World Journal of Biological Psychiatry

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed at identifying reliable differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) for schizophrenia in blood via meta-analyses combined with deep learning methods. METHODS: First, we meta-analysed published DEMs. Then, we enriched the pool of schizophrenia-associated miRNAs by applying two computational learning methods to identify candidate biomarkers and verified the results in external datasets. RESULTS: In total, 27 DEMs were found to be statistically significant (p < 0...

BACKGROUND: Adrenergic dysregulation has been proposed as a possible underlying mechanism in Feeding and Eating Disorders (FED). This review aims to synthesize the current evidence on the role of adrenergic dysregulation in the pathogenesis and management of FED. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted in MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and Clinicaltrials.gov. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) was adopted. Preclinical, clinical, and pharmacological studies assessing the adrenergic system in FED were included...

BACKGROUND: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and eating disorders (EDs) share similarities in terms of clinical characteristics and deficits in inhibitory control. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether inhibitory control could serve as a common behavioral phenotype between OCD and EDs and whether it might be underpinned by shared and/or distinct neural signatures. METHOD: We performed a quantitative meta-analysis of brain function abnormalities during the inhibitory control task-based functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) scan across patients with OCD and EDs using seed-based d mapping (SDM)...

BACKGROUND: Sleep deprivation results in an increased demand for sleep, cognitive decline, enhanced metabolic rate, and even mortality. In mammals, circadian rhythms control metabolism, immunological response, and reproductive processes. Bmal1 (brain and muscle Arnt-like protein-1) is a key element in the regulation of circadian rhythms. METHODS: This investigation explores the pathophysiological effects of sleep deprivation in a mouse model as well as the potential underlying mechanisms...

OBJECTIVES: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels vary in various conditions including alcohol use disorder (AUD). We aimed to identify drivers of these variations. METHODS: Twelve patients with AUD were assessed at hospitalisation for alcohol withdrawal and four months later. We looked for associations between the change in serum BDNF levels and (1) length of abstinence, (2) anxiety (Hamilton Anxiety Scale) and depression (Beck-Depression Inventory), (3) one functional BDNF genotype (rs6265) and (4) methylation levels of twelve CpG sites within the BDNF gene (located in exons I, IV and IX)...

Objectives Depression is among the psychiatric sequelae of COVID-19, affecting more than 20% of the convalescents. Its underlying pathophysiology remains unclear. Interleukin 6 (IL-6), a pro-inflammatory cytokine, plays a critical role in the COVID-19-associated cytokine storm, has been implicated in depressive disorders, and may thus be involved in post-COVID-19 depression. Methods : PubMed, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science were systematically searched for relevant studies assessing peripheral IL-6 levels in convalescents who developed depression after COVID-19 vs...

OBJECTIVES: Borderline personality disorder (BPD) and bipolar disorder (BD) often co-occur and frequently do not respond adequately to traditional antidepressant treatments. Ketamine has shown rapid antidepressant and anti-suicidal effects. However, there is limited literature on the safety and tolerance of using ketamine to treat patients with comorbid BD and BPD. METHODS: This case presents a female patient diagnosed with both Bipolar Disorder (BD) and Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) who received intravenous ketamine treatment to alleviate acute depressive symptoms...

The outbreak of Covid-19 negatively affected mental health and elevated loneliness. The subjective feeling of loneliness is influenced by genetic and social factors and has a negative impact on mental health. From March 2020 to June 2021 loneliness was investigated in N  = 517 individuals using monthly acquired questionnaire data and Latent Growth Curve Analysis. Three classes ("average " , 40%; "not lonely", 38%; "elevated loneliness", 22%) were identified, that differ significantly regarding loneliness, mental dysfunction, and response to the lockdown phases...

OBJECTIVES: Melancholia is a severe form of depression that is typified by greater genetic and biological influence, distinct symptomatology, and preferential response to physical treatment. This paper sought to broadly overview potential biomarkers of melancholia to benefit differential diagnosis, clinical responses and treatment outcomes. Given nuances in distinguishing melancholia as its own condition from other depressive disorder, we emphasised studies directly comparing melancholic to non-melancholic depression...

OBJECTIVES: Schizophrenia is a chronic, debilitating mental disorder whose pathophysiology is complex and not fully understood. Numerous studies suggest mitochondrial dysfunction may contribute to the development of schizophrenia. While mitochondrial ribosomes (mitoribosomes) are essential for proper mitochondrial functioning, their gene expression levels have not been studied yet in schizophrenia. METHODS: We performed a systematic meta-analysis of the expression of 81 mitoribosomes subunits encoding genes, integrating ten brain samples datasets of patients with schizophrenia compared to healthy controls (overall 422 samples, 211 schizophrenia, and 211 controls)...

ObjectivesMajor depression (MD) may be associated with inflammation and immunity. PD-1 (programmed death-1), PD-L1 (programmed death-ligand 1) and PD-L2 (programmed death-ligand 2) are among the inhibitory immune mediators on the PD-1 pathway. However, previous data regarding the association between MD and PD-1 pathway were still scarce; therefore, we investigated the association of PD-1 pathway with MD.MethodsDuring a period of two years, patients with MD and healthy controls were recruited from a medical center in this study...

OBJECTIVES: This 2023 update of the WFSBP guidelines for the pharmacological treatment of eating disorders (EDs) reflects the latest diagnostic and psychopharmacological progress and the improved WFSBP recommendations for the assessment of the level of evidence (LoE) and the grade of recommendation (GoR). METHODS: The WFSBP Task Force EDs reviewed the relevant literature and provided a timely grading of the LoE and the GoR. RESULTS: In anorexia nervosa (AN), only a limited recommendation (LoE: A; GoR: 2) for olanzapine can be given, because the available evidence is restricted to weight gain, and its effect on psychopathology is less clear...

OBJECTIVES: Despite the increasingly high prevalence and serious consequences of depression in adolescents, there is a lack of economical and reliable biomarkers to aid the diagnostic process. Recent findings suggest that red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is an easily obtainable biomarker of depression in adults. Here, we aimed to replicate the finding of increased RDW in clinically depressed adolescents. METHODS: Data from depressed adolescent female patients ( n  = 93) and healthy controls (HC) ( n  = 43) aged 12-17 years from the AtR!Sk-bio cohort study were retrospectively analyzed...

OBJECTIVES: Schizophrenia (SZ) and intellectual disability (ID) are both included in the continuum of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). DNA methylation is known to be important in the occurrence of NDDs. Family study is conducive to eliminate the effects of relative epigenetic backgrounds, and to screen for differentially methylated positions (DMPs) and regions (DMRs) that are truly associated with NDDs. METHODS: Four monozygotic twin families were recruited, and both twin individuals suffered from NDDs (either SZ, ID, or SZ plus ID)...

OBJECTIVES: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can rarely be associated with immunological aetiologies, most notably in Paediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcal Infections and possibly in autoimmune encephalitis. As cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis is a sensitive method for assessing neuroinflammation, this retrospective study analysed basic CSF parameters and well-characterised as well as novel neuronal autoantibodies in OCD to screen for signs of autoimmunity...

OBJECTIVES: Schizophrenia is characterized by deficits across multiple cognitive domains and altered glutamate related neuroplasticity. The purpose was to investigate whether glutamate deficits are related to cognition in schizophrenia, and whether glutamate-cognition relationships are different between schizophrenia and controls. METHODS: Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) at 3T was acquired from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and hippocampus in 44 schizophrenia participants and 39 controls during passive viewing visual task...

BACKGROUND: Rates of Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD) are highest amongst young adults. Paucity of brain tissues samples limits the ability to examine the molecular basis of cannabis related neuropathology. Proteomic studies of neuron-derived extracellular vesicles (NDEs) isolated from the biofluids may reveal markers of neuropathology in CUD. METHODS: NDEs were extracted using ExoSORT, an immunoaffinity method to enrich NDEs from plasma samples from patients with young onset CUD and matched controls...

OBJECTIVES: This study is designed to search for aggrupation of inflammatory/oxidative biomarker alterations in borderline personality disorder (BPD) and their association with phenotypic features. METHODOLOGY: Inflammatory/nitrosative proteins were measures in plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells obtained from BPD patients. Patients were assessed on different clinical dimensions of BPD. Oxidative damage was tested by measuring TBARS, nitrites, catalase, GPx and SOD...

Our article is dedicated to describing the state-of-the-art in imaging techniques for assessing prodromal dementia with Lewy bodies (pro-DLB) with a psychiatric-onset. Imaging biomarker techniques are discussed. (123)-I-2-ß-carbomethoxy-3ß-(4-iodophenyl)-N-(3-fluoropropyl) nortropane single photon emission computed tomography (123I-FP-CIT SPECT) seems to be a promising method as it reveals abnormalities in pro-DLB with a psychiatric-onset. New potential biomarkers can be revealed via novel techniques such as manual segmentation in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which helps detect atrophy of the substantia innominata in pro-DLB with a psychiatric-onset as opposed to an onset with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)...

OBJECTIVES: Thus far, the diagnosis of insomnia is based on purely clinical criteria. Although a broad range of altered physiological parameters has been identified in insomniacs, the evidence to establish their diagnostic usefulness is very limited. Purpose of this WFSBP Task Force consensus paper is to systematically evaluate a series of biomarkers as potential diagnostic tools for insomnia. METHODS: A newly created grading system was used for assessing the validity of various measurements in establishing the diagnosis of insomnia; these measurements originated from relevant studies selected and reviewed by experts...