Ketamine, a racemic mixture of esketamine (S-ketamine) and arketamine (R-ketamine), has re-ceived particular attention for its rapid antidepressant and antisuicidal effects. NMDA receptor inhibition has been indicated as one of the main mechanisms of action of the racemic mixture, but other pharmacological targets have also been proposed. This study aimed at exploring the possible multiple targets of ketamine enantiomers related to their antidepressant and antisuicidal effects. To this end, targets were predicted in SwissTargetPrediction software for each ketamine enan-tiomer. The targets related to depression and suicide were collected by GeneCards database. The intersections of targets were analyzed by Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). Network pharmacology analysis was performed in GeneMania and Cy-toscape softwares. Molecular docking was used to predict the main targets of the network. The results indicated that esketamine and arketamine share some biological targets, particularly NMDA receptor and phosphodiesterases 3A, 7A and 5A, but have specific molecular targets. While esketamine is predicted to interact with the GABAergic system, arketamine may interact with macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF). Both ketamine enantiomers activate neuroplas-ticity-related signaling pathways and show addiction potential. Our results identified novel poorly explored molecular targets that may be related to the beneficial effects of esketamine and arketamine against depression and suicide.

Background: Currently, completed suicide, suicide ideation, suicide behavior, and suicide attempts are major public health problems worldwide. Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is one of the most common mental disorders associated with an increased risk of suicide. Since the relationship between suicide and cholesterol levels is still controversial, in this study, we explore the association between SNPs rs754203 and rs4900442 of CYP46A1 with suicide risk in Mexican patients with major depressive disorder. Methods: We evaluated 188 unrelated suicide completers and compared them to 144 non-suicidal individuals (controls) and 126 MDD patients. Genotypes were analyzed using the Real Time-polymerase chain reaction method and two allele-specific probes to detect specific SNP targets. A chi-square test was used to identify a possible risk genotype or allele type for suicide. Results: Statistical analysis showed significant differences between completed suicide and controls in their allelic and genotypic frequencies in rs754203 SNP. The genotype G/G of CYP46A1 rs754203 was significantly associated with suicide. Also, the G allele was associated with an increased risk of suicide (OR= 1.370, 95% CI= 1.002-1.873). No differences in either genotype distribution or allele frequencies of CYP46A1 rs4900442 were observed. Conclusions: The results of the current study report the first association between G allele carriers (A/G + G/G) of rs754203 and increased risk for suicide, especially in males.

We have used Mass Multivariate Method on structural, resting state and task related fMRI data from two groups of patients with schizophrenia and depression, respectively, in order to define several regions of significant relevance to the differential diagnosis between those conditions. The regions included the left Planum polare, Left opercular part of the inferior frontal gyrus (OpIFG), Medial orbital gyrus (MOrG), Posterior Insula (PIns), and Parahippocampal gyrus (PHG). This study delivers evidence that multimodal neuroimaging approach can potentially enhance the validity of psychiatric diagnosis. Either structural, or resting state or task related functional MRI modality cannot provide independent biomarkers. Further studies need to consider and implement a model of incremental validity to combine clinical measures with different neuroimaging modalities to discriminate depressive disorders from schizophrenia. Biological signatures of disease on the level of neuroimaging are more likely to underpin broader nosological entities in psychiatry.

Depression and metabolic diseases often coexist having several features in common, e.g., chronic low-grade inflammation and intestinal dysbiosis. Different microbiota interventions have been proposed to be used as a treatment for these disorders. In the paper we review the efficacy of probiotics in depressive disorders, obesity, metabolic syndrome and its liver equivalent based on the published experimental studies, clinical trials and meta-analyses. Probiotics seem to be effective in reducing depressive symptoms when administered in addition to antidepressants. Additionally, probiotics intake may ameliorate some of the clinical components of metabolic diseases. However, standardized methodology regarding probiotics clinical trials has not been established yet. In this narrative review we discuss current knowledge on the recently used methodology with its strengths and limitations and propose criteria that may be implemented to create a new study of the effectiveness of probiotics in depressive disorders comorbid with metabolic abnormalities. We put across our choice on type of study population, probiotics genus, strains, dosages and formulations, intervention period, as well as primary and secondary outcome measures.

Background: While greenness has been associated with lower depression, the generalizability of this association in arid landscapes remains undetermined. We assessed the association between depression and greenness among nursing students living in El Paso, Texas (the Chihuahuan desert). Methods: Depression was measured with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scale, and greenness with the normalized difference vegetation index (at buffer sizes =250m, 500m, 1000m). Using data from the National Land Cover Database two additional measures of land patterns were analyzed: grayness and brownness. Structural equation models were used to assess the relationships of these land patterns to depression and quantify the indirect effects of peer alienation. Results: After adjusting for individual characteristics, at buffers 250 m greenness was associated with a decrease in the Incidence Rate Ratios (IRR) of depression by 49% (IRR, 0.51; 95%CI, 0.12-2.10), greyness with increases by 64% (IRR, 1.64; 95%CI, 1.07-2.52) and brownness with decreases by 35% (IRR, 0.65; 95%CI, 0.42-0.99). At buffer 250 m peer alienation explained 17.43% (95% CI, -1.79-36.66) of the association between depression and brownness, suggesting a pathway to depression. Conclusions: We did not observe an association between depression and residential greenness in El Paso, Texas. However, we did observe a protective association between brownness and depression as well as an adverse association with grayness. These results have theoretical implications as based on commonly used frameworks in this literature and adverse association of brownness (and the lack of greenness) and depression was expected.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is the global public health emergency concern and had an impact on the day to day life of individuals. Its effect on an individual’s mental health is significant to the extent of suicide. Objective: This study aimed to assess the magnitude of psychological problems and their associated factor among communities living in Dilla town in response to the pandemic. Methods: From Apr 1- Apr 15, 2020, a community-based cross-sectional study was conducted using multi-stage sampling techniques. Self-administered the questioner, Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21), and logistic regression analysis (95% CI, p-value <0.05) was used. Results: This study included 445 respondents with a 94% non- response rate who was living in Dilla town. In total, 34.4% of respondents had a psychological problem (11.4 % mild and 23% moderate level of the psychological problem). Female, Greater secondary level of education, monthly income below 500 ETB, more than three family size, and wearing face mask were variables associated with the outcome variable (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Nearly one-third of the respondents had mild to moderate psychological among communities living in Dilla town. There is a need for mental health support on those identified groups of peoples to enhance their resilience in response to the pandemic.

Adolescents spend an increasing amount of time on mobile phones. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between duration of mobile phone use and insomnia and depression in senior high school students. The cross-sectional study was conducted on 295 senior high school students in Japan. Mobile phones were owned by 98.6% of students; 58.6% of students used mobile phones for more than 2 h daily and 10.5% used them for 5 h daily. The risk of insomnia was significantly high in students who used mobile phones for 5 h or more (OR: 3.89 [95% CI: 1.21-12.49]). There was no significant association between depression and duration of mobile phone use. However, individuals who spent 120 min or more using mobile phones for social network services (OR: 3.63 [1.20-10.98]) and online chats (OR: 3.14 [1.42-6.95]) were at risk for depression. Excessive mobile phone use is associated with unhealthy sleep habits and insomnia. Moreover, the excessive use of the social network services and online chats are related to depression rather than duration of mobile phone use. Adolescents should use mobile phones appropriately to avoid sleep disturbances and the impairment of mental health.

The purpose of this study was to systematically review forest therapy programs designed to decrease the level of depression among adults and subsequently identify the gaps in the literature. This systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The authors independently screened full-text articles from various databases using the following criteria: 1) intervention studies assessing the effects of forest therapy on depression in adults aged 18 years and over; 2) studies including at least one control group or condition; 3) been peer-reviewed; and 4) been published either in English or Korean before July 2016. The Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network (SIGN) measurement tool was used to assess the risk of bias in each trial. In the final sample, a total of 28 articles (English: 13, Korean: 15) were included in the present systematic review. This review concluded that forest therapy is one of the emerging and effective interventions for decreasing the level of depression in adults. However, the studies included in this review lacked methodological rigor. Future studies assessing the long-term effect of forest therapy on depression using rigorous study designs are needed.

Recent mental health research has highlighted inflammation's critical role in conditions like depression and bipolar disorder, examining correlations with markers such as calcium levels, thyroid function, and inflammatory markers. The study aims to compare unipolar and bipolar d depression samples in terms of socio-demographic and clinical features. Prospective enrollment of patients hospitalized at the University of Insubria Psychiatric Unit. Patients were administered psychometric questionnaires (Beck Depression Inventory-II, Mental Pain Questionnaire, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Clinical Global Impressions Severity scale, and Reasons for Living Inventory). Thirty-six patients (17 males, 19 females) were enrolled. A statistically significant association emerged between calcium levels and bipolar depression (Pearson Chi square=0.050) and between CRP and bipolar depression (Pearson Chi-square=0.017). Additionally, a statistically significant association was observed between the unipolar and bipolar depression subgroups and current substance abuse (p=0.0275) A statistically significant difference between the BRLF scores and UDD subgroup emerged (p=0.0126). The results of the pilot study revealed significant associations between calcium/CRP levels with depressive symptoms, particularly in bipolar depression. Further research on inflammatory markers is needed to refine diagnostic subtypes and therapeutic strategies.

Objectives: The tau protein is essential for stabilizing microtubules. Changes in its phosphorylation are identified in many neurodegenerative diseases, such as frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease. The hyperphosphorylation of the tau protein is linked to various factors, including stress, which has a substantial impact on depressive illness. The present study aimed to systematically review studies that describe the association between tau protein and depression.Design: The present study used the PRISMA statement 2020 as the inclusion criterion for articles describing tau protein in individuals with depression. The exclusion criterion was the lack of comparison of tau protein levels with individuals without depression.Results: A total of 138 papers were identified, of which 21 were ultimately included. One out of every three articles included demonstrated the statistical significance of the tau protein values between the depression group and controls. Only one had an adequate sample but demonstrated results without any major significance.Conclusions: The association between tau protein and depression remains unclear. Studies with adequate sampling are necessary to answer this question.

Depression is one of the most prevalent mental disorders worldwide. This study examined the effect of a spiritual connectivity intervention on individuals with depression in a randomized waitlist control trial. Fifty-seven participants with mild or moderate depressive symptoms were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (n=28) or the waitlist control group (n=29). The intervention comprised eight weekly sessions focusing on divine connection, forgiveness and freedom, suffering and transcendence, hope, gratitude, and relapse prevention. The outcome measures included depressive symptoms, anxiety, hope, meaning in life, self-esteem, and social support. Participants completed self-administered questionnaires at baseline (week 0), post-intervention (week 8), and at a 3-month follow-up (week 20). Repeated-measures ANOVA and one-way ANCOVA were used to compare the within-group and between-group differences in the changes in outcome variables. Participants in the intervention group showed significant improvements in depression, anxiety, spiritual experience, hope, self-esteem, and perceived social support after the intervention. Effect size statistics showed small to large differences (Cohen’s d, 0.308 to -1.452). Moreover, 85.71% of participants in the intervention group also experienced clinically significant reductions in PHQ-9 scores from baseline to immediate post-intervention. This study highlights the effectiveness of a low-cost, accessible intervention suitable for community implementation by clergy and faith-based organizations.

We assessed depression, anxiety, and stress in healthcare workers (HCWs) in 2023 and the evo-lution of depression in 2023 compared with 2022. In September-November 2023, 181 HCWs from the Infectious Diseases Hospital, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, completed the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress 21 Scale (DASS-21 R), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A). The prevalence of moderate-to-severe levels was 13.81% for DASS-Depression, 18.79% for DASS-Anxiety, 16.02% for DASS-Stress, 19.89% for PHQ-9, and 12.16% for HAM-A. Moderate-to-severe PHQ-9 clinical depression was found in 19.89% of respondents, and moderate-to-severe HAM-A clinical anxiety in 12.16%. Moderate-to-severe PHQ-9 depres-sion was significantly lower in the 2023 study group (19.89%, N=181) compared with 2022 (30.60%, N=114) (p=0.036), also within the 2022-2023 follow-up study group (N=88) (p=0.026). We did not find significant statistical differences between those infected vs. non-infected, vaccinated vs. non-vaccinated, working with vs. non-working with SARS-CoV-2 infected patients. Males were significantly more stressed (p=0.018) and anxious (p=0.034), and physicians in training had the highest prevalence of moderate-to-severe depression (31.60%), followed by physicians (25.64%). In 2023, depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms decreased but remained within a concerning range. By addressing these psychological issues, we can prevent professional crises in the healthcare system.

Antidepressants are among the most used medications in the US, with significant deleterious effects on people’s well-being. At any given time, depression impacts approximately 1 in 10 Americans, causing wide and broad societal costs. Interest is developing for non-pharmacological treatments and preventative measures. We summarize the literature on non-invasive dietary and lifestyle approaches for treating depression, including recent work with the psychedelic treatment of depression. This review aims to inform future research and treatment programs for depression. This review provides an evidentiary summary of integrative therapeutic approaches for depression.

Background: The enduring psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to affect individuals long after the immediate health concerns have subsided. This research aims to identify specific groups within the Romanian population who are at a higher risk of experiencing mental health challenges that can interfere with everyday life and may lead to more serious mental health disorders. Methods: Conducted as a cross-sectional survey, this study evaluated the prevalence and intensity of psychological distress using the DASS-21 questionnaire. An online survey distributed via Google Forms also gathered socio-demographic data and COVID-19-specific information. Statistical analyses included the Shapiro-Wilk test, Fisher's exact test, and Z-tests with Bonferroni correction. Quantitative independent variables that lacked a normal distribution were compared between groups using either the Mann-Whitney U test or the Kruskal-Wallis H test. Results: Analysis of 521 questionnaires, filled out by a predominantly middle-aged cohort of 320 women and 201 men, revealed that 63.72% of participants worked outside the healthcare field. Those unemployed or retired reported significantly higher anxiety levels than individuals in other sectors. Moreover, living alone, experiencing the loss of close relatives (6.14%) or friends (33.59%), and undergoing hospitalization or reinfection due to COVID-19 were linked to significantly elevated distress scores. Conclusion. By identifying the segments of the population most vulnerable to psychological distress, as evidenced by higher scores among the unemployed, retirees, individuals living alone, and those directly affected by COVID-19 through personal health or loss, targeted initiatives for psychological screening and therapy can be established. Such measures are essential for enhancing the post-pandemic mental well-being of Romanians, addressing the specific needs uncovered in this study.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a highly prevalent, debilitating disorder with a high rate of treatment resistance. One strategy to improve treatment outcomes is to identify patient-specific, pre-intervention factors that can predict treatment success. Neurophysiological measures such as electroencephalography (EEG), which measures the brain’s electrical activity from sensors on the scalp, offer one promising approach for predicting treatment response for psychiatric illnesses, including MDD. In this study, a secondary data analysis was conducted on the publicly available Two Decades-Brainclinics Research Archive for Insights in Neurophysiology (TDBRAIN) database. Specifically, hierarchical regression modeling was used to predict treatment response from baseline demographics, symptom severity, and resting-state EEG features in 119 MDD patients receiving repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Across models, both age and baseline symptom severity, assessed by the Beck’s Depression Inventory, were significant predictors of rTMS treatment response, with older individuals and more severe depression scores associated with decreased odds of a positive treatment response. EEG measures contributed predictive power to these models; however, these improvements in outcome predictability only trended towards statistical significance (p~0.07 in multiple models). These findings provide confirmation of previous demographic and clinical predictors, while pointing to EEG metrics that may provide predictive information in future studies.

The association between depressive symptomatology and cognitive decline has been examined using the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), however, concerns have been raised about this self-report measure. Here, we examined how the CES-D total score from the 14- and 10-item versions compared to the 20-item version in predicting progression to cognitive decline from a cognitively unimpaired baseline. Data from 1,054 participants were analysed using ordinal logistic regression, alongside moderator and receiver-operating characteristics curve analyses. All baseline total scores significantly predicted progression to cognitive decline. The 14-item version was better than the 20-item version in predicting consensus diagnosis, as shown by their AICs, while also showing the highest accuracy when discriminating between participants by diagnosis at last visit. We did not find sex to moderate the relationship between CES-D score and cognitive decline. Current findings suggest the 10- and 14-item versions of the CES-D are comparable to the 20-item version, and that the 14-item version may be better at predicting longitudinal consensus diagnosis compared to the 20-item version.

Though studies have characterized lizard dung as an unconventional psychoactive substance of abuse, this has not been demonstrated in experimental settings. We evaluated the toxicity and CNS activity of lizard dung in Wistar rats. The acute and subacute toxicity studies were conducted via oral and inhalational routes. Classical models of tail suspension, forced swim, elevated plus maze, hole board, and sodium pentobarbital-induced sleeping time tests were adopted and the lizard dung were administered via both routes. No mortality was observed for all doses of the test substance administered via both routes during the toxicity studies. Significant changes in serum urea, creatinine, bilirubin, ALP, ALT and AST were recorded. Mixed inflammatory infiltrates and oedema were observed in the lungs from the group that inhaled 1.0g darkish part of lizard dung. Lizard dung produced marked reduction in the exploratory behaviour. Our findings indicate depression of the CNS.

Purpose: Glue inhalation is a common unconventional substance of abuse and it contains neurotoxic and volatile solvents. We examined the toxicity profile and CNS activities of glue inhalation in Wistar rats.Methods: Acute toxicity was investigated using graded concentrations of 0.5, 1, and 2 mL of glue inhalation (n=3/group) for 4 hours in phase one followed by concentrations of 5, 10, and 20 mL of glue (n=1/group) for 4 hours in phase two. These animals were then observed for signs of toxicity and/or mortality for 24hours. The sub-acute toxicity was studied using 24 male Wistar rats at graded concentrations of Air, 2, 4 and 8mL glue (n=6/group) for 28 days. Blood samples were collected for biochemical and haematological evaluations, and vital organs (lung, liver, kidney, heart, brain, and eye) were used for histological analysis. Behavioural studies were carried out using Elevated Plus Maze, Hole Board Test, Open Field Test, Tail Suspension Test and Forced Swim Test. Dependence and abstinence effect were also evaluated. Results: The Lethal Dose (LD₅₀) of the inhalational glue was 14.14 ml. Glue significantly increased liver function parameters like TB, DB, ALP, ALT, TP, electrolyte levels (K⁺ and HCO₃) but reduced cholesterol level in exposed rats. Glue inhalation had significant anxiolytic and depressant effects on the rats at concentrations of 4mL and 8mL. Histological analysis revealed liver and lung tissue abnormalities and subconjunctival inflammation in eye tissue at 8mL. Conclusion: The study therefore suggests that glue inhalation has anxiolytic and depressant effects in Wistar rats.

Imaging-based biomarkers have developed as an effective tool in neurology, providing vital understandings of the structural, functional, and molecular changes associated with neurological disorders. Imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and computed tomography (CT) have been widely employed to record disease-related alterations in the brain. These techniques provide a wide range of biomarkers, such as functional connectivity patterns, volumetric measurements, molecular imaging agents, and perfusion parameters, enabling the correct identification of neurological disorders. These biomarkers have proven useful in early diagnosis, disease progression tracking, therapy response prediction, and surgical planning. This review emphasizes the various obstacles and limitations that are associated with imaging-based biomarkers. Technical constraints, standardization obstacles, ethical concerns, regulatory challenges, and cost-effectiveness concerns all offer substantial barriers to wider use. It is vital to overcome these challenges if imaging biomarkers are to be successfully integrated into routine clinical practice. Imaging technology advancements like high-resolution imaging, multimodal imaging, and artificial intelligence-based analysis hold immense promise for imaging-based biomarkers in the future. While more study and standardization are needed, their ongoing development and integration into clinical practice have the potential to revolutionize the diagnosis, treatment, and management of neurological disorders, resulting in better patient care and outcomes.

This study compares the performance of existing studies on multimodal emotion recognition, and proposes a model that fuses two modalities with the speaker's text and voice signals as input values and detects depression. Based on the DAIC-WOZ dataset, voice features were extracted using CNN, text features were extracted using Transformers, and two modalities were fused through a tensor fusion network. We also build a model to detect whether the speaker is depressed or not using LSTM in the final layer. This study suggests the possibility of increasing access to mental illness diagnosis by enabling patients to detect depression on their own in daily conversations. If the model proposed in this study is developed and the voice conversation system is connected, it will be easier for patients who cannot visit the hospital periodically or who are reluctant to visit the hospital to check their condition and seek recovery. Furthermore, it can be expanded to multi-label classification for various mental diseases and used as a simple self-mental disease diagnosis tool.

Violence can promote various mental complications such as depression, however, the type of violence that promotes it has not been estimated in detail. The purpose of this study was to assess whether depression is associated with domestic violence in pregnant women treated at a Peruvian health center, 2022. A quantitative, observational, cross-sectional analytical study. A total of 180 pregnant adults who attend the health facility in person were selected. Intrafamily violence was assessed using a questionnaire from the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations of Peru and depression using the Beck Depression Inventory. The study has the approval of the ethics committee of the university and the permission of the head of the health establishment. 36.11% [95%CI: 29.39-43.43] of the pregnant women presented depression and 1.11% severe de-pression; likewise, 41.67% [95%CI: 36.64-49.05] reported having experienced domestic violence. It was identified that presenting domestic violence increases the probability of presenting depression during pregnancy (aPR: 9.89; p&lt;0.001). The associated types of violence were psychological (aPR: 10.44; p&lt;0.001) and physical (aPR: 1.78; p=0.007). There is an association between domestic violence and depression during pregnancy, the types of violence associated being psychological and physical.

The aim of the presents study is to further expand the model of translational cross-validation by investigating the brain circuits or networks which underpin the same tasks by means of group independent component analysis for FMRI toolbox (GIFT). We hypothesized that there will be neural network patterns of activation and deactivation, which correspond to real time performance on clinical self-evaluation scales. We recruited 42 subjects: 20 healthy controls and 22 patients with major depressive episode. All subjects underwent functional MRI scanning using paradigm comprised of diagnostic clinical self-assessment depression scale contrasted to neutral scale. The data were processed with group independent component analysis for functional MRI toolbox and statistical parametric mapping. The results have demonstrated that there exist positively or negatively modulated brain networks during processing of diagnostic specific task questions for major depressive disorder. There have also been confirmed differences in the networks processing diagnostic versus off blocks between patients and controls in anterior cingulate cortex and middle frontal gyrus. Diagnostic conditions (depression scale) when contrasted to neutral conditions demonstrate differential activity of right superior frontal gyrus and right middle cingulate cortex in the comparison of patients with healthy controls. It is for the first time when potential neuroimaging state dependent biomarker has been directly linked with clinical assessment self-evaluation scale, administered as stimuli simultaneously with the fMRI acquisition. It may be regarded as further evidence in support of the ability of both methods to concordantly distinguish groups by means of incremental translational cross-validation.

Background: Our study aimed to assess the differences between domestic and international students in terms of social support, vital exhaustion, and depression during the time of COVID-19. Methods: The online cross-sectional survey was conducted via Google Forms® at three time intervals during the pandemic. Results: Respectively 1320, 246, and 139 students completed our questionnaires in the different time intervals. International students reported significantly lower values of perceived social support. Women reached higher scores regarding vital exhaustion in both samples. Concerning depression, international female students had higher values than their male counterparts but the difference diminished with time. No differences could be found in the comparison of depression between domestic female and male students. Significant correlations were found between depression, perceived social support, and vital exhaustion. Discussion: International students perceive diminished social support just when they need more. Decreased levels of perceived social support may contribute to the development of their psychological problems.

Task sharing approaches are challenged by the barriers fundamental to the use of non-specialists who lack specialist mental health training required to triage the candidates who could benefit from task-shared treatments. However, these challenges could be offset by using standardized and easy-to-implement algorithmic devices (e.g., nomograms) to help with the targeted dissemination of interventions. Therefore, the present investigation posits a prognostic model and a nomogram to predict the prognosis of perinatal depression among women in rural Pakistan. This secondary analysis utilizes data based on 903 pregnant women with depression who participated in a cluster randomized controlled trial that tested the effectiveness of the Thinking Healthy Program in rural Rawalpindi, Pakistan. The participants were recruited from 40 union councils in two sub-districts of Rawalpindi and randomly assigned to intervention and enhanced usual care. Sixteen sessions of the THP intervention were delivered by trained community health workers to women with depression over pregnancy and the postnatal period. A trained assessment team used the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-4 current major depressive episode module to diagnose depression at the baseline and post-intervention. The intervention received by the participants emerged as the most significant predictor in the model. Among clinical factors, baseline severity of core-emotional symptoms emerged as an essential predictor, followed by atypical symptoms and insomnia. Higher severity of these symptoms was associated with a poorer prognosis. Other important predictors of a favorable prognosis included living with paternal and maternal grandmothers, financial empowerment, higher socioeconomic class, and living in a joint family system. This prognostic model yielded acceptable discrimination (c-statistic =0.75) and calibration to aid in personalized delivery of psychological treatment.

Background. The novel coronavirus (SARS-COV-2) and related syndrome (COVID-19) has required a worldwide measure of quarantine with severe consequences for millions of people. Methods. Since psychopathological consequences related to social restrictions have been reported, a systematic review according to Cochrane Collaboration guidelines and the PRISMA Statement was performed to quantify the effects of quarantine on mental health of adults. Major databases - Pubmed, Scopus, Embase, PsycInfo, and Web of Science- were researched for observational studies with data on mental health indexes related to quarantine or isolation for epidemic infections. Results. Twenty-one independent studies were included for 82,312 subjects. Conclusions. The results showed that at least 20% of people exposed to these conditions reported a psychological distress, with a prevalence of PTSD, depression and, less often, generalized anxiety. Important methodological bias weakens the conclusion of most studies, opening to the need of further research on mental health after quarantine and related risk/buffering factors.

Background: Mental health is a growing concern worldwide. It is not well understood whether Nepali workers, including international labour migrants from Nepal, are at higher risk of developing mental health problems. The purpose of our study is to determine the prevalence of and examine the risks factors for depression among returnee migrants and non-migrant working male adults in Nepal. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of a probability-based sample of 725 participants was conducted in February 2020. The sample was comprised of two groups based on migration status: returning migrants and non-migrants. Logistic regression was applied to investigate factors associated with symptoms depression.Results: The overall prevalence of depression was 10.1%. However, the prevalence of depression was lower (7%) among returnee migrants compared to non-migrants (13.7%). Participants in the lower income group were more at risk of depression (OR=5.38, 95% CI: 1.96-14.78) than those in the higher income group. Similarly, Buddhists and Christians were more likely to be depressed (OR=2.17, 95% CI: 1.02-4.64) than Hindus. Interestingly, participants having more than two children had a higher prevalence of depression (OR=5.14, 95% CI: 1.22-21.63) compared with those having no children. Unmarried participants were more likely to be depressed (OR=4.05, 95%, CI:1.10-14.93) than those who were married. Conclusion: The working Nepali adult male population in Nepal, including returning migrants, is at risk of depression, but this risk is lower in those in the higher income group, returnee migrants, married, Hindus and those with no children. This study highlights the need to monitor and develop national policies to ensure the mental health of Nepali male adult population, including returnee migrants.

There is now evidence that, based on cytokine profiles, bipolar disorder (BD) is accompanied by simultaneous activation of the immune-inflammatory response system (IRS) and the compensatory immune-regulatory system (CIRS), and that both components may be associated with the staging of illness. Nevertheless, no BD studies have evaluated the IRS/CIRS ratio using CD (cluster of differentiation) molecules expressed by peripheral blood activated T effector (Teff) and T regulatory (Treg) subpopulations. This study examined T cell subsets both before and after ex vivo anti CD3/CD28 stimulation using flow cytometric immunophenotyping in 25 euthymic BD patients and 21 healthy controls as well as human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-specific IgG antibodies. BD is associated with a significantly lowered frequency of baseline (unstimulated) CD3+CD8+CD71+ and CD4+CD25+FOXP3 and increased CD4+CD25+FOXP3+CD152+ frequencies and with lowered stimulated frequencies of CD3+CD8+CD71+, CD4+CD25+FOXP3+CD152+ and CD4+CD25+FOXP3+GARP cells and, consequently, by an increased stimulated Teff/Treg ratio. Moreover, the number of manic, but not hypomanic or depressive episodes, is significantly and negatively associated with the stimulated proportions of CD3+CD4+CD154+, and CD69+ and CD71+ expression on CD4+ and CD8+ cells, while duration of illness (≥ 10 years) is accompanied by a depleted frequency of stimulated CD152+ Treg, and CD154+ and CD71+ CD4+ T cells. BD and anti-human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) IgG levels significantly interact to decrease the expression of CD4+CD25+FOXP+GARP T phenotypes. In conclusion, BD is characterized by deficits in immune-regulatory functions while the staging of illness is characterized by additional impairments is Teff and Treg activation. HCMV seropositivity may contribute to an immune-risk phenotype associated with BD.

Postpartum depression (PPD), a condition that affects up to the 15% of mothers in high-income countries, reduces attention toward the needs of the child and it is among the first causes of infanticide. PPD is usually identified using self-report measures and therefore the diagnosis may not always be valid. Previous studies highlighted the presence of significant differences in the acoustical properties of the vocalizations of children of depressed and healthy mothers. In this study, cry episodes of infants of depressed and non-depressed mothers are analyzed to investigate the possibility that a machine learning model can identify PPD in mothers from the acoustical properties of infants' vocalizations. Acoustic features (F0, F1-4, Intensity) are first extracted from recordings of crying infants, then novel cloud-based artificial intelligence models are employed to identify maternal depression versus non depression from estimated features. Trained model shows that commonly adopted acoustical features can be successfully used to individuate Post-Partum Depressed mothers with very high accuracy (89.5%).

Objective: To examine associations between chemokines and menstrual cycle associated symptoms (MCAS). Methods: Forty-one women completed the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP) rating scale during 28 consecutive days of the menstrual cycle. MCAS is diagnosed when the total daily DRSP score during the menstrual cycle is > 0.666 percentile. We assayed plasma CCL2, CCL5, CCL11, CXCL8, CXCL10, EGF, IGF-1, and PAI-1 at days 7, 14, 21 and 28 of the menstrual cycle. Results: CCL2, CCL5, CCL11 and EGF are significantly higher in women with MCAS than in those without. Increased CCL2, CXCL10, CXCL8, CCL11 and CCL5 levels are significantly associated with DRSP scores while CCL2 is the most significant predictor explaining 39.6% of the variance. The sum of the neurotoxic chemokines CCL2, CCL11 and CCL5 is significantly associated with the DRSP score and depression, physiosomatic, breast-craving and anxiety symptoms. The impact of chemokines on MCAS symptoms may differ between consecutive weeks of the menstrual cycle with CCL2 being the most important predictor of increased DRSP levels during the first two weeks, and CXCL10 or a combination of CCL2, CCL11 and CCL5 being the best predictors during week 3 and 4, respectively. Discussion: The novel case definition “MCAS” is externally validated by increased levels of uterus-associated chemokines and EGF. Those chemokines are involved in MCAS and are regulated by sex hormones and modulate endometrium functions and brain neuro-immune responses, which may underpin MCAS symptoms. As such, uterine-related chemokines may link the uterus with brain functions via a putative uterine-chemokine-brain axis.

Background: There is now evidence that immune and opioid systems show functional reciprocal relationships and that both systems may participate in the pathophysiology of major depression (MDD). Objective: The present study was carried out to delineate differences between MDD patients and healthy controls in dynorphin and kappa opioid receptor (KORs) in association with levels of β-endorphins and mu opioid receptors (MORs), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IL-10. Method: The present study recruited 60 drug-free male participants with MDD aged 24-70 year and 30 age-matched healthy males as control group and measured serum levels of dynorphin, KOR, β-endorphin, MOR, IL-6 and IL-10. Results: Serum dynorphin, KOR, β-endorphin and MOR are significantly increased in MDD as compared with controls. The increases in the dynorphin/KOR system and β-endorhin/MOR system are significantly intercorrelated and are both strongly associated with increased IL-6 and IL-10 levels. Dynorphin, β-endorphin, KOR and both cytokines showed a good diagnostic performance for MDD versus controls, whereby both opioid peptides and cytokines show a bootstrapped (n=2000) area under the receiver operating curve of 0.972. KOR and the dynorphin/KOR system are both significantly decreased in depressed subjects with comorbid nicotine dependence. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that in MDD, immune activation is associated with a simultaneous activation of dynorphin/KOR and β-endorhin/MOR signaling and that these opioid systems may participate in the pathophysiology of depression by a) exerting immune regulatory activities attenuating the primary immune response; and b) modulating reward responses and mood as well as emotional and behavioral responses to stress.

There is now evidence that major depression is accompanied by lowered serum zinc, an immune-inflammatory biomarker. However, the effect of anti-inflammatory drugs as adjuvant to antidepressants on serum zinc and copper in relation to pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines are not studied. The aim of the present work is to examine the effects of treatment with sertraline with and without ketoprofen on serum levels of zinc and copper in association with immune-inflammatory biomarkers in drug-naïve major depressed patients. We measured serum zinc and copper, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-18, interferon (IFN)-γ, and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 in 40 controls and 133 depressed patients. The clinical efficacy of the treatment was measured using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) at baseline and 8 weeks later. In drug-naïve major depressed patients we found significantly reduced baseline levels of serum zinc and copper in association with upregulation of all cytokines, indicating activation of the immune-inflammatory responses system (IRS) as well as the compensatory immune regulatory system (CIRS). Treatment with sertraline significantly increased zinc and decreased copper levels, while ketoprofen did not have a significant add-on effect on zinc but attenuated the suppressant effects of sertraline on copper levels. During treatment, there was a significant inverse association between serum zinc and activation of the IRS/CIRS. The improvement in the BDI-II during treatment was significantly associated with increments in serum zinc coupled with attenuation of the IRS/CIRS. In conclusion, lower serum zinc is a hallmark of depression, while increments in serum zinc and attenuation of the immune-inflammatory response during treatment appear to play a role in the clinical efficacy of sertraline. Intertwined changes in zinc levels and the immune response play a role in the pathophysiology of major depression and participate in the mechanisms underpinning the clinical efficacy of antidepressants.

Detecting suicidal ideation in adults with major depression is crucial for timely intervention and prevention of self-harm. As suicide is influenced by various biological, socio-cultural and psychological factors, traditional screening methods have accuracy and efficiency limitations. In certain cultures, societal stigma and marginalization can compel individuals with depression to conceal their suffering. Such individuals often turn to online social media platforms and share their experiences with peers under the protection of anonymity. Our research explored the potential of machine learning detection of suicidal ideation among Romanian adults with major depression that contributed to a web-based depression support forum. A trained algorithm (C4.5 decision tree) analyzed 125 posts fed to on a free access online support forum over 5 years (2014 – 2018) and classified them based on suicidal ideation content. 32 texts (25%) were identified as having a high probability of suicidal ideation content. 65% of the authors were male, with a mean age of 36.7±10.3 years and an average duration of illness of 3.4±1.4 years. Texts indicating positive suicidal ideation were generally shorter and elicited more general responses but fewer professional responses compared to those without suicidal ideation content. The study's main limitations include the relatively small number of classified texts, the absence of prospective information and the lack of qualitative evaluation of the excerpts' content. As socio-demographic and linguistic actuarial results were comparable to data reported by real life studies, we may consider basic text mining techniques as a screening tool that is able to detect suicidal ideation in texts written in unstructured Romanian language.

Recently, the relationship between emotional arousal and depression has been studied. Focusing on this relationship, we first developed an arousal level voice index (ALVI) to measure arousal levels using the Interactive Emotional Dyadic Motion Capture database. Then, we calculated ALVI from the voices of depressed patients from two hospitals (Ginza Taimei Clinic [GTC] and National Defense Medical College hospital [NDMC]) and compared them with the severity of depression as measured by the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D). Depending on the HAM-D score, the datasets were classified into a no depression (HAM-D&lt;8) and a depression group (HAM-D≥8) for each hospital. A comparison of the mean ALVI between the groups was performed using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test and a significant difference at the level of 10% (p = 0.094) at GTC and 1% (p = 0.0038) at NDMC was determined. The area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic was 0.66 when categorizing between the two groups for GTC, and the AUC for NDMC was 0.70. The relationship between arousal level and depression severity was indirectly suggested via ALVI.

Complicated grief (CG) predicts decreased mental health over time. Furthermore, feeling connected to nature (CN) is positively associated with beneficial mental health outcomes, such as psychological wellbeing and perceived psychological resilience. Thus, we hypothesized that CN moderates the association between general grief or CG and negative mental health for bereaved people. Further, we hypothesized that one’s physical exposure to nature—that is, estimated time spent in nature and greenness (i.e., vegetation) surrounding one’s residential area—might moderate the association between general grief or CG and negative mental health for bereaved people. To test these hypotheses, we sampled 153 participants who experienced the death of a close other by COVID-19 infection. Participants reported CG, general grief, anxiety symptoms, depression symptoms, CN, estimated time spent in nature, and residential area postal code via a single online survey. We estimated greenness surrounding participants’ residential areas using their self-reported 5-digit U.S. postal code. Cross-sectional analyses indicated that, as predicted, CN attenuated the association between CG and depression, but only trended toward moderating the association between CG and anxiety and did not moderate the associations between general grief and depression or anxiety. Other variables related to the experience of nature—the estimated time an individual spends in nature and the greenness surrounding one’s residential area—did not moderate the association between general grief or CG and depression or anxiety. We thus conclude that a sense of feeling connected to nature—not simply spending more time in nature or being surrounded by nature—may serve an important role in the mental health status of people experiencing complicated grief, perhaps because CN replenishes general belonging when someone significant has passed away.

Introduction: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) pregnant women are under more psychological stress than healthy pregnant women. The objectives of the current study were to examine: (1) The differences in anxiety, depression, stress, and somatization levels between women diagnosed with GDM and healthy pregnant women. (2) The differences in anxiety, depression, stress, and somatization levels among women with well-controlled blood sugar levels compared to those who are not well-controlled. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted, involving 103 women who had been pregnant at least once, including 40 women diagnosed with GDM and 63 healthy pregnant women. An online questionnaire was distributed and included three parts: a socio-demographic parameters, the DASS-21 questionnaire assessing anxiety, depression, and stress, and the BSI (Brief Symptom Inventory) questionnaire assessing somatization. Results: Differences in anxiety (t=14.470, <.001), depression (t=8.17, <.001), stress (t=16.354, <.001), and somatization (t=13.679, <.001) levels between women diagnosed with GDM and healthy pregnant women were found. Women diagnosed with GDM reported higher levels of anxiety, depression, stress, and somatization compared to those without GDM. Additionally, Women with better blood sugar control, indicated by lower glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels, reported lower levels of anxiety. (t (38) = -2.04, p<0.05), depression (t(38)= -2.88, p<0.01), stress (t(38)= -1.88, p<0.05), and somatization (t(38)= -1.88, p<0.05) compared to women with poorer blood sugar control. Conclusion: Pregnant women diagnosed with GDM report higher levels of negative personality traits such as anxiety, depression, stress, and somatization compared to healthy pregnant women.

Many have speculated that events of personal and financial loss in Rembrandt’s life caused depression and that this is revealed by examination of his self-portraits particularly those painted in old age. Some report detecting various physiological diseases associated with aging, including vision impairment, which may have affected his mood and work. Aging and neurodegenerative disease which often accompanies it, are both associated with depression. Recent advances in imaging and computer technology make it possible to empirically examine changes in artistic style which can contribute to understanding artists’ physical and mental health. In the current study changes in contrast, colour and fractal dimension were measured in the entire corpus of Rembrandt’s painted self-portraits and portraits to determine whether changes in style indicate depression or disease. Productivity was also examined as an indirect indicator. Given the high salience attributed to self-images, it also examined whether differences in style could be detected between self-portraits and portraits of related and unrelated others. The results indicate that it is unlikely that Rembrandt suffered from unipolar or bipolar depression, age-related cognitive decline, or neurodegenerative disease. The data are consistent with someone experiencing episodes of low mood consistent with normal grieving and adversity followed by resilient recovery. There is evidence of a gradient in saliency and complexity between self-portraits and related and unrelated portraits, of a less formal style in portraits of related others and of a ‘late’ style identified by leading art historians consistent with macular degeneration. The results are also consistent with an association of aesthetic preference with mid-level fractal values tending towards the Golden Mean long associated with beauty in nature and in art.

Although there is a vast body of neuroscientific research on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), many therapists are confused about how to incorporate the evidence into their clinical practice. This narrative review translates neuroscientific research on CBT for depression into a therapist-friendly formulation model. Four brain networks that are particularly relevant to depression, including the Central Executive Network, Default mode Network, Salience Network, and Affective Network, were identified based on their interactions and described in relation to depressive symptoms. Additionally, it clarified how each CBT technique works on a brain map. Assessment, intervention selection, and patient psychoeducation based on this model will facilitate the clinical application of neuroscience in CBT.

: Background: The polysaccharides are one of the main active ingredients of Polygonum sibiricum (PSP), which is a traditional food and medicine homologues in China. The antidepressant-like effects of PSP and its underlying mechanisms remain to be studied in depth, especially the regulation of microglial polarization. Methods: The chemical composition and structural characteristics of PSP was determined firstly. The CUMS procedure was carried out to the zebrafish for 5 weeks and PSP were immersed administration for 9 days (1 h/d). The body weight of zebrafish was monitored and the behavioral tests, including the novel tank test and light and dark tank test, were performed to evaluate the antidepressant-like effects of PSP. Then the function of HPI axis, the levels of peripheral inflammation, neuronal and blood-brain barrier damage in mesencephalon and telencephalon and the mRNA expression of M1/M2 phenotype genes in brain were examined. Results: PSP samples had the typical structure characteristics of polysaccharide, consisting of glucose, mannose and galactose with the average Mw 20.48 kDa, which owned a porous and agglomerated morphology. Compared with untreated zebrafish, the depression-like behaviors of CUMS-induced zebrafish were significantly attenuated. PSP significantly decreased the levels of cortisol and the pro-inflammatory cytokines and increased the levels of the anti-inflammatory cytokines in the body of CUMS-induced depressive zebrafish. Furthermore, neuronal and blood-brain barrier damage in mesencephalon and telencephalon and the mRNA expression of M1/M2 phenotype genes in brain were remarkably reversed by PSP. Conclusion: These findings indicated that the antidepressant-like effects of PSP were related to alter the HPI axis hyperactivation, suppress peripheral inflammation, inhibit neuroinflammation induced by microglia hyperactivation, and modulate microglial M1/M2 polarization. The current study provides foundation to the future exploitation of PSP in the functional foods of emotional regulation.

The purpose of this study was to identify subgroups of quality of life (QOL) changes in breast cancer survivors (BCS) and to determine factors associated with subgroups of consistently low or deteriorated QOL. We enrolled 101 women recently diagnosed with breast cancer in South Korea and asked them to complete a questionnaire at baseline (within 1 month of diagnosis), 1 year later (Year 1), 2 years later (Year 2), and 3 years later (Year 3). We assessed QOL using the global QOL subscale from the EORTC QLQ-C30. We defined low QOL as a global QOL score 10 points below the mean score of the general population. Based on low QOL as defined in this study, we identified subgroups of QOL changes over 3 years. We identified four subgroups of QOL changes: improved (47.4%), stable (30%), continuously low (8.8%), and deteriorated (13.8%) and considered the last two categories (22.6%) as poor QOL. Logistic regression analyses demonstrated that significant determinants of poor QOL were insomnia at Year 1, fatigue and anxiety at Year 2, and fatigue, depression, and comorbidity at Year 3. In conclusion, persistent symptoms of insomnia, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and comorbidity are potential risk factors for poor QOL in BCS.

Workplace bullying is a prevalent issue with a significant impact on employees’ mental health. This study aimed to explore the relationship between workplace bullying and the prevalence of depression with a particular focus on the role of gender. A total of 12,344 Korean employees aged 19–65 years were included in the study. They completed questionnaires including the Korean version of the Occupational Stress Scale, the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). A score of 16 or higher in CES-D indicated depression. The association between workplace bullying and depression was analyzed using logistic regression analyses. The average CES-D scores were higher for both male and female employees who experienced bullying than for those who did not (p &lt; 0.001). The association between the experience of workplace bullying and the prevalence of depression was statistically significant for both genders, with a stronger correlation observed among male employees (p for interaction &lt;0.001). Organizations are urged to address workplace bullying, particularly for male employees, through the implementation of anti-bullying strategies and policies, as well as the provision of mental health resources and support.

This study examined the prevalence of illegal drug use in UK students and motivators behind such behaviour. Additionally, we explored possible relationships between substance use, psychosocial motivators, and psychiatric distress. N=543 students completed online measures of substance use, anxiety, depression, perceived stress, insomnia. A series of reasons behind their use were ranked based on importance. Reported cannabis, cocaine, nitrous oxide, ketamine and MDMA use were most prevalent based on lifetime, past year, and month assessments. The experience of anxiety, depression, perceived stress, and insomnia were related to increased reports of substance use. Poor self-confidence and self-medication were key motivators of illicit drug use in those presenting greater psychiatric distress. These outcomes add to the sparse body of literature concerning illicit substance use in relation to psychiatric distress amongst UK students. Furthermore, we provided novel insight into the psychosocial motivators of such use.

Pre-COVID-19, doodling was identified as a measure of burnout in researchers attending a weekly, in-person health narratives research group manifesting team mindfulness. Under the group’s supportive conditions, variations in doodling served to measure change in participants’ reported depression and anxiety—internal states directly associated with burnout, adversely affecting healthcare researchers, their employment, and their research. COVID-19 demanded social distancing during the group’s 2020/21 academic meetings. Conducted online, the group’s participants who chose to doodle did so alone during the pandemic. Whether the sequestering of group participants during COVID-19 altered the ability of doodling to act as a measure of depression and anxiety was investigated. Participants considered doodling during the group’s online meetings increased their enjoyment and attention level—some expressed it helped them to relax. However, unlike face-to-face meetings during previous non-COVID-19 years, solitary doodling during online meetings was unable to reflect researchers’ depression or anxiety. COVID-19 limitations necessitating doodling alone maintained the benefits group members saw in doodling but hampered the ability of doodling to act as a measure of burnout in contrast to previous in-person doodling. This result is seen to correspond to one aspect of the group’s change in team mindfulness resulting from COVID-19 constraints.

This study examined the effects of group art therapy on depression, burden, and self-efficacy in primary family caregivers of patients with brain injuries. This was a quasi-experimental, nonequivalent control group and a pre- and post-test design. This study was carried out in one national rehabilitation hospital targeting 41 primary family caregivers of patients with brain injuries. Group art therapy intervention was carried out three days per week for 12 times over four consecutive weeks. The experimental group (n = 20) received group art therapy, whereas the control group (n = 21) did not. We used a time difference method to minimize the risk of contaminating the control group by sampling sequentially. The experimental group showed a significantly greater decrease in burden (t = 2.462, p = 0.020) and significantly greater improvement in self-efficacy (t = −6.270, p &lt; 0.001) than the control group. Group art therapy may be an effective nursing intervention for primary family caregivers of patients with brain injuries.

Background Bangladesh has been attracting international students on various subjects in recent times. Every year students from different parts of the world come to study undergraduate and postgraduate courses, mostly at private universities in Bangladesh. This study evaluates the depression status among international students who are studying dentistry in Bangladesh. Methods This cross-sectional survey was conducted among International undergraduate dental students who enrolled in the Bachelor of Dental Surgery program in nine public and private dental colleges in Bangladesh. A total of 206 students completed the survey, and CES-D 10 items Likert scale questionnaire was used for data collection. The Cronbach alpha for CES-D 10 scale items for this population is 0.812. Results The majority of the students (79.5%) are below 24 years of age, and students who cannot communicate well in Bengali (Bangla), about 60% of them have experienced depression. About 77.3% (p< 0.00) of the international students having financial difficulties exhibited depression. The international students who went through financial problems were two times more likely to suffer from depression (OR=2.38; p-value <0.01). Conclusion This study tried to highlight the struggles faced by international students in Bangladesh studying dentistry. It is evident from the findings that several factors influence students' mental well-being during demanding dental education years.

Ischemic Stroke precedes depression . Post Stroke Depression (PSD) is a major driver for poor recovery, negative quality of life, poor rehabilitation outcomes and poor functional ability. This systematic reviews confirmed the post stroke depression as the norm as complex ischemic cascade involve the bioenergetic failure, deranged iron homeostasis ( calcium influx, Na influx, potassium efflux etc) excitotoxicity, acidotoxicity,disruption of the blood brain barrier, cytokine mediated cytotoxicity, reactive oxygen mediated toxicity , activation of cyclooxygenase pathway and generation of toxic products, infiltration of immune mediated cells resulting the cell death and deranged neuronal networks in mood related brain regions. This review focus on the pathobiology of stroke in the context and make the argument that PSD is the norm after a stroke rather than the exception.

In deep geological analysis of data, these are input data that are few and include a small set of data. In a small set of case data, it is necessary to obtain reliable data of individual geological variables from this type of data. The paper analyzes the possibility of applying the bootstrap method on variables that are important in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons. The variables analyzed were the following: porosity and total costs of disposal formation water. The case study was made on the data of reservoir "K", field "B" located in the western part of the Sava Depression. The analysis of the results showed the possibility of applying the bootstrap method in the analysis of deep geological data with the application of three different sizes of resampling dataset.

Introduction: Corona epidemic and quarantine enforcement, various effects on the psychological and social aspects of the population has left. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between depression, anxiety and relationship with medical staff and mental health is caused by corona. Methods: For this purpose, samples of 650 health personnel of private hospitals were selected. Inventory DASS, HADS, and selected social cohesion (Keyes) and the Internet and through social media networks were evaluated. To analyze the data, Pearson correlation and regression analysis were used. Results: The results showed that straw anxiety corona) to negative (and social cohesion caused by corona) to positive (mental health correlates. It was also found that anxiety and social cohesion caused by corona, respectively 47 and 26 percent predict changes in mental health. Conclusion: These results show the positive and negative effects of psychosocial interventions in quarantine and it have practical implications in the development of the epidemic crisis is Corona.

Objective: About a third of schizophrenia patients are treatment-resistant to antipsychotic therapy. No studies established the fingerprints or pathway-phenotypes of treatment-resistant schizophrenia. The present study aimed to delineate the pathway-phenotypes of non-responders (NRTT) and partial responders (PRTT) to treatment using machine learning. Methods: We recruited 115 schizophrenia patients and 43 healthy controls and measured schizophrenia symptom dimensions, neurocognitive tests, plasma CCL11, interleukin-(IL)-6, IL-10, Dickkopf protein 1 (DKK1), high mobility group box-1 protein (HMGB1), κ- and µ-opioid receptors (KOR and MOR, respectively), endomorphin-2 (EM-2), and β-endorphin. Results: Machine learning showed that the NRTT group is a qualitatively distinct class and is significantly discriminated from PRTT with an accuracy of 100% using a neuro-immune-opioid-cognitive (NIOC) pathway-phenotype with as main determinants list learning, controlled word association, and Tower of London test scores, CCL11, IL-6, and EM2. The top-5 symptom domains separating NRTT from PRTT were in descending order: psychomotor retardation, negative symptoms, psychosis, depression, and mannerism. Moreover, a NIOC pathway also discriminated PRTT from healthy controls with an accuracy of 100% while all PRTT and controls were authenticated as belonging to their respective classes. Conclusion: A non-response to treatment with antipsychotics is determined by increased severity of specific symptom profiles coupled with deficits in executive functions, and episodic and semantic memory, and aberrations in neuro-immune and opioid pathways. No patients showed complete remission after treatment indicating that non-remitting in PRTT is attributable to increased HMGB1 and residual deficits in attention, executive functions, and semantic memory.

There is robust evidence that major depression (MDD) is accompanied by a low-grade activation of the immune-inflammatory response system, which is involved in the pathophysiology of this disorder. It is also becoming apparent that glia cells are in reciprocal communication with neurons and orchestrate various neuromodulatory, homeostatic, metabolic, and immune mechanisms and have a crucial role in neuroinflammatory mechanisms in MDD. Those cells mediate the central nervous system (CNS) response to systemic inflammation and psychological stress, but at the same time, they may be an origin of the inflammatory response in the CNS. The sources of activation of the inflammatory response in MDD are immense, however, in recent years, it is becoming increasingly evident that the gastrointestinal tract with gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) and increased intestinal permeability to bacterial LPS and food-derived antigens contribute to activation of low-grade inflammatory response with subsequent psychiatric manifestations. Furthermore, an excessive permeability to gut-derived antigenic material may lead to subsequent autoimmunities which are also known to be comorbid with MDD. In this chapter, we discuss fascinating interactions between the gastrointestinal tract, increased intestinal permeability, intestinal microbiota, and glia-neuron crosstalk, and their roles in the pathogenesis of the inflammatory hypothesis of MDD. To emphasize those crucial intercommunications for the brain functions, we propose the term of microbiota-gut-immune-glia (MGIG) axis.

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) frequently occurs in women of childbearing age. There are different case definitions of PMS, one proposed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and another based on the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP) scores. Here we review our recent papers indicating that the discovery of biomarkers of menstrual cycle-related symptoms is strongly dependent on the case definitions used and that the gold standard methods used to asses PMS, including the ACOG case definition, induce a high degree of false-negative findings. We propose a new case definition of the menstrual cycle-associated syndrome (MCAS), which is characterized by increased DRSP scores during the menstrual cycle and additionally by an exaggerated increase in symptoms the week prior to the menses. This case definition performed well and was externally validated by diverse biomarkers including plasma levels of progesterone and estradiol, chemokines (e.g. CCL2, CCL5 and CCL11), epidermal growth factor, hydroperoxides, paraoxonase 1 activity and complement C4. In conclusion, when evaluating menstrual cycle-related symptoms and their associations with biomarkers, we propose to assess daily measurements of the DRSP and based on those scores to a) use the diagnosis of MCAS as an indicant of menstrual cycle-related symptoms; and b) examine the associations of the time series in the DRSP and its subdomains (e.g. depression, physio-somatic, anxiety) and those in biomarkers including distributed lag models.

Beta-thalassemia major (β-TM) patients are treated with repeated blood transfusions, which may cause iron overload (IO), which in turn may induce immune aberrations. Patients with β-TM have an increased risk of major depressive disorder (MDD). The aims of the present study are to examine whether repeated blood transfusions, IO and immune-inflammatory responses are associated with MDD in children (6-12 years) with β-TM. The Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI), iron status (serum iron, ferritin, transferrin, TS%) and serum levels of CCL11, IL-1β, IL-10, and TNF-α were measured in β-TM with (n=54) and without (n=57) MDD and in healthy children (n=55). The results show that MDD in β-TM is associated with a greater number of blood transfusions, increased IO and IL-1β levels. Partial Least Squares path analysis shows that 68.8% of the variance in the CDI score is explained by the number of blood transfusions, IO, and increased levels of IL-1β and TNF-α. The latter two cytokines partly mediate the effects of IO on the CDI score, while the effects of blood transfusions on the CDI score are partly mediated by IO and the path from IO to immune activation. IO is also associated with increased IL-10 and lower CCL11 levels but these alterations are not significantly associated with MDD. In conclusion, blood transfusions may be causally related to MDD in β-TM children and their effects are in part mediated by increased IO and the consequent immune-inflammatory response. The results suggest that not only IO and its consequences including inflammation and ferroptosis, but also other factors related to the number of transfusions may cause MDD including psychosocial stressors. Current treatment modalities with folic acid and vitamin C are insufficient to attenuate IO and immune-inflammatory responses and to prevent MDD is children with β-TM undergoing blood transfusions.

Background: Solon (2019) introduced genetic bandwagoning in a very general sense: A variant sequentially 1) evaluates its holder’s quality and 2) induces its holder to relinquish resources if the holder’s quality is low. Here, I introduce a more complex form of bandwagoning in order to account for a series of phenomena considered “paradoxical” by scientists specializing in their literatures: a) depression, b) differential nurturing, c) honest signaling of quality, d) reproductive suppression, e) stress-induced anthocyanins, and f) hormesis. These literatures are characterized by the following findings: 1) Low-quality individuals incur a cost against reproductive success compared to higher-quality individuals. 2) Individuals not (yet) identified as low-quality incur a cost against their ability to survive predators and/or parasites compared to individuals that have already been identified as low-quality. 3) Females incur a cost against reproductive success compared to males. 4) Males incur a cost against their ability to survive predators and/or parasites compared to females. 5) If conditions are challenging, individuals gain in both reproductive success and their ability to survive predators and/or parasites compared to less challenging conditions; however, too-challenging conditions detract from both. For each literature, at least one of these findings is unaccommodated by existing theory when considered in the context of that literature. Despite existing theory, these patterns are remarkably persistent. Question: Can paradoxes fitting these patterns be explained by genetic bandwagoning theory? Conclusion: Here, reservation is introduced as a form of bandwagoning in which a bandwagoning variant induces its holder to reserve from (i.e., withhold) some of its ability to survive parasites or predators. Reservation would occur for the purpose of assessing a holder’s quality when conditions are sufficiently unchallenging that few individuals are chronically stressed, so it is otherwise difficult to evaluate a holder’s quality. If the holder is subsequently killed, wounded, or infected, then it is identified as lacking the quality that would allow its descendants to survive more challenging conditions. The holder loses some or all of its resources as a direct consequence of the very death, wounding, or infection that identified its low quality. That is, in reservation, the two steps of bandwagoning are accomplished simultaneously. (This way of bandwagoning is distinguished from when the two steps are accomplished sequentially, which is termed resonation.) Reservation shares numerous premises with Zahavi’s handicap principle. If conditions are challenging, individuals would downregulate reservation and also be less likely to forego resources through resonation (which accounts for (5)). Additionally, a bandwagoning variant would likely evolve to vary the reservation it induces from holder to holder as a hedge against the possibility that conditions suddenly turn severe before it can adjust the reservation. Individuals already identified as low-quality would downregulate reservation (which accounts for (2) above) and would instead forego resources through resonation (which accounts for (1)). Additionally, females would downregulate reservation (which accounts for (4)) and, as a consequence, surviving females are more likely than surviving males to forego resources through resonation (which accounts for (3)).

Background: COPD is characterized by dyspnea, chronic cough, sputum production and extra pulmonary multimorbidity including depression, anxiety and cognitive problems. Methods: Cognitive and psychological clinical alterations/disorders; QoL/Health-related QoL; and Coping strategies were evaluated in 71 COPD patients characterized for FKBP5 gene (rs4713916). Instruments: MMSE, MoCA, ROCF, BDI-II, CES-D, SAS, SF-36, ADL, IADL, SGRQ, MRF 26, CIRS, Brief COPE. Results: Carriers of the rs4713916 polymorphisms (G:A) show better cognitive performances, higher degree of independence in the ADL and IADL, better QoL before and after rehabilitation, no presence of depressive mood and anxiety symptoms, no family history of psychiatric disorder, more ability to cope with stressors by avoiding emotions but demanding emotional support, and lesser use of anti-anxiety, anti-depressant anti-psychotic, hypnotic-sedative drugs. On the other hand, no difference was found as regards the number of comorbidities. Conclusions: Our study shows that rs4713916 is positively associated with better outcome for COPD. These results offer valuable insights into the role of FKBP5 in the complex network of mechanisms associated to clinical and behavioral features of COPD patients.. Our data may be used as initial benchmark for future clinical studies.

Chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia symptoms frequently occur in major depressive disorder (MDD). The pathophysiology of these symptoms may in part, be ascribed to activated immune pathways, although it is unclear whether muscular factors play a role in their onset. The aim of the present study is to examine the role of muscle proteins in major depression in association with symptoms of chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. We measured serum levels of agrin, talin-2, titin, and creatine phosphokinase (CPK) as well as the FibroFatigue (FF), the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) in 60 MDD patients and 30 healthy controls. The results show a significant increase in agrin and talin-2 in MDD patients as compared with controls. There were highly significant correlations between agrin and HAM-D, BDI-II and FF scores. Agrin, but not talin or titin, was significantly and positively associated with all 12 items of the FF scale. We found that a large part of the variance in HAM-D (47.4%), BDI-II (43.4%) and FF (43.5%) scores was explained by the regression on agrin, smoking, female sex (positively associated) and education (inversely associated). CPK was significantly and inversely associated with the total FF score and with muscle and gastro-intestinal symptoms, fatigue, a flu-like malaise, headache and memory, autonomic and sleep disturbances. These results suggest that aberrations in neuromuscular (NMJs) and myotendinous junctions may play a role in MDD and that the aberrations in NMJs coupled with lowered CPK may play a role in symptoms of chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia in MDD. Moreover, the increase of agrin in MDD probably functions as part of the compensatory immune-regulatory system (CIRS).

Objective: To examine associations between IgA responses to Gram-negative gut-commensal bacteria and peri-menstrual symptoms and sex hormone levels during the menstrual cycle in women with and without premenstrual symptoms. Methods: Forty women aged 18-45 years completed the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP) during all 28 consecutive days of the menstrual cycle. We assayed, in plasma,, IgA responses to 6 Gram-negative bacteria, i.e. Hafnei alvei, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Morganella morganii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas putida and Citrobacter pylori, progesterone and oestradiol at days 7, 14, 21 and 28 of the menstrual cycle. Results: Significant changes in Δ (actual minus one week earlier) IgA to LPS of the 6 Gram-negative bacteria during the menstrual cycle were observed with peak IgA levels at T4 (day 28) and lows at T1 or T2 (day 7 or 14). The Δ IgA changes in H. alvei, M. Morganii, P. putida during the menstrual cycle were significantly and positively associated with changes in the total DRSP score, and severity of physio-somatic, anxiety and breast-craving, but not depressive, symptoms. The changes in IgA responses to LPS were largely predicted by changes in progesterone and steady-state levels of progesterone averaged over the luteal phase. Discussion: Menstrual cycle-associated changes in IgA directed against LPS and by inference bacterial translocation may be driven by effects of progesterone on transcellular, paracellular and vascular pathways thereby contributing to the severity of physio-somatic and anxiety symptoms as well as fatigue, breast swelling and food cravings.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with changes in the levels of the cations calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) as well as circulating pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. The immune-inflammatory nature of MDD has encouraged researchers to use anti-inflammatory drugs as an adjuvant treatment for MDD. However, the effect of this treatment on cation levels has not been studied. The present study examined a) differences in both cations between drug-naïve MDD patients and controls, and b) the effects of a combination of sertraline and ketoprofen, an anti-inflammatory drug, on Ca and Mg (both total and ionized). In the same patients we also examined the associations between both cations and IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-18, IFN-γ, TGF-β1, zinc and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO). Clinical improvement was estimated using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) at baseline and after follow up for two months. Serum Ca and Mg (total and ionized) were significantly lower in MDD patients as compared with controls, while treatment significantly increased calcium but decreased magnesium levels. There were significant and inverse correlations between the BDI-II scores from baseline to endpoint and Ca (both total and ionized), but not Mg, levels. The effects of calcium on the BDI-II score remained significant after considering the effects of zinc, IDO and an immune activation z unit weighted composite score based on the sum of all cytokines. There was a significant and inverse association between this immune activation index and calcium levels from baseline to endpoint. In conclusion, reduced levels of both cations play a role in the pathophysiology of major depression. Increased calcium levels are coupled to the clinical efficacy of antidepressants and attenuation of immune activation. The suppressant effect of antidepressants on Mg levels may be a side effect of those drugs. New antidepressant treatments should be developed that increase the levels both Ca and Mg.

Background: It is unknown whether lowered steady state levels of sex hormones coupled with changes in those hormones during the menstrual cycle could be associated with the presence and severity of premenstrual syndrome (PMS).Objective: To examine associations between levels of progesterone and oestradiol during the menstrual cycle and PMS severity considering different diagnostic criteria for PMS.Methods: Forty women aged 18-45 years with a regular menstrual cycle completed the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP) for all 28 consecutive days of the menstrual cycle. Blood was sampled at days 7, 14, 21 and 28 to assay oestradiol and progesterone. Results: We developed a new diagnosis of peri-menstrual syndrome, which is characterized by increased DRSP severity in pre and post-menstrual periods and increased scores on the major DRSP dimensions, i.e. depression, physio-somatic symptoms, breast tenderness and appetite, and anxiety. This new diagnosis performed better than classical diagnoses of PMS, including the one presented by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Lowered steady state levels of progesterone, when averaged over the menstrual cycle, together with declining progesterone levels during the luteal phase predict severity of peri-menstrual symptoms. Steady state levels of oestradiol and declining oestradiol levels during the cycle are also related to DRSP severity although most of these effects appeared to be mediated by progesterone. Conclusion: A significant increase in menstrual-cycle related symptoms can best be conceptualized as “peri-menstrual syndrome” and may result from “corpus luteum insufficiency”, which may result from suboptimal pre-ovulatory follicular development. Future research should trial Clomiphene citrate (given the first 5 days of the cycle) and a mid-cycle injection of human Chorionic Gonadotrophin in subjects with peri-menstrual syndrome.

Background and objectives: due to the neurotoxic effect caused by high levels of cortisol, studies suggest that stress and certain psychiatric disorders, such as mood disorders, have influences under the hippocampus, causing a decrease in volume and consequent memory changes. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between hippocampal volume in patients with mood disorders under therapy. Materials and Methods: the PRISMA protocol for systematic reviews was followed. Pubmed, Cochraine and Scielo databases were searched by terms “Hippocampus”, “Mood Disorders” and “MRI”, and variants in other languages, in human, from January 2011 to September 2016. The individual quality of the articles was analyzed using the Cochraine modified scale for clinical trials and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality scale for observational studies. Results: all studies showed reduction of hippocampal volume in depressive patients. Change in hippocampal volume is not related to the use of antidepressant. Particularly the sub-region of the subculum is more reduced, without lateralizations. Significant relationship between stress and right hippocampal reduction. The findings seem to point out: a common pathway of hippocampus reduction, mediated by stress, explaining memory deficits due to depression, where the cortisol pathway seems to act; alteration in the prefrontal cortex; reduction in the subiculum related to inhibition of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, corroborating the hypothesis of cortisol. Conclusions: the papers suggest: association between global hippocampal atrophy with mood disorders; reduction of hippocampal subiculum; refractoriness to clinical treatment among patients with lower hippocampal volume.

Objective: The main purpose of this study was to investigate the mental health of Cypriot citizens, living in the current difficult period of economic recession. Specific objective was to investigate the different factors (gender, age, socio-economic factors, etc.) that may affect the levels of emotional distress, anxiety and depression in visitors of the Rural Health Centre of Kofinou. Materials and Methods: The sample consisted of total 300 Cypriots who visited Kofinou Health Centre in the period between August and September 2015. For the middle-aged citizens the Greek version of the HADS scale (Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale) was administered to 150 persons (Michopoulos I., 2007), while for the visiting senior citizens (aged over 65 years) the Greek version of the GDS scale (Geriatric Depression Scale) was used (Fountoulakis K., et al., 1999). All analyses were performed with the social science analysis package SPSS (version 21). Results: HADS: A total of 150 people of average age 47±11,5 years (23-64), were 56% women, while the 77.3% stated they had drastic reduction of income as well as 46.7% suffered from chronic disease. The 36.6% and 28.7% of the visitors showed moderate and severe forms of anxiety and depression, accordingly. Higher emotional distress is associated with lower educational level (p<0,001). Moreover, patients with low income have higher levels of anxiety (p=0,003), depression (p=0,036) and total emotional distress (p=0,007), while those with chronic disease have a higher stress (p<0,001), depression (p<0,001) and total emotional distress symptoms (p<0,001) compared to non - patients. GDS: 150 patients out of which 77 were women (51.3%). The average age of participants was 72±5,5 years. 93(62%) participants declared a drastic reduction of income due to the financial crisis while 139 (92.7%) stated they had chronic disease. 53 participants (35.3%) think they have symptoms of depression after the economic crisis. The women showed higher level of geriatric depression symptoms than men (p<0.001). Higher levels of depression is associated with lower income (p=0.001). Conclusions: The study shows that stress levels, depression and emotional distress are increased in specific population groups. The main factors affecting the mental health of the participants are the presence of chronic disease, income and level of education.

Background: anti-calcitonin gene-related peptide monoclonal antibodies (CGRP mAbs) are clinically effective in preventing migraine attacks, photophobia, and migraine aura associated with headaches. However, no study has yet investigated the effectiveness of CGRP mAbs in preventing migraine aura without headache. Case report: A female patient of 49 years old has a long history (since age 10) of photosensitivity and typical migraine aura without headache. The symptoms slightly responded to oral medication but did not completely resolve. Just one day after the administration of galcanezumab, her photo-hypersensitivity and migraine aura had completely resolved. Consequently, the administration of the oral migraine preventive medication was discontinued. Monthly galcanezumab at the dose of 120 mg has been continuously given and she did not experience any aura or headache so far. Conclusions: CGRP mAbs is considered an effective treatment method in preventing migraine aura without headache. Although CGRP mAbs do not penetrate the blood-brain barrier, trigeminal nerve stabilization with CGRP mAb can prevent cortical spreading depression.

Conclusion: The study highlights the high prevalence of depression among caregivers of geriatric patients in Jeddah and underscores the significant impact of caregiving burden on mental health. These findings emphasize the need for targeted interventions, such as mental health support, respite care programs, and culturally sensitive educational training, to mitigate caregiver burden and enhance the well-being of caregivers.

Objective-Most women stop using hormonal contraceptives due to changes in their mood. The evidence regarding the association of hormonal contraception with depression shows mixed results. Therefore, we aim to establish the association between the use of hormonal contraception and depressive symptoms. Method- This cross-sectional study was conducted on 326 women of reproductive age using hormonal contraceptives for a week to one year referred to as "hormonal contraceptive (HC) users" (n=165), and those using non-hormonal methods and not using contraceptives referred to as "HC non-users" (n=161). Beck's depression inventory (BDI-II) was used to measure depression. Result-There was no discernible difference in mean Beck's depression inventory score and degree of depression between the two groups. However, individual symptoms of depression such as sadness(p=0.01), reduced libido(p=0.0002) feelings of pessimism (p=0.02), and failure (p=0.003) were found to be significantly high in the HC user group. Conclusion- We conclude that there was no significant difference in mean depression scores between groups. However, few individual symptoms of depression were high in HC users suggesting depression as a potential side effect of hormonal contraceptive use.

Nutritional management of depression has long been discussed due to the perceived benefit of a nutritional product having less side effects than pharmaceutical agents. Candidate nutrients for managing depression include Vitamin D, B-vitamins, tryptophan, branch chain amino acids, probiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, folate/methylfolate (aka Vitamin B9), and s-adenosylmethionine. This paper reviews three nutrients which have significant scientific support for the management of depression and have evidence of low levels in subjects with depression, and that correction of the nutritional deficiency provides clinical benefit. We present epidemiological evidence, mechanistic explanation and a review of interventional studies for these nutrients. Finally, relevant nutritional guidelines are presented with their conclusion for the role of each nutrient in the management of depression.

The Huichang fault Basin in Jiangxi Province exhibits high terrestrial heat flow values and a dense concentration of hot springs. However, existing research is limited to individual geothermal fields without a comprehensive basin-wide analysis of geothermal water origins. This study investigates the source of geothermal water across five representative geothermal fields using hydrochemical components and isotopic analyses. The findings indicate: (1) The hydrochemical type transitions from bicarbonate sulphate-sodium-calcium in the north to bicarbonate sodium-calcium in the south; (2) Major chemical components of the geothermal water derive from evaporative salt rocks (Cretaceous sand conglomerate cover) and siliceous formations (granite/metamorphic rock basement); (3) The recharge elevation for geothermal water is approximately 1 km, sourced from adjacent hills. The central basin's geothermal water has an apparent age of about 26,000 years, with δ¹³C indicating participation in deep circulation; (4) Thermal reservoir temperatures range from 74 to 113℃, with the lowest temperatures at the basin's edges (Anzishan and Shangjin geothermal fields) and higher temperatures towards the center, suggesting increased warming and a circulation depth of 1.5 to 2.5 km; (5) Simulation results of reverse water-rock interaction indicate that mineral precipitation-dissolution processes are governed by the basin's main thermal control structures. The geothermal fields are predominantly influenced by reduction alterations associated with granite and are closely linked to paleo-geothermal waters in the enclosed basin, with the formation of these fields heavily reliant on the heat production or conduction from radioactive elements in granite.

International students were – and continue to be – particularly vulnerable to the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. 625 international students in Israel completed an online survey assessing risk and protective factors (socio-demographics, health status, COVID-19 related experiences/concerns, financial difficulties, academic challenges/experiences, social support, and coping) for student’s depression, perceived need for help, and seeking help from the university. Approximately 15% of participants had moderately-severe or severe depression. Over half needed at least a little help, but only 19.7% had asked for help. Depression symptoms were related coping (β=-.34) and health (β=.12). Need for help was related to being a postdoc (β=-0.26) and experiencing food insecurity (β=0.20). Universities need to develop services which address international students’ unique needs during global crises.

Background: This study explored the effects of a virtual reality exercise program on overweight middle-aged women. Methods: This randomized controlled trial included women 4065 years of age with a body mass index (BMI) of 23 kg/m2 or more living in D city. The virtual reality environment was set up by attaching an IoT sensor to an indoor bicycle and linking it with a smartphone, enabling exercise in an immersive virtual reality through a head-mounted display. Results: In the virtual reality exercise group, the BMI was significantly decreased after the 8-week intervention compared with the baseline value (F=100.806, p<.001). The depression scores were significantly different among the three groups, with the intervention effect being more significant in the virtual reality exercise group than in the indoor bicycle exercise and con-trol groups (F=3.462, p<.001). Furthermore, the levels of exercise fun (F=12.373, p<.001) and exer-cise immersion (F=14.629, p<.001) were significantly higher in the virtual reality exercise group than in the indoor bicycle exercise and control groups. Conclusions: The virtual reality exercise program positively affected the BMI and the levels of depression, exercise fun, and exercise im-mersion in overweight middle-aged women. It is an effective home exercise program for obesity management in this population.

Several studies have identified a relationship between air pollution and depression, particularly in relation to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure. However, the strength of this association appears to be moderated by variables such as age, gender, genetic vulnerability, physical activity and climatic conditions, and has not been assessed at a cross-national level to date. The current study examines the association between the prevalence of depression in each country, based on the most recent Global Burden of Disease Study data, and the average national level of PM2.5 based on the World Health Organization’s database. The observed associations were adjusted for age, gender, level of physical activity, income, education, population density, climate, and type of depression. It was observed that there was a modest but significant positive correlation between PM2.5 level and the prevalence of depression even after adjusting for the above confounders. This association was more marked above a certain threshold and applied chiefly to major depressive episodes. These findings are of significant public health importance in terms of preventive strategies aimed at reducing the population-level burden of depression.

Obesity during childhood has been associated with many important physiological and neurological health considerations. Specifically concerning are the associations between youth obesity and declines in mental health, as shown with increasing rates of adolescent depression and anxiety worldwide. The emergence of mental health disorders commonly arises during adolescent development, and approximately half the global population satisfy the criteria for at least one psychiatric disorder in their lifetime, suggesting a need for early intervention. Adolescence is critical time whereby brain structure and functions are not only negatively associated with obesity and declines in mental health, while also coinciding with significant declines in rates of physical activity among individuals in this age group. Physical activity is thus a prime candidate to address the intersection of obesity and mental health crises occurring globally. This review addresses the important considerations between physiological health (obesity, aerobic fitness, physical activity), brain health (structure and function), and mental wellbeing symptomology. Lastly, we pose a theoretical framework which asks important questions regarding the influence of physiological health on the association between brain health and the development of depression and anxiety symptoms in adolescence.

Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a chronic, systemic autoimmune disease defined as exocrine gland hypofunction resulting in dry eyes and dry mouth. Recent interest in biological therapies for pSS has been garnered, however achieving FDA-approval has been challenging due to the numerous complications in the trials. Current literature lacks insight and a molecular target-based approach to the development of biological therapies. This review focuses on novel research in newly defined drug targets and latest clinical trials for pSS treatment. A literature search was conducted on ClinicalTrials.gov using the search term “Primary Sjögren's syndrome”. Articles published between 2000 and 2021 in English language were included. Our findings revealed the potential targets for pSS treatment in clinical trials and the most recent advances in understand-ing of molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of pSS. A prominent gap in current trials is overlooking the treatment of extraglandular symptoms such as fatigue, depression and anxiety which pervade most patients with pSS. Based on dryness and these symptom-directed therapies, emerging biological agents targeting inflammatory cytokines, signal pathways and immune reaction have been studied and proved the efficacy and safety. Novel therapies may complement existing non-pharmacological methods of alleviating symptoms of pSS. Better grad-ing systems adding extraglandular symptoms to gauge disease activity and severity should be created. The future of pSS therapies may lie in gene therapy, stem cell and tissue engineering ther-apy.

Background: Young adults, particularly university students might be at greater risk of developing psychological distress, and exhibiting symptoms of anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. Objective: The primary objective of this study was to explore and compare the determinants and predictors of mental health (anxiety and depression) during and after COVID-19 lockdown among university students. Methods: This was an observational, cross-sectional study with a sample size of 417 students. An online survey utilizing International Physical Activity Questionnaire–Short Form (IPAQ-SF), General Anxiety Disorder–7 (GAD-7) and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was distributed to Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman students via Google forms. Results: During lockdown, family income [χ² (1, n=124) = 5.155, p=0.023], and physical activity [χ² (1, n=134) = 6.366, p=0.012] were associated with anxiety, while depression was associated with gender [χ² (1, n=75) = 4.655, p=0.031]. After lockdown, family income was found to be associated with both anxiety [χ2 (1, n=111) = 8.089, p=0.004], and depression [χ2 (1, n=115) =9.305, p=0.002]. During lockdown, family income (OR=1.60, p=0.018), and physical activity (OR=0.59, p=0.011) were predictors for anxiety, and gender (OR=0.65, p=0.046) being the only predictor for depression. After lockdown, family income was a predictor for both anxiety (OR=1.67, p=0.011), and depression (OR=1.70, p=0.009). Conclusion: Significant negative effects attributed to the COVID-19 lockdown, and certain factors predisposed to the worsening of mental health status in university students. Family income, physical activity level, and gender were some of the major determinants that influenced the anxiety and depression.

This study was conducted to examine whether there are quantitative or qualitative differences in the connectome between psychiatric patients and healthy controls and to delineate the connectome features of major depressive disorder (MDD), schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BD) and the severity of these disorders. Toward this end, we have performed effective connectivity analysis of resting state functional MRI data in these three patient groups and healthy controls. We have used spectral Dynamic Causal Modeling (spDCM), and the derived connectome features were further subjected to machine learning. The results outlined a model of 5 connections, which discriminate patients from controls, comprising major nodes of the limbic system (amygdala (AMY), hippocampus (HPC) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)), the salience network (anterior insula (AI), fronto-parietal and dorsal attention network (middle frontal gyrus (MFG) corresponding to dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, frontal eye field (FEF)). Notably, the alterations in the self-inhibitory connection of the anterior insula emerged as a feature of both mood disorders and SCZ. Moreover, 4 out of the 5 connectome features that discriminate mental illness from controls are features of mood disorders (both MDD and BD), namely the MFG→FEF, HPC→FEF, AI→AMY, and MFG→AMY connections, whereas one connection is a feature of SCZ, namely the AMY→SPL connectivity. A large part of the variance in the severity of depression (31.6%) and SCZ (40.6%) was explained by connectivity features. In conclusion, dysfunctions in the self-regulation of the salience network may underpin major mental disorders, while other key connectome features shape differences between mood disorders and SCZ, and can be used as potential imaging biomarkers.

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is provoking a prevalent consequence on mental health because of less interaction among people, economic collapse, negativity, fear of losing jobs, and death of the near and dear ones. To express their mental state, people often are using social media as one of the preferred means. Due to reduced outdoor activities, people are spending more time on social media than usual and expressing their emotion of anxiety, fear, and depression. On a daily basis, about 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are generated on social media, analyzing this big data can become an excellent means to evaluate the effect of COVID-19 on mental health. In this work, we have analyzed data from Twitter microblog (tweets) to find out the effect of COVID-19 on peoples mental health with a special focus on depression. We propose a novel pipeline, based on recurrent neural network (in the form of long-short term memory or LSTM) and convolutional neural network, capable of identifying depressive tweets with an accuracy of 99.42%. Preprocessed using various natural language processing techniques, the aim was to find out depressive emotion from these tweets. Analyzing over 571 thousand tweets posted between October 2019 and May 2020 by 482 users, a significant rise in depressing tweets was observed between February and May of 2020, which indicates as an impact of the long ongoing COVID-19 pandemic situation.

Psychiatry remains in a permanent state of crisis, which fragmented psychiatry from the field of medicine. The crisis in psychiatry is evidenced by the many different competing approaches to psychiatric illness including psychodynamic, biological, molecular, pan-omics, precision, cognitive and phenomenological psychiatry, folk psychology, mind-brain dualism, descriptive psychopathology, and postpsychiatry. The current “gold standard” DSM/ICD taxonomies of mood disorders and schizophrenia are unreliable and preclude to employ a deductive reasoning approach. Therefore, it is not surprising that mood disorders and schizophrenia research was unable to revise the conventional classifications and did not provide more adequate therapeutic approaches. The aim of this paper is to explain the new nomothetic network psychiatry (NNP) approach, which uses machine learning methods to build data-driven causal models of mental illness by ensembling risk-resilience, adverse outcome pathways (AOP), cognitome, brainome, symptomatome, and phenomenome latent scores in a causal model. The latter may be trained, tested and validated with Partial Least Squares (PLS) analysis. This approach not only allows to compute pathway-phenotypes or biosignatures, but also to construct reliable and replicable nomothetic networks, which are, therefore, generalizable as disease models. After integrating the validated feature vectors into a well-fitting nomothetic network, clustering analysis may be applied on the latent variable scores of the R/R, AOP, cognitome, brainome, and phenome latent vectors. This pattern recognition method may expose new (transdiagnostic) classes of patients which if cross-validated in independent samples may constitute new (transdiagnostic) nosological categories.

Nonpharmacological therapeutic interventions in elderly may lead to the reduction of cognitive and depressive symptoms. The aim of the study was to evaluate changes in cognitive functions and mood er or not. in older adults participating in therapy, conducted in the community day-care center (CD-CC). 46 elderly adults (21 M, 25 W) (SG) were examined. The control group (CG) included 45 adults (12 M, 33 W), who participated in the activities of the University of the Third Age (U3A). The following measuring tools were used: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Clock-Drawing Test (CDT), Verbal Fluency Test (VFT), Digit Span Test (DST), Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT), Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI), and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The intervention consisted of CD-CC 6-month complex therapy. In the SG, compared to the CG, the scores on the: MMSE, CDT, VFT, DST, and SCWT were significantly lower (p<0,05), and BDI was significantly higher (p<0,05). After intervention, the SG and the CG, did not show substantial differences in their scores on the: MMSE, CDT, and BDI. In the SG, a significant improvement (p<0,05) was reported on the: VFT, BDI, and HADS scores. The CD-CC complex therapy can be helpful for the cognitive and emotional elderly functioning.

Rationale: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is characterized by signaling aberrations in interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10, beta-endorphins as well as mu (MOR) and kappa (KOR) opioid receptors. Here we examined whether these biomarkers may aid in the classification of unknown subjects into the target class MDD.Methods: The aforementioned biomarkers were assayed in 60 first-episode, drug-naïve depressed patients and 30 controls. We analyzed the data using joint principal component analysis (PCA) performed on all subjects to check whether subjects cluster by classes; support vector machine (SVM) with 10-fold validation; and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) and SIMCA performed on calibration and validation sets and we computed the figures of merit and learnt from the data. Results: PCA shows that both groups were well separated using the first three PCs, while correlation loadings show that all 5 biomarkers have discriminatory value. SVM and LDA yielded an accuracy of 100% in validation samples. Using SIMCA there was a highly significant discrimination of both groups (model-to-model distance=87.5); all biomarkers showed a significant discrimination and modeling power, while 10% of the patients were identified as outsiders and no aliens could be identified.Discussion: We have delineated that MDD is a distinct class with respect to neuro-immune and opioid biomarkers and that future unknown subjects can be authenticated as having MDD using this SIMCA fingerprint. Precision psychiatry should employ SIMCA a) to authenticate patients as belonging to the claimed target class and identify other subjects as outsiders, members of another class or aliens; and b) to acquire knowledge through learning from the data by constructing a biomarker fingerprint of the target class.

Relatively little research attention has been paid to sex issues in late life suicidal behaviour. The aim was to compare clinical characteristics of women and men aged 70+ who were hospitalized after a suicide attempt. We hypothesized higher depression and anxiety scores in women, and we expected to find that men would more often attribute the attempt to health problems and compromised autonomy. Participants (56 women and 47 men, mean age 80) were interviewed by a psychologist. In addition to psychiatric and somatic health assessments, participants responded to an open-ended question concerning attributions of the attempt. There were no sex differences in depression and anxiety, but women were more likely to report that they found their situation hopeless (67.9% vs. 43.8%, p = 0.02). At least one serious physical disability was noted in 60.7% of the women and 53.2% of the men (p = 0.55). Proportions attributing their attempt to somatic illness did not differ (women, 14.5% vs. men 17.4%, p = 0.79), and similar proportions attributed the attempt to reduced autonomy (women, 21.8% vs. men, 26.1 %, p = 0.64). The unexpected lack of sex differences might be influenced by cultural context in which sex norms play a part.

In current diagnostic systems, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are still conceptualized as distinct categorical entities. Recently, both clinical and genetic evidence have challenged this Kraepelinian dichotomy. There are only few longitudinal studies addressing the potential overlaps between these conditions. Here, we present design and first results of the PsyCourse study, an ongoing transdiagnostic study of the affective-to-psychotic continuum that combines longitudinal deep phenotyping and dimensional assessment of psychopathology with an extensive collection of biomaterial. Within the DSM-IV framework, we compare two broad diagnostic groups: one consisting of predominantly affective and one of predominantly psychotic disorders. Depressive, manic, and psychotic symptoms as well as global functioning over time were analyzed. Furthermore, we explore the effects of polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia on diagnostic group membership and address their effects on non-participation in follow-up visits. While phenotypic results show differences in both current psychotic and manic symptoms, depressive symptoms did not vary between both groups. Polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia significantly explained part of the variability of the diagnostic group. Furthermore, there was a trend that a higher polygenic loading for schizophrenia was associated with attrition. Because of its unique properties, the PsyCourse study presents a prime resource for the interrogation of complex genotype-phenotype relationships.

Poor perinatal mental health can have significant and lasting impacts on a woman’s overall health and the well-being of her children and family. From conception, a baby's behavior, appearance, aversions, and interests can be influenced by the prenatal environment. Thus, the quality of prenatal care is crucial. Factors such as maternal stress, environmental conditions, cravings, mood swings, hormonal changes, and emotional experiences during pregnancy can profoundly affect the baby’s behavior once born. The baby's interaction with the external world begins from conception, not just at birth. For instance, maternal depression can negatively affect both the mental and physical health of the infant. Therefore, fostering a supportive environment for expectant mothers is essential for their health and that of their unborn child. Promoting the mother’s well-being through happiness and comfort is critical.This review paper aims to synthesize current research on maternal-fetal attachment during pregnancy, its evolution, and its postpartum effects on the mother-infant relationship. It will explore how these dynamics change over time, both during pregnancy and after delivery, to provide a comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing attachment and related outcomes. As Alan Soufre, a famous developmental psychologist would state, "Attachment would begin before birth. The mother’s emotional state can shape the child’s development trajectory long before the child is born."

Background and Objective: Although possible risk factors associated with maternal postpartum depression (PPD) have been elucidated, it is still unknown how some newborns characteristics could influence the appearance of PPD. Our research aimed to unravel the impact of newborn’s characteristics on PPD. Methods: The study was conducted in the Obstetrics &amp; Gynecology Department, from our University Emergency County Hospital, between August 2019 and April 2021. We included women in the 2 nd day of the postpartum period (n=904), divided into 2 groups: women with PPD (n=236) and control (women without PPD, n=668), by using the Edinburg Postpartum Depression Scale. Characteristic information on newborns (i.e., the months in which they were born, premature delivery, birth weight, or gender) were assessed. Results: Our findings suggest that the winter season (i.e. December and January, p=0.01) births and male newborns (p=0.02) were associated with the appearance of depressive symptoms during postpartum. Conclusions: Therefore, our study showed that women who give birth to male newborns in winter are likely to develop PPD. This should be considered by all public health systems in order to prevent such manifestations in certain groups of women.

Background: This study aimed to explore the association between the emotional impact of COVID-19 and emotional eating and the risk of alcohol use disorder among Peruvian health science students. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analytical study in which an online questionnaire was administered to 456 health science interns from four cities in Peru. We used the COVID-19 Emotional Impact Profile questionnaire, Mindful Eating Questionnaire, and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Spearman’s correlations were calculated and two multiple linear regression models were developed. Results: 68.4% of the participants were emotional eaters and 8.6% reported low-risk levels of alcohol use disorder. Based on the results of the first model, the overall emotional impact of COVID-19, being overweight or obese, depression and anxiety levels, and living with only one parent were factors associated with emotional eating. The results of the second model showed that the level of depression, living with just one parent, living alone, sex, and number of months as an intern were factors associated with the risk of alcohol use disorder. Conclusion: To reduce emotional eating and the risk of alcohol use disorder among interns, universities should implement interventions aimed at reducing the emotional impact of COVID-19 and provide nutritional counseling.

Introduction: Hospitalization in a COVID-19 unit represents a significant source of stress and psychological distress for patients. Our study aims to determine the factors of psychological distress in the therapeutic and psychosocial management of patients hospitalized with a COVID-19 infection. Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out over 8 months at the COVID-19 zone of the CHU HASSAN II of FES. 99 patients were evaluated within days of diagnosis by psychometric scales of anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress. In the course of this follow-up, we found the presence of psychological impacts in these patients, and we tried to find correlating factors between the occurrence of psychiatric disorders and the set of factors related to sociodemographic data, hospitalization course and treatments taken, as well as family support. Results: 35% of patients had scores in favor of post-traumatic stress disorder, 37% of the patients had definite depression and 50% had anxiety. Post-traumatic stress, depression, and anxiety were correlated with sociodemographic factors, hospitalization, treatments received, and length of stay. Conclusion: The prevalence of anxiety-depressive disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder was high in patients with COVID-19, hence the interest in providing psychological and psychosocial care in the emergency department.

Background and Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the job-related and individual features that influence BS and depression levels among dentists working in faculties, oral and dental health centres (ODHC) and private clinics. Materials and Methods: This prospective, cross sectional study was carried out on dentists working in different regions of Turkey. Data were collected using an on-line questionnaire created using Google Forms. The questionnaire consisted of demographic data, Maslach BS Inventory (MBI) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) sections. Demographics were age, height, weight, marital status, blood type, gender, monthly income, income satisfaction and having enough free time. The dentists were divided into 3 groups as faculty, private clinic and ODHC according to the institutions in which they worked. Results: Of the total 290 dentists enrolled in the study, there were 172 males and 118 females with a mean age of 36.98±5.6 years. 128 of the dentists worked in faculties, 72 in private clinics and 90 in ODHCs. It was observed that women's EE scores were higher than men's (P&lt;0.05). No statistically significant difference was found between the groups when comparing BS and depression scores according to marital status and blood group (P&gt;0.05). There was no significant relationship between emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalisation (DP), personal accomplishment (PA) and depression scores according to age, BMI and work experience, age, work experience and BMI (P&lt;0.05). It was found that the EE scores of the dentists working in the faculty and private clinic were lower than those of the dentists working in the ODHC (P&lt;0.05). Monthly income was associated with depression (r = -0.35). Conclusions: This study showed that dentists working in ODHCs had more EE. These findings suggest that there is a need for improvement in the working conditions of dentists, particularly in ODHCs.

Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the effects of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) acting on the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) or its receptor (anti-CGRP/R mAbs) on comorbid symptoms of depression, anxiety, and fatigue in migraine patients resistant to traditional prophylaxis. Methods: The study was an open-label prospective study assessing comorbidities in patients with high frequency (HFEM) and chronic migraine (CM), medication overuse headache (MOH), and resistance to traditional prophylaxis treated with anti-CGRP/R mAbs for 3 months. Results: 77 patients were enrolled with either HFEM (21%) or CM (79%) with or without MOH (56% and 44% respectively). We identified 21 non-responders (27%) and 56 responders (73%), defined on the reduction ≥ 50% of headache frequency. The two groups were highly homogeneous for investigated comorbidities. Disease severity in terms of headache frequency, migraine-related disability, and affective comorbid symptoms were reduced in both groups with different thresholds; allodynia and fatigue were ameliorated only in responders. Conclusion: anti-CGRP/R antibodies improve pain together with affection, fatigue, and sensory sensitization in migraine patients.

During the postpartum period, psychological disorders may emerge. Aims and objectives: 1 With the current study, we aim to raise awareness among healthcare professionals about postpartum depression (PPD) in women. To reach the aim we will perform the following tasks: (i) identify biological peripartum risk factors and calculate pooled prevalence of PPD for each of them; (ii) explore the strength of relationship between peripartum risk factors and PPD; (iii) rank the predictors by their prevalence and magnitude of association with PPD. The knowledge obtained will support the development and implementation of early diagnostic and preventive strategies. Methods and analysis: we will systematically go through peer-reviewed publications available in the PubMed search engine and online databases: Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE. The scope of the review will include articles published any time in English, Arabic, or Polish. We will deduplicate literature sources with the Covidence software, evaluate heterogeneity between the study results, and critically assess credibility of selected articles with the Joanna Briggs Institute’s bias evaluation tool. The information to extract is incidence rate, prevalence, and odds ratio between each risk factor and PPD. A comprehensive analysis of the extracted data will allow us to achive the objectives. The study findings will contribute to risk stratification and more effective management of PPD in women.

This research investigates the environmental characteristics of the saline lake in the Jiangling depression, southwestern Jianghan Basin from Paleocene to Eocene using bulk-rock geochemistry. The ratios of FeO/MnO, Al2O3/MgO and C-value indicate a semi-humid to semi-arid climate in the early-middle Paleocene. There was a rapid shift to a humid climate during the late Paleocene to early Eocene, following a short-time intense dryness. The Eocene climate was arid, but experienced intermittent humidity. The variation trend of CIA, CIW and PIA is similar to that of FeO/MnO, Al2O3/MgO and C-value, so the chemical weathering was influenced by climate changes. The redox conditions of lake in the Jiangling depression during Paleocene to Eocene were reconstructed using the ratios of U/Th, Ni/Co, and V/Cr. In the humidity and alternations of aridity and humidity, the lake water received external water input, resulting in weak stratification, so the sediments were in oxidation condition. In the aridity, lakes become a still water environments, leading to sediments formed in reduced condition. The salinity of the lake in Jiangling depression from Paleocene to Eocene was determined through the analysis of sedimentary sequences and the change of Sr/Ba ratio. In the early-middle Paleocene, the salinity of lake varied greatly. From the late Paleocene to the early Eocene, the salinity of lake decreased. In the Eocene, the salinity of the lake increased, and the halite precipitated, and finally the salinity of the lake decreased due to humid climate.

The work analyses the way in which symptoms and life themes manifest in middle-aged adults diagnosed with major recurrent depression. Specifically, the relationships between symptoms, life themes, and life themes - symptoms have been analyzed. For this purpose, Spearman correlation, and the methods of Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) were used. Seven symptoms and twenty-six life themes were identified in the patients analyzed as well as similarities of symptoms/life themes (at patient level), the ranking of the importance of symptoms on each life theme (at the level of the group of patients), the rankings of the similarities of life themes in relation to different symptoms or various groups of symptoms (at the level of the group of patients), and dysfunctional cycles of symptoms and life themes (at patient level). The findings only refer to the patients analyzed. Although our findings cannot be generalized, there is a possibility that some of them may also be encountered in other patients. However, the design of the work can be used to initiate other similar studies.

Background: The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection is primarily transmitted through respiratory droplets from an infected person and contact with tainted surfaces or items. Social distancing became the primary measure of preventing the spread of COVID-19, with the principal aim being to reduce the probability of contact with an already infected person. Social distancing can be distressing, as it is against the community's way of life. Saudi Arabia imposed a curfew and suspended all religious, entertainment, sporting, and mass congregations. The daily updates on COVID-19 infection and mortality are upsetting and further, aggravate depression and anxiety. With this background, this study was planned with the following objectives. To determine the sociodemographic profile of the study participants, to find the prevalence of psychological morbidity, and to measure the association between the sociodemographic details, COVID-19 associated factors, and psychological effects among Abha citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional community-based study was conducted in the Abha city population from August 2021 to July 22. This study followed snowball sampling, the data was collected using an online Google form the link was shared in WhatsApp groups and through emails to contacts, asking friends to share it with their friends, until reaching the adequate sample size the responses were accepted. Results: A total of 530 participated, and their age ranged from 19 -70 years. Many of the participants (34.5%, n=183) belonged to 36-45 years old. Most of the responders were 69.8% married and Females (69.2%, n=367). Half of the participants had been quarantined (49.6%), and 51.5% were scared from fear of COVID-19. 64.8% of the participants had depression; 14.2%, 20.8%, 13.6%, and 16.2% had mild, moderate, severe, and extremely severe depression, respectively. Around 58.2% of participants suffered from anxiety; 5.8% experienced mild anxiety, 21.7% moderate anxiety, and 30.7% severe anxiety. The proportion of stress among the participants was 45.0%; 10.8% had mild stress, 9.4% had moderate stress, and 24.5% had severe to extremely severe stress. Conclusions: COVID-19 poses mental health problems among individuals and communities. There is a need to find the more susceptible individuals for mental health issues or other psychological disorders. Mental health and psychological problems can be resolved with health education, counseling, and appropriate interventions to curb the negative health impacts of COVID-19.

Abstract Peripartum depression (PPD) is a major complication of pregnancy and many risk factors have been associated with its development, including dysfunctional coping strategies and insecure attachment styles, both during pregnancy and postpartum. The aim of our study was to investigate the role of coping strategies in mediating the relationship between women’s attachment style and PPD in pregnancy, and one week after childbirth, in a large cohort of women. We hypothesized that the relationship between anxious and avoidant attachment and PPD would be mediated by use of maladaptive coping strategies. The assessment instruments were Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), Brief Coping Orientation for Problem Experiences (COPE), Experiences in Close Relationship Scale (ECR). The results indicated that the effect of insecure attachment styles (anxious and avoidant attachment) on antepartum depressive symptomatology was partially mediated by dysfunctional coping styles. Anxious attachment has also an indirect significant effect on postpartum depression through emotional coping; however, avoidant attachment does not seem to be significantly related to postpartum depression. Our findings revealed that not only it is important to consider attachment in understanding PPD but also that coping plays an important role in these relationships. These findings would help a preventive coping-based intervention strategy to enhance the capacity of women with insecure attachment styles to use more adaptive coping during and after pregnancy.

Postpartum depression (PPD) can predispose to physical and mental health problems in women. However, PPD is associated with health and perceived social support but their causal relationship is unclear. Therefore, this study intended to evaluate the association of PPD with insomnia, mental health, and physical health. Convenience sampling technique was used to collect data from 320 (52.8 %) young and middle aged postpartum women, in the outpatient departments of obstetrics and gynecology in Government Maula Bakhsh Hospital, District Head Quarter in Sargodha, Pakistan. The Edinburgh Postnatal depression scale, Pittsburg sleep quality index, Warwick-Edinburgh mental wellbeing scale, Patient health questionnaire, and Multidimensional scale of perceived social support were used to measure study variables. Results revealed a significant positive relationship of PPD with physical health (r= .45, p=.001), while a negative relationship with insomnia (r= -.24, p<.001), and perceived social support (r= -.38, p=.001). Results further confirmed that perceived social support played a moderating role (β = .97, p=.01) in the relationship between PPD and mental health among females. This study concluded that perceived social support has an important role in PPD and women’s health. The study also concluded that poor health is a risk indicator for identifying aid in the early stages of postpartum among women.

Worldwide, depressive disorder is one of the leading determinants of disability-adjusted life years. Although the benefits associated with physical activity (PA), there is a lack of information related to depression, especially in countries like Czechia, where modern approaches to mental health care only recently emerged. The PA levels were associated with aspects of depression such as clinician-diagnosed history; different severities; continuous depression scores; and specific symptoms that characterize the depression. The multivariable-adjusted Poisson regression models were carried out on 2123 participants (45.3% men, median 48 years). Compared to subjects with insufficient PA, the moderate and high PA levels were inversely associated with clinician-diagnosed depression history (respectively, prevalence rate [PR]= 0.84; 95% CI 0.66-0.82 and PR=0.50; 95% CI 0.36-0.67); and with continuous depression scores (PR=0.85; 95% CI 0.75-0.97; and PR=0.79; 95%CI 0.70-0.90).; but only high PA showed association with depression categories (PR=0.75; 95%CI 0.60-0.95). Depressed mood and worthlessness were the symptoms associated with moderate and high PA. Tiredness, change in appetite, and problems with concentration only with high PA. Although only high PA was sufficient for people intending changes among depression categories, the moderate PA may be enough for slight changes in depressive symptoms, and a good strategy when starting.

Building on a framework of risk transmission to children of depressed parents, the present study investigated the associations between parents’ self-compassion, parent’s depressive symptoms, and child adjustment. A total 189 Chinese parents (101 mothers) whose children were 2-8 years old were recruited to complete a questionnaire, including measures of self-compassion, depressive symptoms and children’s prosocial behavior, internalizing problems, and externalizing problems. Findings indicated mediation effects, in that parents’ depressive symptoms mediated the associ-ation between their self-compassion and child adjustment outcomes, namely children’s internal-izing and externalizing problems, after controlling the effects of monthly family income, child gender, and parent gender. Competing hypothesis suggested that parents’ self-compassion did not moderate between parents’ depressive symptoms and child adjustment outcomes. Hence, the association between parental depressive symptoms and child adjustment was not dependent on the level of parents’ self-compassion. As an implication, researchers and practitioners should be made aware of the protective role of parents’ self-compassion in the family context.

Psychotherapy is one of the evidence-based clinical interventions for the treatment of depression in older adults with dementia. Randomized Controlled Trials are often the first methodological choice to gain evidence, yet they are not applicable to a wide range of humanistic psychotherapies. Amongst all, the efficacy of the Gestalt therapy (GT) is under-investigated. The purpose of this paper is to present a research protocol aiming to assess the effects of a GT-based intervention on people with dementia (PWD) and the indirect influence on their family carers. The study implements the Single-Case Experimental Design with Time-Series Analysis that will be carried out in Italy and Mexico. Ten people in each country, who received a diagnosis of dementia and present depressive symptoms, will be recruited. Eight or more GT sessions will be provided whose fidelity will be assessed by the GT Fidelity Scale. Quantitative outcome measures are foreseen for monitoring participants’ depression, anxiety, quality of life, carers’ burden, and the caregiving dyad mutuality, at baseline and follow-up. The advantages and limitations of the research design are considered. If GT will result effective in the treatment of depression in PWD, it could enrich the range of evidence-based interventions provided by healthcare services.

Depression is considered by WHO as the main contributor to global disability and it poses dangerous threats to approximately all aspects of human life, in particular public and private health. This mental disorder is usually characterized by considerable changes in feelings, routines, or thoughts. With respect to the fact that early diagnosis of this illness would be of critical importance ineffective treatment, some development has occurred in the purpose of depression detection. EEG signals reflect the working status of the human brain by which are considered the most proper tools for a depression diagnosis. Deep learning algorithms have the capacity of pattern discovery and extracting features from the raw data which is fed into them. Owing to this significant characteristic of deep learning, recently, these methods have intensely utilized in the diverse field of researches, specifically medicine and healthcare. Thereby, in this article, we aimed to review all papers concentrated on using deep learning to detect or predict depressive subjects with the help of EEG signals as input data. Regarding the adopted search method, we finally evaluated 22 articles between 2016 and 2021. This article which is organized according to the systematic literature review (SLR) method, provides complete summaries of all exploited studies and compares the noticeable aspects of them. Moreover, some statistical analysis performs to gain a depth perception of the general ideas of the latest researches in this area. A pattern of a five-step procedure was also established by which almost all reviewed articles fulfilled the goal of depression detection. Finally, open issues and challenges in this way of depression diagnosis or prediction and suggested works as the future directions discussed.

Abstract Women victims of abuse can suffer neuropsychological sequelae that affect memory and attention, as well psychopathological disorders such as depression. These consequences affect their daily life and physical and psychological health. Objective: To analyze sequelae that affect attention and memory, as well a possible association of these sequelae to depression. Method: A total of 68 women victims of gender-based violence participated in the study. The participants were between 15 and 62 years of age and resided in Spain at the time of data collection. The Luria DNA Battery (Neuropsychological Diagnosis of Adults) by Manga and Ramos (2000); and the Beck Depression Inventory were applied. Results: Women victims of gender-based violence suffer neuropsychological sequelae, presenting low short-term memory and attentional control; and score low on the Luria-DNA battery. Of these women, 60% suffer from some relevant type of depression, and there are significant differences according to their degree of memory. Through the HJ-Biplot, a direct relationship was found between memory and attentional control with the total score of the Luria battery. On the other hand, an inverse relationship was found between short-term memory and depression. Lastly, three well-differentiated gender clusters of women victims of gender-based violence were identified. Conclusions: A lower rate of depression is observed in women victims of abuse when they have a more intact short-term memory.

Background: Few studies examined the contributions of childhood adversities, intimate partner violence and social support to antenatal depression (AD). This study aims to 1) evaluate association of these psychosocial factors with AD symptoms in early pregnancy; and 2) examine the mediating effect of social support on the relationship between psychosocial stressors and AD symptoms.Methods: Participants were 120 pregnant women aged from 18 to 49 in less than 16 gestational weeks and attending at Antenatal Care Center at Khon Kaen hospital, Thailand. AD symptoms were assessed by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Childhood adversities, intimate partner violence and social support were measured using the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACE questionnaire), Abuse Assessment Screen (AAS), and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Results: We found that the EPDS score was significantly and positively associated with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and negatively with social support. Partial Least Square analysis showed that 49.1% of the variance in the depressive subdomain of the EPDS score was predicted by ACEs, namely psychological and physical abuse and neglect, emotional or physical abuse by the partner, unplanned pregnancy, and no satisfaction with their relationship. The effects of adverse childhood experience due to neglect on the EDPS score was mediated by social support by friends. Limitations: ACEs were assessed retrospectively and, therefore, may be susceptible to recall bias.Conclusion: Prenatal depression scores are to a large extent predicted by psychological distress as indicated by early lifetime trauma, abuse by partner, relation satisfaction, and implications of unintended pregnancy.

Before COVID-19, post-secondary learning was dominated by in-person, institution-organized meetings. With the March 12, 2020 lockdown, learning became virtual, largely dependent on commercial online platforms. Already more likely to experience anxiety and depression in re-lation to their research work, perhaps no students have endured more regarding the limitations imposed by COVID-19 on their mentorship and supervision than graduate students. The in-crease in mental health issues facing graduate students has come to the attention of their post-secondary institutions. Programs have been devised with the aim of reducing these chal-lenges. However, the additional attention and funds to combat depression and anxiety have not shown anticipated results. A new approach to mitigate anxiety and depression in graduate students through mentorship and supervision is warranted. Offered here is an award-winning model featuring self-directed learning in a community based on consensus decision-making where consensus represents the adding together of different points of view rather than agreement. The approach is non-hierarchical in structure, based in narrative research. The proposed model and approach are presented and limitations considered. This model and approach are offered as a likely solution to ebb the increase in anxiety and depression in graduate stu-dents—particularly in response to COVID-19.

A single dose of psilocybin, a psychedelic and serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT2AR) agonist, may be associated with antidepressant effects. The mechanism behind its antidepressive action is unknown but could be linked to increased synaptogenesis and down-regulation of cerebral 5-HT2AR. Here, we investigate if a single psychedelic dose of psilocybin changes synaptic vesicle protein 2A (SV2A) and 5-HT2AR density in the pig brain. Twenty-four awake pigs received either 0.08 mg/kg psilocybin or saline intravenously. Twelve pigs (n=6/intervention) were euthanized one day post-injection, while the remaining twelve pigs were euthanized seven days post-injection (n=6/intervention). We performed autoradiography on hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC) sections with [3H]UCB-J (SV2A), [3H]MDL100907 (5-HT2AR antagonist) and [3H]Cimbi-36 (5-HT2AR agonist). One day post psilocybin injection, we observed 4.4% higher hippocampal SV2A density and lowered hippocampal and PFC 5-HT2AR density (-15.21% to -50.19%). These differences were statistically significant in the hippocampus for all radioligands and in PFC for [3H]Cimbi-36 only. Seven days post-intervention, there was still significantly higher SV2A density in hippocampus (+9.24%) and PFC (+6.1%) whereas there were no longer any differences in 5-HT2AR density. Our findings suggest that psilocybin’s antidepressive actions are linked to increased persistent synaptogenesis and possibly also to an acute decrease in 5-HT2AR density.

The main parameters for calculation of relative humidity are the wet-bulb depression and dry bulb temperature. In this work, easy-to-used predictive tools based on statistical learning concepts, i.e., the Adaptive Network-Based Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) and Least Square Support Vector Machine (LSSVM) are developed for calculating relative humidity in terms of wet bulb depression and dry bulb temperature. To evaluate the aforementioned models, some statistical analyses have been done between the actual and estimated data points. Results obtained from the present models showed their capabilities to calculate relative humidity for divers values of dry bulb temperatures and also wet-bulb depression. The obtained values of MSE and MRE were 0.132 and 0.931, 0.193 and 1.291 for the LSSVM and ANFIS approaches respectively. These developed tools are user-friend and can be of massive value for scientists especially, those dealing with air conditioning and wet cooling towers systems to have a noble check of the relative humidity in terms of wet bulb depression and dry bulb temperatures.

Transfusion dependent thalassemia (TDT) patients are treated with continued blood transfusions and show a higher prevalence of depression. TDT with consequent iron overload and inflammation is associated with increased severity of depressive symptoms in TDT children.Aim of the study: To construct a pathway-phenotype which combines iron overload and neuro-immune biomarkers with depressive symptom subdomains in TDT children.Methods: We measured iron status parameters (iron, ferritin, transferrin saturation percentage) and inflammatory (interleukin-1β and tumour necrosis factor-α) biomarkers in TDT (n=111) and healthy (n=53) children and analyzed the results using machine learning.Results: Cluster analysis separated TDT children with depression from those without depression and revealed two depressive subgroups one with low self-esteem and another with increased social-irritability scores. Exploratory factor analysis validated four depressive symptom dimensions as reliable constructs, namely key depressive, physiosomatic, lowered self-esteem and social-irritability dimensions. Partial Least Squares showed that 73.0% of the variance in a latent vector extracted from those four clinical subdomains, immune-inflammatory and iron overload biomarkers was explained by exposure variables including the number of blood transfusions and hospitalizations and use of deferoxamine. The exposure data, iron and immune biomarkers, and symptom subdomains are reflective manifestations of a single latent trait, which shows internal consistency reliability and predictive relevance.Conclusions: The nomological network combining exposure, pathways and behavioral phenome manifestations provides an index of overall severity and disease risk and, therefore, constitutes a new drug target, indicating that iron overload and immune activation should be targeted to treat depression due to TDT.

Objective: A previous study showed that schizophrenia is accompanied by lowered levels of trace/metal elements including cesium. There are no data whether changes in cesium, rubidium and rhenium are associated with activated immune-inflammatory pathways, cognitive impairments, and the symptomatology of schizophrenia. Methods: This study measured cesium, rubidium, and rhenium, cognitive impairments (using the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) and the cytokines/chemokines interleukin (IL)-1β, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and CCL11 (eotaxin) in 120 schizophrenia patients and 54 healthy controls. Severity of illness was assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), the Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Rating (FF) Scale and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D). Results: Serum cesium was significantly lower in schizophrenia patients as compared with controls. Serum cesium was significantly and inversely associated with CCL11 and TNF-α, but not IL-1β. Moreover, there were significant inverse associations between serum cesium levels and the BPRS, FF, HAM-D and SANS scores and positive correlations between cesium and neurocognitive probe results including the Tower of London, Symbol Coding, Controlled Word Association, Category Instances, Digit Sequencing Task, and List Learning tests. Conclusion: The results suggest that lowered serum cesium levels may play a role in the pathophysiology of SCZ, specific symptom domains including negative, depressive and fatigue symptoms, neurocognitive impairments (spatial working, episodic and semantic memory and executive functions) and neuro-immune pathways as well.