15 Biomarkers Linked to Pregnancy Depression Risk

Researchers in Michigan have identified 15 biological markers in blood that can predict if a pregnant woman will develop severe depression with 83% accuracy.

Authors of the study, which was led by scientists at Van Andel Institute (VAI) and Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services, note that inflammation can lead to worsening depression, and pregnancy is a major inflammatory event. Nearly one in five new mothers experience severe depression during or after pregnancy and an estimated 14% have suicidal thoughts.  

As pregnancy progresses, the immune system changes to facilitate fetal development, leading to distinct fluctuations in the production of pro-inflammatory factors and neuroactive tryptophan metabolites throughout the peripartum period, according to the study, published recently in Translational Psychiatry. 

“Depression isn’t just something that happens in the brain—its fingerprints are everywhere in the body, including in our blood,” says Lena Brundin, M.D., Ph.D., a VAI professor and co-senior author of the study. Therefore, the team theorized, it could be possible that depression in pregnancy constitutes a specific type of inflammation-induced depression.

The study followed 114 volunteers from Spectrum Health’s Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics throughout their pregnancies. Participants provided blood samples and underwent clinical evaluations for depressive symptoms in each trimester and the postpartum period.

The addition of biological markers as tools to predict future depression risk, acting as “depression-warning” signs, could help clinicians schedule more frequent follow-up visits, consider stress-reduction and psychotherapy, include supportive or cognitive-behavioral techniques, or possibly intervene with preventative measures (e.g., use of anti-inflammatories) before worrisome symptoms begin, the study notes.

“Our findings are an exciting development and an important first step toward using these types of methods more widely to help patients,” says Eric Achtyes, M.D., M.S., staff psychiatrist at Pine Rest, an associate professor at Michigan State University and co-senior author of the study. “Our next steps include replicating the results in additional patient samples to verify cut-offs for depression risk.”