Possible association of nucleobindin-1 protein with depressive disorder in patients with HIV infection

Abstract

AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the prevalence for depressive disorder among HIV-infected population and preliminarily explore the underlying mechanisms.MethodsIndividuals who were newly HIV diagnosed were assessed on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HAD-A and HAD-D). Then SHIV-infected rhesus monkey model was used to investigate the possible involvement of NUCB1 and CB1 protein in depression-like behavior.ResultsThe prevalence rate of depression disorder among newly confirmed HIV cases was 27.33% (41/150). The mechanism research results showed elevated NUCB1 levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from HIV-infected patients suffering from depression were confirmed by western blotting compared to those of HIV-infected patients. Also, immunohistochemical analysis indicated expression of NUCB1 in the cerebral cortex neurons of SHIV-infected monkey was higher than that of healthy control. Conversely, CB1 expression were down-regulated at protein level.ConclusionsDepression are common in HIV infection and associate with NUCB1 expression increase, and NUCB1 may be a potential target for depression among HIV-infected subjects.