Clinical Institute of Medical and Chemical Laboratory Diagnostics, Medical University of Graz, 8036 Graz, Austria.
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapeutic Medicine, Medical University of Graz, 8036 Graz, Austria.
Dis Markers. 2020 Jan 6;2020:7897240. doi: 10.1155/2020/7897240. eCollection 2020.
The microbiome-derived trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) and the intestinal permeability marker zonulin are considered to be linked with depression. Moreover, carbohydrate malabsorption (CMA) was shown to be associated with signs of depression. This study is aimed at investigating possible sex-specific associations between TMAO and zonulin and the presence of depressive signs in individuals with and without CMA.
Serum concentrations of TMAO and zonulin were determined in 115 and 136 individuals with the presence or absence of CMA. All 251 study participants underwent lactase gene C/T polymorphism genotyping and fructose H/CH breath testing. Additionally, they filled in the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) questionnaire.
The median TMAO and zonulin serum concentrations were 2.66 (1.93-4.14) mol/L and 40.83 (34.73-47.48) ng/mL. Serum TMAO levels were positively correlated with depressive symptoms ( = 0.011, = 0.160). The strongest correlations were observed in 87 females ( = 0.010, = 0.274) and 49 males ( = 0.027, = 0.315) without CMA, whereas 115 patients with CMA showed no significant correlations. Zonulin tended to be negatively correlated with the BDI-II score in 49 males without CMA ( = 0.062, = -0.269).
This study demonstrates a positive correlationship between the serum TMAO concentrations and the severity of depressive symptoms in females and males without CMA. Serum zonulin levels were negatively correlated with signs of depression in males without CMA. These findings suggest a gender-specific relationship between the serum TMAO and zonulin concentrations, depression, and CMA.
微生物衍生的三甲胺 N-氧化物（TMAO）和肠道通透性标志物紧密素被认为与抑郁症有关。此外，碳水化合物吸收不良（CMA）与抑郁症状有关。本研究旨在调查 TMAO 和紧密素与 CMA 个体和非 CMA 个体抑郁症状之间可能存在的性别特异性关联。
在 115 名和 136 名存在或不存在 CMA 的个体中，测定血清 TMAO 和紧密素浓度。所有 251 名研究参与者进行了乳糖酶基因 C/T 多态性基因分型和果糖 H/CH 呼吸测试。此外，他们填写了贝克抑郁量表（BDI-II）问卷。
血清 TMAO 和紧密素浓度中位数分别为 2.66（1.93-4.14）mol/L 和 40.83（34.73-47.48）ng/mL。血清 TMAO 水平与抑郁症状呈正相关（ = 0.011， = 0.160）。在无 CMA 的 87 名女性（ = 0.010， = 0.274）和 49 名男性（ = 0.027， = 0.315）中观察到最强的相关性，而 115 名 CMA 患者则没有观察到显著的相关性。在无 CMA 的 49 名男性中，紧密素与 BDI-II 评分呈负相关趋势（ = 0.062， = -0.269）。
本研究表明，在无 CMA 的女性和男性中，血清 TMAO 浓度与抑郁症状严重程度呈正相关。血清紧密素水平与无 CMA 男性的抑郁症状呈负相关。这些发现表明，血清 TMAO 和紧密素浓度、抑郁和 CMA 之间存在性别特异性关系。
