNA copy number in depression and response to electroconvulsive therapy.
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Authors
Ryan, Karen M
Doody, Eimear
McLoughlin, Declan M
Issue Date
2022-10-07
Type
Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Language
en
Keywords
Depression , Electroconvulsive therapy , Inflammation , Mitochondrial DNA , Telomere
Alternative Title
Abstract
Mitochondrial dysfunction may play a role in various psychiatric conditions. Mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn), the ratio of mitochondrial DNA to nuclear DNA, represents an attractive marker of mitochondrial health that is easily measured from stored DNA samples, and has been shown to be altered in depression. In this study, we measured mtDNAcn in whole blood samples from medicated patients with depression (n = 100) compared to healthy controls (n = 89) and determined the relationship between mtDNAcn and depression severity and the therapeutic response to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). We also explored the relationship between mtDNAcn and telomere length and inflammatory markers. Our results show that mtDNAcn was significantly elevated in blood from patients with depression when compared to control samples, and this result survived statistical adjustment for potential confounders (p = 0.002). mtDNAcn was significantly elevated in blood from subgroups of patients with non-psychotic or unipolar depression. There was no difference in mtDNAcn noted in subgroups of ECT remitters/non-remitters or responders/non-responders. Moreover, mtDNAcn was not associated with depression severity, telomere length, or circulating inflammatory marker concentrations. Overall, our results show that mtDNAcn is elevated in blood from patients with depression, though whether this translates to mitochondrial function is unknown. Further work is required to clarify the contribution of mitochondria and mtDNA to the pathophysiology of depression and the therapeutic response to antidepressant treatments.
Description
Citation
Ryan, K. M., Doody, E., & McLoughlin, D. M. (2023). Whole blood mitochondrial DNA copy number in depression and response to electroconvulsive therapy. Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry, 121, 110656. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnpbp.2022.110656
Publisher
License
Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Journal
Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry
Volume
121
Issue
PubMed ID
ISSN
1878-4216