Depression makes immune cells stiffer, study finds

An international research team including the University of Innsbruck has found that immune cells in people with depression become significantly less flexible, ORF reports. The finding provides evidence that the illness causes not only biological but also measurable biophysical changes in the body.

The researchers examined peripheral mononuclear blood cells from 26 people diagnosed with depression and compared them with cells from 28 healthy control participants. The immune cells in the depression group were significantly stiffer than those in the control group.

Alexander Karabatsiakis, a depression researcher at the University of Innsbruck’s Institute of Psychology, said the study was the first to show biophysical changes associated with depression. He described the finding as an important expansion of understanding of the illness.

Possible causes of the increased stiffness include chronic stress and the resulting higher production of free radicals, which could damage cells and their membranes. A stiffer membrane may impair a cell’s ability to communicate with its surroundings and affect the immune system.

The research team hypothesises that the body responds by increasing body temperature and triggering inflammation, among other things to restore the membrane’s fluidity.