Solak Hatice, Gokcen Onur
Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kütahya Health Science University, Kütahya, Turkey.
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Kütahya Health Sciences University, Kütahya, Turkey.
BMC Psychiatry. 2025 Jul 16;25(1):707. doi: 10.1186/s12888-025-07147-x.
Evidence suggests that stressful life experiences contribute significantly to the aetiology of mood disorders. Hypothalamic neuropeptides are thought to be biomarkers used to differentiate patients with mood disorders. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the concentrations of hypothalamic neuropeptides NPY and POMC in patients with bipolar (BP) and unipolar (UP) depression.
The study included 26 UP and 28 BP patients, 27 healthy controls.NPY and POMC concentrations were quantified in peripheral blood specimens.The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale(HAM-D), Epworth Sleepiness Scale and Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire were administered.
Serum NPY and POMC levels were significantly lower in UP and BP patients compared to the control group (p = 0.001).NPY level was lower in the depression group compared to the bipolar group but not statistically significant (p˃0.05).POMC level was decreased in the bipolar group compared to the depression group, but the results were not statistically significant (p˃0.05). No significant correlation was found between any scale score and NPY and POMC(p>0.05).
This study suggests that changes in serum NPY and POMC levels in UP and BP patients may have a potential role in disease pathophysiology. In particular, it is the first study to investigate the interaction between NPY, POMC and changes in eating behaviour in depressed patients, highlighting the need for further research in this area.
有证据表明，压力大的生活经历对情绪障碍的病因有重大影响。下丘脑神经肽被认为是用于区分情绪障碍患者的生物标志物。在我们的研究中，我们旨在评估双相情感障碍（BP）和单相抑郁症（UP）患者下丘脑神经肽NPY和POMC的浓度。
该研究纳入了26例单相抑郁症患者、28例双相情感障碍患者和27名健康对照者。对外周血样本中的NPY和POMC浓度进行定量分析。采用汉密尔顿抑郁量表（HAM-D）、爱泼华嗜睡量表和三因素饮食问卷进行评估。
与对照组相比，单相抑郁症和双相情感障碍患者的血清NPY和POMC水平显著降低（p = 0.001）。抑郁症组的NPY水平低于双相情感障碍组，但差异无统计学意义（p＞0.05）。双相情感障碍组的POMC水平低于抑郁症组，但结果无统计学意义（p＞0.05）。在任何量表评分与NPY和POMC之间均未发现显著相关性（p＞0.05）。
本研究表明，单相抑郁症和双相情感障碍患者血清NPY和POMC水平的变化可能在疾病病理生理学中具有潜在作用。特别是，这是第一项研究NPY、POMC与抑郁症患者饮食行为变化之间相互作用的研究，突出了该领域进一步研究的必要性。
