Integrated pathway and network analyses of metabolomic alterations in peripheral blood of patients with depression

The objective of this study was to integrate metabolomic changes to reveal the underlying molecular alternations of depression.  We retrieved altered metabolites in the blood of patients with depression from the MENDA database. Pathway analysis was conducted to explore enriched pathways based on candidate metabolites. Pathway crosstalk analysis was performed to explore potential correlations of these enriched pathways, base d on their shared candidate metabolites. Moreover, potential interactions of candidate metabolites with other biomolecules such as proteins were assessed by network analysis. A total of 854 differential metabolite entries were retrieved in peripheral blood of patients with depression, including 555 unique candidate metabolites. Pathway analysis identified 215 significantly enriched pathways, then pathway crosstalk analysis revealed that these pathways were clustered into four modules, including amino acid metabolism, nucleotide metabolism, energy metabolism and others. Additionally, eight mol ecular networks were identified in the molecular network analysis. The main functions of these networks involved amino acid metabolism, molecular transport, inflammatory responses and others. Based on integrated analysis, our study revealed pathway-based modules and molecular networks associated wi th depression. These results will contribute to the underlying knowledge of the molecular mechanisms in depression.
Source: Metabolic Brain Disease - Category: Neurology Source Type: research