Originally Published IVD Technology July/August 2002
Industry News
IVDs for depression raise hopes
Jamie Graham
Mindsense Biosystems Ltd. (Rehovot, Israel) and Hybrigenics SA (Paris) are involved in a collaboration to identify biomarkers and drug targets for the diagnosis and possible treatment of depression. The companies plan to use their research to develop a way to provide psychiatrists and general practitioners with a blood test to be used for the diagnosis and monitoring of a patient's mental condition.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH; Bethesda, MD), more than 19 million American adults are affected by depression annually. According to an NIMH fact sheet, "Genetics research indicates that vulnerability to depression results from the influence of multiple genes acting together with environmental factors."
Currently, a physician or psychiatrist diagnoses depression using a thorough evaluation. First, a physical examination is completed to rule out any physical illness, followed by an extensive survey of the patient's symptom history and family history. However, the diagnosis is still based on subjective judgment. According to Alan F. Schatzberg, MD, chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA) and chairman of the scientific advisory board at Mindsense, psychiatric illnesses like depression are thought to be complex disorders that have more than a single cause.
Mindsense is developing a portfolio of potential biomarkers for depression. "We might eventually be able to combine several of these on a biopanel," says Nir Nimrodi, CEO of Mindsense.
Hybrigenics will use its high-throughput functional proteomics technology to screen proteins that Mindsense believes are associated with depression against several complex polypeptide libraries.
Hybrigenics hopes to add to its collection of drug target identification pathways. "Blood-borne biomarkers for depression could play a crucial role in answering significant unmet needs in the clinical management of the disorder," says Schatzberg.
According to the American Psychiatric Association, depression is underdiagnosed and undertreated. Nimrodi says providing a blood-borne diagnostic tool could not only reduce the number of depression sufferers who go undiagnosed, but could also change the way depression is perceived by others. "Finding biomarkers for depression could reduce the stigma of the disease by showing it has a biological basis," says Nimrodi.
Copyright ©2002 IVD Technology
