The Relationship between DNA Methylation and Antidepressant Medications: A Systematic Review
- PMID: 32012861
- PMCID: PMC7037192
- DOI: 10.3390/ijms21030826
The Relationship between DNA Methylation and Antidepressant Medications: A Systematic Review
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is the leading cause of disability worldwide and is associated with high rates of suicide and medical comorbidities. Current antidepressant medications are suboptimal, as most MDD patients fail to achieve complete remission from symptoms. At present, clinicians are unable to predict which antidepressant is most effective for a particular patient, exposing patients to multiple medication trials and side effects. Since MDD's etiology includes interactions between genes and environment, the epigenome is of interest for predictive utility and treatment monitoring. Epigenetic mechanisms of antidepressant medications are incompletely understood. Differences in epigenetic profiles may impact treatment response. A systematic literature search yielded 24 studies reporting the interaction between antidepressants and eight genes (BDNF, MAOA, SLC6A2, SLC6A4, HTR1A, HTR1B, IL6, IL11) and whole genome methylation. Methylation of certain sites within BDNF, SLC6A4, HTR1A, HTR1B, IL11, and the whole genome was predictive of antidepressant response. Comparing DNA methylation in patients during depressive episodes, during treatment, in remission, and after antidepressant cessation would help clarify the influence of antidepressant medications on DNA methylation. Individuals' unique methylation profiles may be used clinically for personalization of antidepressant choice in the future.
Keywords: DNA; antidepressants; epigenetics; methylation.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Figures


Similar articles
-
The impact of HTR1A and HTR1B methylation combined with stress/genotype on early antidepressant efficacy.Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2022 Feb;76(2):51-57. doi: 10.1111/pcn.13314. Epub 2021 Dec 7. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2022. PMID: 34773671
-
DNA methylation and clinical response to antidepressant medication in major depressive disorder: A review and recommendations.Neurosci Lett. 2018 Mar 16;669:14-23. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2016.12.071. Epub 2017 Jan 4. Neurosci Lett. 2018. PMID: 28063933 Review.
-
HTR1A/1B DNA methylation may predict escitalopram treatment response in depressed Chinese Han patients.J Affect Disord. 2018 Mar 1;228:222-228. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2017.12.010. Epub 2017 Dec 7. J Affect Disord. 2018. PMID: 29275155
-
Epigenome-Wide DNA Methylation in Unipolar Depression: Predictive Biomarker of Antidepressant Treatment Response?Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 2024 Nov 1;27(11):pyae045. doi: 10.1093/ijnp/pyae045. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 2024. PMID: 39367879 Free PMC article.
-
DNA Methylation in Depression and Depressive-Like Phenotype: Biomarker or Target of Pharmacological Intervention?Curr Neuropharmacol. 2022 Nov 15;20(12):2267-2291. doi: 10.2174/1570159X20666220201084536. Curr Neuropharmacol. 2022. PMID: 35105292 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Optimizing and Predicting Antidepressant Efficacy in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder Using Multi-Omics Analysis and the Opade AI Prediction Tools.Brain Sci. 2024 Jun 28;14(7):658. doi: 10.3390/brainsci14070658. Brain Sci. 2024. PMID: 39061399 Free PMC article.
-
DNA Methylation Patterns in Relation to Acute Severity and Duration of Anxiety and Depression.Curr Issues Mol Biol. 2023 Sep 6;45(9):7286-7303. doi: 10.3390/cimb45090461. Curr Issues Mol Biol. 2023. PMID: 37754245 Free PMC article.
-
Accelerated epigenetic aging in women with emotionally unstable personality disorder and a history of suicide attempts.Transl Psychiatry. 2023 Feb 22;13(1):66. doi: 10.1038/s41398-023-02369-7. Transl Psychiatry. 2023. PMID: 36813766 Free PMC article.
-
Interplay of Val66Met and BDNF methylation: effect on reward learning and cognitive performance in major depression.Clin Epigenetics. 2021 Jul 29;13(1):149. doi: 10.1186/s13148-021-01136-z. Clin Epigenetics. 2021. PMID: 34325733 Free PMC article.
-
The role of BDNF exon I region methylation in the treatment of depression with sertraline and its clinical diagnostic value.J Clin Lab Anal. 2021 Nov;35(11):e23993. doi: 10.1002/jcla.23993. Epub 2021 Sep 15. J Clin Lab Anal. 2021. PMID: 34528295 Free PMC article.
References
-
- World Health Organization . Depression and Other Common Mental Disorders Global Health Estimates. World Health Organization; Geneva, Switzerland: 2017. pp. 1–24.
-
- Marcus M., Yasamy M.T., van Ommeren M., Chisholm D., Saxena S. Depression A Global Public Health Concern. WHO Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse; [(accessed on 27 January 2020)]. Available online: https://www.who.int/mental_health/management/depression/who_paper_depres....
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical