NEUROFILAMENT LIGHT AND GLIAL FIBRILLARY ACIDIC PROTEIN AS A DIAGNOSTIC AND PROGNOSTIC BIOMARKER FOR MOOD DISORDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS
*Matthew Jee Yun Kang, Jasleen Grewal, Charles Malpas, Wei-Hsuan Michelle Chiu, Phil Mitchell, Mal Hopwood, Dr Dhamidhu Eratne, Dennis VelakoulisAbstract
Background
Blood-based biomarkers of neuronal injury (NfL) and neuroinflammation (GFAP) are being increasingly used for diagnosis and prognosis in neurodegenerative conditions including multiple sclerosis. However, current literature is mixed as to whether these biomarkers are mildly elevated in mood disorders, heralding an opportunity to identify a potential indicator of mood disorders including treatment response. Better understanding the behaviour of these biomarkers in people with mood disorders will help elucidate the neurobiological underpinnings, opening up avenues for psychopharmacology targets.
Aims & Objectives
The aim of this systematic review is to identify the association between neuronal and glial biomarkers in patients with mood and anxiety disorders compared to healthy controls.
Methods
A protocol for a systematic review has been submitted to PROSPERO, with the initial literature search identify 1994 papers. A meta-analysis will be performed comparing biomarker levels in mood disorders, separated into major depression and bipolar disorder, as well as robust assesmsent of bias risk in the studies. If appropriate, we will perform meta-regression analyses of comparing severity of mood disorders with biomarker levels, as well as performing subgroup analyses of those with later- onset illness.
Results
We plan to complete the review and present the findings at CINP 2024. Furthermore, we plan to perform a mega-analysis using the data pooled from our search.
Discussion
Our findings will be important for the translation of these biomarkers to clinical practice, as it will either validate the use to detect neurodegenerative disorders in people presenting with mood symptoms, or potentially identify prognostic and diagnostic blood-based biomarkers for mood disorder.