Nonesterified Fatty Acids and Depression in Cancer Patients and Caregivers. Issue 11 (13th October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: McCusker, Megan R; Bazinet, Richard P; Metherel, Adam H; Klein, Roberta Yael; Kundra, Arjun; Haibe-Kains, Benjamin; Li, Madeline
• Is Part Of: Current developments in nutrition. Volume 4:Issue 11(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-10-13
• Subjects: cytokines -- IL-1ra -- nonesterified fatty acid -- elaidic acid -- GPR40 -- GPR120 -- machine learning -- LASSO; Nutrition -- Periodicals; Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Nutrition; Periodicals; Periodicals; Fulltext; Internet Resources; Periodicals; 612.3
• DOI: 10.1093/cdn/nzaa156
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2475-2991

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Background: Nonesterified fatty acids (NEFAs) are known to have inflammatory effects. The inflammatory hypothesis of depression suggests that omega-3 (ω-3) and omega-6 (ω-6) fatty acids might be negatively and positively correlated with depression, respectively. Objective: An exploratory study was conducted to determine the association between dietary free fatty acids and depressive symptoms in cancer patients and caregivers. Methods: Associations between depression and the NEFA pool were investigated in 56 cancer patients and 23 caregivers using a combination of nonparametric tests and regularized regression. Plasma NEFAs were measured using thin layer and gas chromatography with flame ionization detection. Depression was characterized both as a continuous severity score using the GRID-Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (GRID Ham-D), and as a categorical diagnosis of major depression by structured clinical interview. Results: Initial hypotheses regarding the relation between depression and omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids were not well supported. However, elaidic acid, a trans -unsaturated fatty acid found in hydrogenated vegetable oils, was found to be negatively correlated with continuous depression scores in cancer patients. No significant associations were found in caregivers. Conclusions: An unexpected negative association between elaidic acid and depression was identified, supporting recent literature on the role of G protein–coupled receptors in depression. Further research is needed to confirm this result and to evaluate the potential role of G protein agonists as therapeutic agents for depression in cancer patients.