Pitt study connects gene to depression

Depression is in your genes, and they are possibly the same genes that shorten your life… Depression is in your genes, and they are possibly the same genes that shorten your life span, according to Pitt researcher George S. Zubenko. M.D., PhD.

There are 19 locations on chromosomes, where the genes reside, that influence susceptibility to depressive disorders, reported Zubenko, a professor of psychiatry at Pitt and an adjunct professor of biological sciences at Carnegie Mellon University, this summer.

One particular gene, CREB 1, was identified in Zubenko’s study as a gene common in families with early-onset, major depressive disorder, or RE-MDD. In a study last year, Zubenko reported that the same gene was present in women who suffer from depression.

The recent study surveyed 81 families with RE-MDD and found that deceased family members had died, on average, eight years younger than the general population. More than 40 percent died before the age of 65.

Zubenko reported that, although drug and alcohol addictions were also common within the families, their deaths were not disproportionately higher from addiction-related illnesses.

Deaths in the RE-MDD families were proportional to the deaths from illnesses that commonly affect the general population – like heart disease – but in a significantly higher concentration.

Zubenko concluded that depression-causing genes could be some of the same that cause other illnesses, because the genes that he researched were activated all over the body, and not just in the head.

For example, CREB 1 in the heart could also cause heart disease – not just depression, according to Zubenko.

Although he supports looking at genes or biology, instead of environment, as a way of detecting depression, he suggests seeing depression as an individual illness for every sufferer. Zubenko takes into account genetic markers within individuals so they “may respond better to particular current treatments than others.”

The ability to fully map out genes related to depression is, according to Zubenko, still “a decade away.”

Zubenko hopes his research will lead to the development of new drugs to treat depression. His hope comes at a time when antidepressant drugs, such as Paxil, are under scrutiny by the national and international medical community, not only for being ineffective, but for causing harm, as well. Officials recently limited the prescription of Paxil such that it would be available only to adults 18 years and older, due to its link with increased teen suicides, an article in The New York Times reported earlier this month.

About 150 million people responded positively to taking antidepressant drugs in 2000, according to the The Antidepressant’s Sourcebook.Those who are treated for depression will be healthier than if they are left untreated, Zubenko said, adding that people who receive treatment are more likely to think clearly and, consequently, go to their doctor when they need medical attention. People receiving treatment will also be more likely to remember to take other medications, he said.

Most RE-MDD sufferers have their first episode of depression by age 18.

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, depression is defined as two weeks of depressed mood plus a number of signs and symptoms, such as disturbances in sleep and/or appetite, as well as feelings of worthlessness, guilt, and suicidal feelings and/or actions. Anyone experiencing such symptoms should call or visit a psychiatrist immediately, Zubenko said.

Zubenko invites anyone interested in participating in his studies to check his Web site at www.zubenkolab.pitt.edu.