Distinctive gene expression profile in women with history of postpartum depression.
Postpartum depression (PPD) is a disease which incorporates a variety of depressive states differing in nature and severity. To assist in the understanding of the pathogenesis of the disease, we aimed to ascertain a molecular mechanism underlying PPD development. We applied microarray technology to characterize gene expression of euthymic women with a history of PPD and compared the results with healthy controls. Our study demonstrated that women who considered euthymic on a clinical level, in fact, had an altered molecular profile when compared to participants with no PPD history. We identified nine genes significantly distinguished expression in post- depressive women; they may serve as a diagnostic tool for the detection of a predisposition to PPD. Our findings contribute significantly to the understanding of PPD etiology and its pathogenesis, offer a plausible explanation for the risk of the PPD recurrence, and may also contribute to clinical treatment.
Nursing Department, Jerusalem College of Technology, Jerusalem, Israel. Electronic address: annal@g.jct.ac.il.
Anna
A
Landsman
Eitanim Psychiatric Hospital, Jerusalem, Israel.
Rafael
R
Aidelman
Genomic Data Analysis Unit, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Centre, Jerusalem, Israel.
Yoav
Y
Smith
Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Soroka Medical Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Faculty of Health Sciences, Beer Sheva, Israel.
Matthew
M
Boyko
Nursing Department, Jerusalem College of Technology, Jerusalem, Israel.
Chaya
C
Greenberger
D000328:Adult; D019052:Depression, Postpartum / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear; D059467:Transcriptome
Gene expression; Microarray; Mononuclear cells; Postpartum depression