Effects of depression on the cytokine profile in drug naive first-episode psychosis

Abstract

Schizophrenia is accompanied by alterations in immuno-inflammatory pathways, including abnormalities in cytokine profile. the immune assessment of patients in a first episode of psychosis (FEP) and particularly in drug naive patients is very important to further elucidate this association.The objectives of this study are to delineate the cytokine profile (IL-2, IL-10, IL-4, IL-6, IFN gamma, TNF alpha and IL-17) in FEP patients (n = 55) versus healthy controls (n = 57) and to examine whether the presence of depressive symptoms in FEP is accompanied by a specific cytokine profile.We found increased levels of IL-6, IL-10 and TNFa in FEP patients when compared to healthy controls. FEP patients with depression showed higher IL-4 and TNFa levels versus those without depression. Cytokine levels were not correlated to the total PANSS and the positive or negative subscale scores.Our results suggest that FEP is accompanied by a cytokine profile indicative of monocytic and T regulatory cell (Treg) activation. Depression in FEP is accompanied by monocytic and Th-2 activation, whereas FEP without depression is characterized by Treg activation only. in conclusion, depression emerged as a key component explaining the cytokines imbalance in FEP that is responsible for a large part of the immune-inflammatory abnormalities described. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.