title: Decreased serum zinc concentration during depressive episode in patients with bipolar disorder.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Zinc may be involved in the pathophysiology and treatment of depressive disorder. However, data on this issue in bipolar disorder (BD) are limited. The aim of the study was to assess zinc concentrations in the blood serum of patients at various phases and stages of bipolar disorder.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included 129 patients with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder type I (n=69) or type II (n=60). Fifty-eight were in a depressive episode, 23 in a manic episode and 48 in remission. Fifty healthy volunteers made a control group. Zinc concentration was measured using flame atomic absorption spectrometry.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serum zinc level in patients diagnosed with BD type I in the depressive phase was significantly reduced as compared with mania, remission and healthy subjects. In the BD type II, serum zinc level in hypomania, depression or remission phase was not significantly different from the control group. In the whole group, lower level of zinc in depression compared to remission and control subjects was found during late stage of the illness but not in the early stage. Zinc concentration was not dependent on the severity of manic or depressive symptoms and subtype of depression but correlated positively with the number of manic/hypomanic relapses in the past year.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lack of prospective model, heterogeneity of pharmacological treatment, small number of subgroups presenting specified clinical features.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Decreased serum zinc concentration occurs in depression in BD type I and probably in depression in the late stage of BD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Affective Disorders, Chair of Psychiatry, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Siwek
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Magdalena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sowa-Kućma
authors.affiliation: Department of Affective Disorders, Chair of Psychiatry, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Krzysztof
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Styczeń
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Bernadeta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Szewczyk
authors.affiliation: Chair of Analytical Chemistry, University of Science and Technology, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Witold
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Reczyński
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland; Chair of Pharmacobiology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Paulina
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Misztak
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Population Studies, Institute of Public Health, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Roman
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Topór-Mądry
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland; Chair of Pharmacobiology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Gabriel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nowak
authors.affiliation: Department of Affective Disorders, Chair of Psychiatry, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Dominika
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dudek
authors.affiliation: Department of Adult Psychiatry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland. Electronic address: janusz.rybakowski@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Janusz K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Rybakowski
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012008:Recurrence; D012074:Remission Induction; D055815:Young Adult; D015032:Zinc / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D015032:Zinc
keywords: Bipolar disorder; Depression; Mania; Remission; Serum biomarkers; Zinc