Natural killer cell activity and csf monoamine metabolites in suicide attempters |
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| Authors: | Danuta Wasserman Christer Hellström Jerzy Wasserman Olof Beck Eva Andersson Marie Åsberg |
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| Affiliation: | 1. National and Stockholm County Council Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention at the National Institute for Psychosocial Factors and Health, and Department of Psychiatry, Huddinge University Hospital, Karolinska Institute , Sweden;2. Department of Clinical Neurosciences , Psychiatry Section, Karolinska Hospital , Stockholm, Sweden;3. Central Microbiological Laboratory of Stockholm County Council , Stockholm, Sweden;4. Department of Clinical Pharmacology , Karolinska Hospital , Stockholm, Sweden |
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| Abstract: | Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate markers of serotonin and immune function in suicidal patients. Cytotoxic activity of natural killer cells (NK) and CD16 lymphocytes were studied in 28 suicide attempters and 26 healthy controls, and related in patients to 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Patients with CSF 5-HIAA below the median had significantly lower NK cell activity than other patients. CD 16 cell frequency was significantly lower in patients than in controls, and patients also tended to have lower NK cell cytotoxicity than healthy controls. There were no statistically significant correlations between 4-hydroxy-3methoxyphenyl glycol (HMPG), homovanillic acid (HVA), CSF cortisol and NK cell activity. The results support the hypothesis of compromised immune function in suicidal patients with evidence of disordered serotonin function. |
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| Keywords: | suicide attempters immune function NK cell activity CD16 cells cerebrospinal fluid 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) |
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