Journal Article DZNE-2026-00794

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Monocyte dysregulation and MDD-specific transcriptional signatures: a single-cell transcriptomic study

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2026

Missing Journal / Fehlende Zeitschrift 1(1), e000016 () [10.1136/bmjcment-2025-000016]

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Abstract: Objectives: To investigate immune dysregulation in major depressive disorder (MDD) and schizophrenia (SZ) at single-cell resolution and to determine associations between immune-related transcriptional signatures and clinical symptoms of depression.Design: Cross-sectional case–control study integrating cellular indexing of transcriptomes and epitopes by sequencing (CITE-seq) of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs).Setting: Single-centre study conducted at a tertiary psychiatric care in Germany.Participants: Patients with MDD (n=22), patients with SZ (n=10) and healthy controls (n=26).Interventions: None.Main outcome measures: Single-cell transcriptomic and epitope profiles of PBMCs, differential gene expression, cell composition changes, pathway enrichment and correlations between gene expression and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) symptom scores.Results: CITE-seq analysis yielded 633 284 high-quality single-cell profiles. Disease-specific transcriptomic signatures were identified for both MDD and SZ, alongside shared profiles between the disorders. Patients with MDD showed elevated monocyte numbers and enrichment of interferon (IFN) signalling pathways. Similar IFN-related alterations were observed in monocytes from patients with SZ, suggesting shared immune mechanisms. In MDD, transcriptional alterations across peripheral immune cell types correlate strongly with depressive symptoms, including sadness and pessimism. Reactome pathway analysis identified nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cell-associated pathways among genes positively associated with disease symptoms and traits.CITE-Seq of PBMCs.Conclusions: Peripheral immune alterations in psychiatric disorders are reflected by distinct and shared single-cell transcriptional signatures. The identified associations between immune-related pathways and depressive symptom profiles may support patient stratification and facilitate the development of more targeted therapeutic approaches for psychiatric disorders.


Note: Missing Journal: BMJ Connections Mental Health (BMJ Connect Ment Health) = 2977-7798 (import from CrossRef, Journals: pub.dzne.de)

Contributing Institute(s):
  1. Mechanisms of Propagation (AG Danzer)
Research Program(s):
  1. 352 - Disease Mechanisms (POF4-352) (POF4-352)

Appears in the scientific report 2026
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 Record created 2026-07-23, last modified 2026-09-23


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