Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment (Jun 2022)

Associations of High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein and Interleukin-6 with Depression in a Sample of Italian Adolescents During COVID-19 Pandemic

  • Serra M,
  • Presicci A,
  • Quaranta L,
  • Achille M,
  • Caputo E,
  • Medicamento S,
  • Margari F,
  • Croce F,
  • Margari L

Journal volume & issue
Vol. Volume 18
pp. 1287 – 1297

Abstract

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Maria Serra,1 Anna Presicci,2 Luigi Quaranta,3 Mariaclara Achille,4 Elvita Caputo,4 Silvia Medicamento,4 Francesco Margari,5 Federica Croce,5 Lucia Margari4 1Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy; 2Department of Neuroscience, Sense Organs and Locomotor System, University Hospital “Policlinico”, Bari, Italy; 3Department of Computer Science, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy; 4Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy; 5Department of Basic Medical Science, Neuroscience and Sensory Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, ItalyCorrespondence: Maria Serra, Department of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Via Edoardo Orabona 4, Bari, 70125, Italy, Tel +39 080 5592829, Fax +39 080 5595260, Email [email protected]: Many studies highlighted the role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of depression, although not for every patient nor for every symptom. It is widely shared that stressors can increase inflammation and lead to depressive symptoms. Little is known about the symptom-specificity of the inflammation-depression link in adolescence, which we aimed to explore. The single symptom analysis is a core feature of the recent network approach to depression, supposing that psychiatric disorders consist of co-occurring symptoms and their tendency to cause each other.Patients and Methods: We recruited 52 adolescents diagnosed with a Depressive Disorder during the COVID-19 stressful period. We used regression analysis to measure associations between high sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hs-CRP) and Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and depressive symptoms assessed by the Children’s Depression Inventory 2 (CDI 2). For the study of symptom specificity, we selected 13 items from the CDI 2 Self Report corresponding with the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for Major Depressive Disorder and we coded them as dichotomous variables to perform a regression analysis.Results: We found that a higher CDI 2-Parent Version total score was significantly predicted by higher hs-CRP (coefficient 3.393; p 0.0128) and IL-6 (coefficient 3.128; p 0.0398). The endorsement of the symptom self-hatred, measuring the DSM-5 symptom “feelings of worthlessness”, was significantly predicted by hs-CRP (OR 10.97; 95% CI 1.29– 93.08; p 0.0282).Conclusion: A novel symptom-specificity emerged, with hs-CRP significantly predicting the endorsement of the symptom self-hatred, recognized as a core feature of adolescent depression, following the network theory. We considered it a possible phenotypic expression of one depression endophenotype previously causally linked to inflammation. Due to the limited sample size, these preliminary findings require confirmation with future research focusing on the relationship between inflammation and self-hatred and other central nodes of the depression network, representing an opportunity for targeting interventions on crucial symptoms.Keywords: endophenotype, inflammation, network, self-hatred, stress

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