Depressed female smokers have higher levels of soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor 1.

Aim: To examine clinical and biomarkers in depressed female smokers, in order to better clarify the process that link mood disorders, childhood trauma and smoking in women.

Methods: The clinical sample comprised women with unipolar or bipolar depression, divided into subgroups of smokers and never-smoker. The control groups comprised two subgroups non-depressed women, separated into smokers and never-smokers. A structured questionnaire was used to assess socio-demographic and clinical data. The following scales were used: 17-item version Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Rating scale (HAM-A), Sheehan disability scale, the Child Trauma Questionnaire. The following biomarkers were investigated: lipid profile, including total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides the Castelli's Risk indexes I and II; and cytokines, including interleukins (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (sTNF-R1).

Results: Depressed female smokers showed a number of significant positive correlations: emotional neglect and sTNF-R1 ( p  = 0.02); waist circumference and sTNF-R1 ( p  = 0.001); body mass index and sTNF-R1 ( p  < 0.01); HAM-A and sTNF-R1 ( p  = 0.03); IL-1β and sTNF-R1 ( p  < 0.01); IL-10 and sTNF-R1 ( p  = 0.001); IL-12 and sTNF-R1 ( p  < 0.01);Castelli index I and sTNF-R1 ( p  < 0.01); Castelli index II and sTNF-R1 ( p  < 0.01); and a significantly negative correlation between HDLc and sTNF-R1( p  = 0.014).

Conclusion: This study suggests that depressed female smokers who experienced more childhood trauma and had more anxiety symptoms are associated with the activation of inflammatory processes and alterations in components of lipid profile.