Mitochondrial bioenergetics in leukocytes and oxidative stress in blood serum of mild to moderately depressed women

Major depressive disorder (MDD) has been associated with lower mitochondrial energy production and higher oxidative stress. We investigated whether these alterations manifest in patients with current mild to moderate MDD severity. We observed no differences in mitochondrial respiration and density (i.e., citrate-synthase activity) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and oxidative stress markers (i.e., 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine, 8-isoprostane) in blood serum of 20 female MDD patients compared to 24 non-depressed women. Alterations in mitochondrial energy production and oxidative stress did not linearly depend on the current severity of MDD. However, biological alterations might rather manifest with higher MDD severity/chronicity and at higher age.