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Psychoneuroimmunology pp 43–52Cite as

Psychoneuroimmunology of Depression

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Abstract

Depression is an important cause of disability worldwide. However, the etiology of depression is still not completely understood. More systemic studies such as those in psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) are needed to improve the current situations. PNI studies of depression in different groups of people may contribute to the development of personalized, systems, and dynamical medicine. In recent years, more and more evidences have revealed the robust connections among stress, depression, and inflammatory pathways. Inflammation has the essential role in these processes at various systems levels. At the cellular level, T lymphocytes are critical in the susceptibility or resilience to major depressive disorder. Studies about the potential biomarkers may be meaningful for understanding the PNI of depression and the immune-modulating mechanisms of antidepressants. Such biomarkers should include the systems-based networks such as the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis-mediated interactions between the serotonin regulation pathway and the stress response pathway. The depression-associated inflammatory networks often have overlaps with physical disorders including asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases. The identification of the systems-based biomarkers in depression is crucial not only for better diagnosis, but also for the translation of the PNI discoveries into better clinical interventions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. PharmTao, Santa Clara, CA, USA

    Qing Yan

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  1. Qing Yan
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© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Yan, Q. (2016). Psychoneuroimmunology of Depression. In: Psychoneuroimmunology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-45111-4_6

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