Breakthrough Blood Test Offers Hope for Treatment of depression
A new blood test using RNA markers could mean new hope in treatment for mental health conditions like depression and other mood disorders. The test was launched and carried out in April this year by a team of researchers from the US’s Indiana University School of Medicine. The researchers claim that it is the first-ever biological answer to problems of psychiatry in diagnosing mood disorders.
According to the lead researcher, Dr. Alexander Niculescu, this study proves that it is possible to have a blood test for depression and other problems like bipolar disorder. The blood test can help in distinguishing between the two and providing the right medication to the people.
“This avoids years of trials and error, hospitalizations, and side-effects. As these are very common disorders, we think we can do a lot of good with this and other tests and apps we have developed,” said Dr. Niculescu.
The study examined the biological aspect of mood disorders and developed a tool to decipher whether a person has depression or bipolar disorder.
The team of researchers under Dr. Niculescu capitalized and tapped on their 15 years of previous study-data on how psychiatry is related to blood gene expression biomarkers. This way they can measure a biological state in the form of RNA, DNA, proteins, or other molecules.
“Every system in the body — the brain, the nervous system, the immune system — has a common developmental route,” says Dr. Niculescu. “For example, when you’re stressed or depressed, there are psycho-neurological mechanisms, hormones, and other things that are released that affect your blood and your immune system,” he said while talking to the media.
Biomarkers that could track mood disorders and help during treatment
During the first stage of the research, they found a list of RNA biomarkers that can track states of mood over a while. Then the team validated their findings in an independent cohort of subjects who were clinically and severely depressed and had severe mania. The team finalized 26 biomarkers and finally settled with 12 after further testing.
These findings would help doctors to send their patients to a lab for a blood test to indicate the causes of their symptoms. It would be similar to what they do for a physical illness, says Dr. Niculescu.
The study also unearthed that some of the biomarkers were affected by Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), a class of antidepressants. This proves that these biomarkers could be helpful in treatment as well. In their previous work, the researchers identified three others that were affected by lithium carbonate — a mood stabilizer used in the treatment of bipolar disorder.
“Depending on which of those biomarkers are changed in [a patient], we have a list of medications … ranked by how tightly they match [the patient’s] biological profile,” mentions Dr. Niculescu.
The blood tests are already available in the U.S. as CLIA tests (a set of US government standards for laboratories to test human specimens for health assessment or to diagnose, prevent, or treat disease) for physicians to order via a company by Dr. Niculescu.
However, many experts believe that it needs further extensive studies to completely rely upon as an accepted treatment mode.
Seeking help for mental health problems
The best way to deal with any mental health disorder is to approach professional help at the earliest. It will ensure a long-term recovery. So, if you or a loved one is grappling with mental health issues, get in touch with Athena Behavioral Health for a quick turnaround.
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