Identifying genetic differences between bipolar disorder and major depression through multiple genome-wide association analyses.

Background: Accurate diagnosis of bipolar disorder (BPD) is difficult in clinical practice, with an average delay between symptom onset and diagnosis of about 7 years. A depressive episode often precedes the first manic episode, making it difficult to distinguish BPD from unipolar major depressive disorder (MDD).

Aims: We use genome-wide association analyses (GWAS) to identify differential genetic factors and to develop predictors based on polygenic risk scores (PRS) that may aid early differential diagnosis.

Clinical and Demographic Predictors of Early Clozapine Discontinuation Across Mood and Psychotic Disorders.

Background: Clozapine is effective for treatment-resistant schizophrenia and bipolar disorder but is often discontinued due to adverse effects. This study compared early clozapine discontinuation rates and reasons in patients with mood and psychotic disorders.

Methods: Data from all individuals with mood or psychotic disorders who initiated clozapine for the first time at the inpatient psychiatric unit of Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, between 2014 and 2022 were retrospectively analyzed.

Persistence of Lithium Underutilization in Patients of African Ancestry with Bipolar Disorder.

Bipolar disorder is a chronic disease that imposes a lifelong burden on those that suffer from it. Lithium is still considered both gold standard treatment and first-line maintenance treatment, and access to treatment with lithium is paramount to improving patient outcomes. However, access to adequate treatment is not only contingent on symptom recognition, accurate diagnosis, and individualization of treatment, but also affected by racial and ethnic disparities at each stage of patient experience.

Digital Technologies Tracking Active and Passive Data Collection in Depressive Disorders: Lessons Learned From a Case Series.

In this case series, we present several examples from participants (2 patients and 1 healthy control) of a 12-week pilot feasibility study to create a digital phenotype of depression (unipolar or bipolar) through active and passive data collection from a smartphone and a wearable device combined with routine clinical care for mood disorders. The selected cases represent real clinical examples that highlight the intrinsic challenges that should be expected when conducting similar studies, including appropriate health data privacy protection, clinical standardization, and interindividual differences in levels of engagement and acceptability of active and passive data collection (ie, self-reported, behavioral, cognitive, and physiological data), particularly with patient-generated data in mobile apps, digital proficiency habituation, and consistent use of wearable devices. In the context of the rapidly growing use of digital technologies in psychiatry, anticipating challenges for the integration of personal mobile devices and smartphone mental health apps as aides to track specific aspects of depressive disorders is critical for a clinically meaningful digital transformation of mood disorders care.

Divergent visual ecology of Drosophila species drives object-tracking strategies matched to landscape sparsity.

Maintaining stable gaze while tracking moving objects is commonplace across animal taxa, yet how diverse ecological needs impact these processes is poorly understood. During flight, the fruit-eating fly Drosophila melanogaster maintains course by making smooth steering adjustments to fixate the image of the distant visual background on the retina, while executing body saccades to investigate nearby objects such as food sources. Cactophilic Drosophila mojavensis live where there is no canopy; rather, the flora forming visual "background" and "objects" are one and the same.

Prediction of medical admissions after psychiatric inpatient hospitalization in bipolar disorder: a retrospective cohort study.

Objective: Bipolar Disorder (BD) is a severe mental illness associated with high rates of general medical comorbidity, reduced life expectancy, and premature mortality. Although BD has been associated with high medical hospitalization, the factors that contribute to this risk remain largely unexplored. We used baseline medical and psychiatric records to develop a supervised machine learning model to predict general medical admissions after discharge from psychiatric hospitalization.

Automated Speech Analysis in Bipolar Disorder: The CALIBER Study Protocol and Preliminary Results.

: Bipolar disorder (BD) involves significant mood and energy shifts reflected in speech patterns. Detecting these patterns is crucial for diagnosis and monitoring, currently assessed subjectively. Advances in natural language processing offer opportunities to objectively analyze them.

Differential serum levels of CACNA1C, circadian rhythm and stress response molecules in subjects with bipolar disorder: Associations with genetic and clinical factors.

Background: Many patients with bipolar disorder (BD) do not respond to or have difficulties tolerating lithium and/or other mood stabilizing agents. There is a need for personalized treatments based on biomarkers in guiding treatment options. The calcium voltage-gated channel CACNA1C is a promising candidate for developing personalized treatments.

Association between exposure to antidepressants and stimulants and age at onset of mania or psychosis: A retrospective population-based cohort study.

This study investigated the impact of prior antidepressant and stimulant exposure on the age at onset (AAO) of first episode mania (FEM) or psychosis (FEP). Patients with FEP and FEM born after 1985 in Olmsted County, Minnesota, were identified using the Rochester Epidemiology Project. Duration and peak dose of antidepressant and stimulant exposure were quantified by review of the electronic health record.

Bidirectional negative relationship between thyrotropin and kidney function during alcohol intoxication in males.

Introduction: Despite a well-established direct toxic effect of alcohol on renal cells, there is a salutary dose-dependent effect of alcohol consumption on common laboratory parameters related to kidney performance. Alcohol also impacts thyroid hormones, while thyroid status modulates kidney function. The modulation of kidney parameters with thyrotropin (TSH) and thyroid status indicates a possible interaction between alcohol, kidney, and thyroid functions.

Lower Switch Rate in Depressed Patients With Bipolar II Than Bipolar I Disorder Treated Adjunctively With Second-Generation Antidepressants.

Objectives: The authors compared the switch rate into hypomania/mania in depressed patients treated with second-generation antidepressants who had either bipolar I or bipolar II disorder.

Methods: In a 10-week trial, 184 outpatients with bipolar depression (134 with bipolar I disorder, 48 with bipolar II disorder, two with bipolar disorder not otherwise specified) were treated with one of three antidepressants as an adjunct to mood stabilizers. The patients' switch rates were assessed.

Predictors of Functional Impairment in Bipolar Disorder: Results From 13 Cohorts From Seven Countries by the Global Bipolar Cohort Collaborative.

Objectives: Persistent functional impairment is common in bipolar disorder (BD) and is influenced by a number of demographic, clinical, and cognitive features. The goal of this project was to estimate and compare the influence of key factors on community function in multiple cohorts of well-characterized samples of individuals with BD.

Methods: Thirteen cohorts from 7 countries included = 5882 individuals with BD across multiple sites.

Differential Serum Levels of CACNA1C, Circadian Rhythm and Stress Response Molecules in Subjects with Bipolar Disorder: Associations with Genetic and Clinical Factors.

Background: Many patients with bipolar disorder (BD) do not respond to or have difficulties tolerating lithium and/or other mood stabilizing agents. There is a need for personalized treatments based on biomarkers in guiding treatment options. The calcium voltage-gated channel CACNA1C is a promising candidate for developing personalized treatments.

Animal behavior: Mosquitos ride the wave.

Some insects have a frustrating knack for avoiding a swatter. A new study shows that mosquitos not only evade the visual image of the looming threat, they also surf the wave of air the swatter creates.

Change in neurocognitive functioning in patients with treatment-resistant depression with serial intravenous ketamine infusions: The Bio-K multicenter trial.

This nonrandomized, multicenter, open-label clinical trial explored the impact of intravenous (IV) ketamine on cognitive function in adults (n = 74) with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Patients received three IV ketamine infusions during the acute phase and, if remitted, four additional infusions in the continuation phase (Mayo site). Cognitive assessments using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) were conducted at baseline, end of the acute phase, and end of the continuation phase (Mayo site).