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Immune correlates of depression.

M Irwin1

  • 1Department of Psychiatry San Diego VA Medical Center, CA, USA.

Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
|August 12, 1999
PubMed
Summary

Depression impacts the immune system, altering white blood cell counts and reducing lymphocyte proliferation and NK cell activity. Understanding these complex immune changes is crucial for mental health research.

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Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Psychiatry
  • Psychoneuroimmunology

Background:

  • The relationship between depression and immune function is complex and exhibits variability.
  • Meta-analyses indicate significant alterations in immune assays among depressed individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To synthesize current understanding of depression's impact on immunological assays.
  • To identify key immune changes associated with depression and factors influencing these alterations.

Main Methods:

  • Review of meta-analyses and existing literature on depression and immune function.
  • Analysis of immune cell counts, immune activation markers, and functional immune assays (lymphocyte proliferation, NK activity).

Main Results:

  • Depression is linked to increased white blood cells and neutrophils, but decreased lymphocytes.
  • A notable reduction in mitogen-induced lymphocyte proliferation and natural killer (NK) cell activity is consistently observed.
  • Immune activation markers show increases, though require further validation.

Conclusions:

  • Depression significantly alters immune parameters, particularly lymphocyte proliferation and NK activity, with large effect sizes.
  • Factors like gender, hormones, symptom severity, sleep, and co-morbidities (alcohol, tobacco dependence) modulate these immune changes.
  • Further research is needed to elucidate mechanisms and clinical significance, linking immune alterations to health outcomes.

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