Association between Cerebrospinal Fluid sTREM2 Levels and Depression: The Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Biomarkers
• Neurodegenerative Diseases

Background:

• Elevated cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) soluble TREM2 (sTREM2) shows protective effects on brain structure and cognition.
• The specific role of sTREM2 in the progression of depression is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between CSF sTREM2 levels and longitudinal depression trajectories.
• To determine if sTREM2 levels predict changes in depression symptoms over time.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) Study.
• Measured CSF sTREM2 via ELISA and depression using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15).
• Employed linear mixed-effect models to analyze the relationship between CSF sTREM2 and GDS scores.

Main Results:

• 1,017 participants were analyzed with a mean follow-up of 4.65 years.
• Baseline CSF sTREM2 levels showed a significant negative correlation with GDS scores (β=-0.21, P=0.022).
• This association remained significant after adjusting for multiple demographic, genetic, and clinical factors.

Conclusions:

• Higher CSF sTREM2 levels are associated with a lower risk of developing or experiencing depression.
• sTREM2 may serve as a potential biomarker for depression risk.