Sex-specific transcriptional signatures in human depression
The incidence, symptoms and treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) points towards a major difference between the sexes, where the molecular mechanisms underlying the dimorphism remains unknown
In this article Labonté B, et al. used the nanoString nCounter technology to compare the transcription profiles of six brain regions in human and murine males and females. Their results show a large rearrangement of transcriptional patterns in MDD with very limited overlap between the two sexes, highlighting the importance of studying sex-specific treatments for MDD:
Evidence of both systemic inflammation and neuroinflammation in fibromyalgia patients, as assessed by a multiplex protein panel applied to the cerebrospinal fluid and to plasma
Fibromyalgia is a musculoskeletal pain condition without proper pharmacological treatment options.
In this article, Bäckryd et al. used proximity extension assay (PEA) technology to study the role 92 that inflammation-related proteins plays in the pathophysiological mechanisms of fibromyalgia. A multiplex protein panel applied to cerebrospinal fluid and plasma revealed signs of both systemic inflammation and neuroinflammation in the fibromyalgia patients.