Depression Linked to Energy Problems in the Brain and Body
Clinical depression is not only a disorder of the mind, it is also an illness of the body, characterized by somatic symptoms such as fatigue. Beyond simple lethargy, this crippling lack of motivation can be one of the most difficult manifestations of depression to treat. But now new research published in Translational psychiatry sheds light on the biochemical roots of depressive fatigue, with surprising results.
To better understand the causes of fatigue in major depressive disorder, a team of researchers from the University of Minnesota and the University of Queensland focused on adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the chemical currency of energy in all living things, produced in mitochondria.
To measure ATP levels, the team collected blood samples and brain scans from 18 people aged 18 to 25 diagnosed with major depressive disorder and compared them to healthy controls. Interestingly, they found that young people with major depressive disorder actually produced more ATP in their blood and resting brain cells than those who do not suffer from this disorder.
Read more: “Does Depression Have an Evolutionary Purpose?
“Cells may be overworked early in the disease, which could lead to longer-term problems,” study author Roger Varela said in a statement. “This was surprising, because one would expect energy production in cells to be lower in people with depression.”
But when people with major depressive disorder had to increase their ATP production, their brains and blood cells struggled to meet the increased energy demand. “This suggests that in the early stages of depression, mitochondria in the brain and body have a reduced capacity to cope with higher energy demand, which may contribute to poor mood, reduced motivation and slowed cognitive functions,” Varela added.
Simply put, people with major depressive disorder feel exhausted because the energy reserves in their blood and brain cells have literally been depleted. This is the first time that disrupted patterns in ATP production have been found in the blood and brain cells of young people with major depressive disorder. The team hopes their findings will not only lead to earlier diagnoses and better treatments, but also destigmatization of the disease.
“This shows that multiple changes occur in the body, including in the brain and blood, and that depression impacts energy at the cellular level,” Varela said. “It also proves that not all depression is the same; each patient has a different biology and each patient is affected differently.”
More importantly, it demonstrates once again that treating depression is not as simple as changing your mindset.
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Main image: Elena Kalinitcheva and AKIO75 / Shutterstock
