Using inflammatory biomarkers in early pregnancy to predict subsequent antenatal depression

• Published in: Journal of affective disorders Vol. 371; pp. 156 - 163
• Main Authors: Zuo, Hanxiao, Chen, Xiaoli, Huang, Xiaolan, Benny, Claire, Fu, Dongmei, Xiu, Qingyong, Cui, Xiaodai, Lyu, Yanyu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 02-09-2024
• Subjects: Antenatal depression; Biomarkers; Inflammatory factors; Prediction; Prospective research; Inflammatory factors; Biomarkers; Prospective research; Prediction; Antenatal depression
• ISSN: 0165-0327; 1573-2517; 1573-2517
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.08.220

Antenatal depression (AD) is one of the most common pregnancy complications. Recent studies indicated that immune responses during pregnancy may contribute to development of AD.
This study aimed to identify possible inflammatory biomarkers in early pregnancy to predict maternal depressive symptoms before delivery.
This case-control study was conducted within the Maternal and Infant Health (MI-Health) birth cohort (Beijing, China) and depressive symptoms were assessed by Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) in both second and third trimesters. By using immune multi-factors kits, we tested 26 inflammatory factors in the serum of 38 cases with antenatal depression symptoms in both trimesters (SDS ≥ 53) and 38 controls. Logistic regression was used to identify candidate biomarkers, and the predictive capabilities were evaluated by using Receiver Operator Characteristics (ROC) analysis.
The concentrations of ln(CCL24) (p = 0.020), IL-7 (p = 0.006) and IL-10 (p = 0.014) were higher in early pregnancy among women with depressive symptoms comparing to healthy controls. The difference remained statistically significant after adjusting for maternal age, education level, gestational diabetes mellitus, pre-pregnancy BMI and gestational weeks of blood sampling (OR(ln(CCL24)) = 4.625, OR(IL-7) = 1.414, OR(IL-10) = 1.151). In ROC analysis, ln(CCL24), IL-7, and IL-10 achieved discrimination for depressive symptoms antepartum, with the values of AUC estimated at 0.75.
The sample size is limited, and the infectious disease infection records were not collected for control.
Higher levels of CCL24, IL-7 and IL-10 may indicate the higher risk of antenatal depression and are potential biomarkers indicating pathogenesis of antenatal depression.
•The biological etiology of antenatal depression remains unclear.•Higher levels of ln (CCL24), IL-7 and IL-10 in early pregnancy are associated with subsequent antenatal depression.•Combined high levels of Ln (CCL24), IL-7, and IL-10 in early pregnancy efficiently predicted antenatal depression.•Levels of inflammatory biomarkers can provide some understanding of the pathogenesis of antenatal depression.