Neopterin Relates to Lifetime Depression in Older Adults With HIV on Suppressive Antiretroviral Therapy

Background: Chronic inflammation contributes to the pathogenesis of depression in persons with HIV (PWH). Neopterin, a biomarker of HIV-related immune activation that partially normalizes with antiretroviral therapy (ART), correlates with major depressive disorder (MDD) and subclinical depressive symptoms in persons without HIV and acutely infected, young PWH. The sensitivity of neopterin, however, to both lifetime and current depression is poorly understood in older PWH on suppressive ART. Methods: Participants were 70 PWH and 35 persons without HIV (HIV−) who were at least 50 years old and completed standardized neurobehavioral and neuromedical assessments. Depressive symptoms in the past 2 weeks, measured with the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), and lifetime MDD diagnoses, defined as meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV criteria for a depressive episode at any point in one's lifetime, were separately modeled as a function of plasma neopterin levels in the full sample and by HIV serostatus. Results: Compared with HIV− adults, PWH had higher neopterin levels (P
Source: JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes - Category: Infectious Diseases Tags: Clinical Science Source Type: research