#0035 The associations between anxiety/depression and plasma chromogranin A among healthy workers: Results from EHOP study
Correlation of Anxiety and Depression with Blood Chromogranin A Levels
Recent research has shown that anxiety and depression, cardiovascular health, and stress hormone levels are linked. In fact, anxiety and depression have been shown to cause cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, and heart failure.
The endocrine system of our body releases hormones like norepinephrine in response to stress triggers. However, these hormones cannot be directly measured in the blood as they break down very fast. Chromogranin A (CgA) is a protein whose levels correlate to norepinephrine levels. CgA remains stable in the blood for longer periods. High CgA plasma levels are strong indicators of cardiac disease, heart failure, and mortality risk. Moreover, high CgA levels in the saliva are an indicator of depression.
Therefore, we aimed to find out whether plasma CgA levels can be used to monitor anxiety and depression. Additionally, we wanted to check if catestatin, which is a byproduct of CgA degradation, could be used for the same purpose. To do this, we studied the blood samples of 263 Chinese working professionals who did not have a history of cardiac problems. The participants were also asked to fill a questionnaire to quantitatively gauge symptoms of anxiety and depression.
The study showed that individuals with anxiety or depression had high plasma CgA levels. However, we did not find a similar trend between incidence of anxiety/depression and catestatin levels.
Our findings reveal that plasma CgA levels can be used to objectively test for anxiety and depression. However, we should mention that although there is a positive correlation between anxiety and plasma CgA levels, we could not arrive at a cause-effect conclusion. Future studies should explore if CgA levels in individuals with anxiety/depression can be used to determine risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Link to the original journal article:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/1348-9585.12113
Title of the paper:
The associations between anxiety/depression and plasma chromogranin A among healthy workers: Results from EHOP study
Authors:
Ying Li, Yao Song, Weimin Dang, Lijun Guo, Weixian Xu
