Factors Associated with Work Participation and Work Functioning in Depressed Workers: A Systematic Review

Background Depression is associated with negative work outcomes such as reduced work participation (WP) (e.g., sick leave duration, work status) and work functioning (WF) (e.g., loss of productivity, work limitations). For the development of evidence-based interventions to improve these work outcomes, factors predicting WP and WF have to be identified. Methods This paper presents a systematic literature review of studies identifying factors associated with WP and WF of currently depressed workers. Results A total of 30 studies were found that addressed factors associated with WP (N = 19) or WF (N = 11). For both outcomes, studies reported most often on the relationship with disorder-related factors, whereas personal factors and work-related factors were less frequently addressed. For WP, the following relationships were supported: strong evidence was found for the association between a long duration of the depressive episode and work disability. Moderate evidence was found for the associations between more severe types of depressive disorder, presence of co-morbid mental or physical disorders, older age, a history of previous sick leave, and work disability. For WF, severe depressive symptoms were associated with work limitations, and clinical improvement was related to work productivity (moderate evidence). Due to the cross-sectional nature of about half of the studies, only few true prospective associations could be identified. Conclusion Our study identifies gaps in knowledge regarding factors predictive of WP and WF in depressed workers and can be used for the design of future research and evidence-based interventions. We recommend undertaking more longitudinal studies to identify modifiable factors predictive of WP and WF, especially work-related and personal factors

Transmission disequilibrium analysis of a triplet repeat within the hKCa3 gene using family trios with schizophrenia

hKCa3 is a neuronal small conductance calcium-activated potassium channel which contains a polyglutamine tract, encoded by a polymorphic CAG repeat in the gene. Since an association between longer alleles of the CAG repeat and schizophrenia has been reported, we performed haplotype-based haplotype relative risk (HHRR) and transmission disequilibrium (TDT) in 97 family trios with schizophrenia from SW China. We found no evidence for an excess of longer CAG repeats in the patients, and the ETDT test was not significant for either allele-wise (P = 0.31) or genotype-wise analysis (P = 0.18). However, there was a deficit of transmission of the (CAG) 20 repeat allele to affected offspring when this allele was considered individually by TDT (P = 0.012; not corrected for multiple testing). These data do not support a role for larger alleles at the hKCa3 locus in psychosis in Chinese subjects.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Infralimbic and dorsal raphé microinjection of the 5-HT1B receptor agonist CP-93,129: attenuation of aggressive behavior in CFW male mice

RATIONALE: Aggressive behavior and impaired impulse control have been associated with dysregulations in the serotonergic system and with impaired functioning of the prefrontal cortex. 5-HT(1B) receptors have been shown to specifically modulate several types of offensive aggression. OBJECTIVE: To characterize the relative importance of 2 populations of 5-HT(1B) receptors in the dorsal raphé nucleus (DRN) and infralimbic cortex (ILC) in the modulation of aggressive behavior. METHODS: Male CFW mice were conditioned on a fixed-ratio 5 schedule of reinforcement to self-administer a 6% (w/v) alcohol solution. Mice repeatedly engaged in 5 min aggressive confrontations until aggressive behavior stabilized. Next, a cannula was implanted into either the DRN or the ILC. After recovery, mice were tested for aggression after self-administration of either 1.0 g/kg alcohol or water prior to a microinjection of the 5-HT(1B) agonist, CP-93,129 (0–1.0 µg/infusion). RESULTS: In both the DRN and ILC, CP-93,129 reduced aggressive behaviors after both water and alcohol self-administration. Intra-raphé CP-93,129 dose-dependently reduced both aggressive and locomotor behaviors. However, the anti-aggressive effects of intra-cortical CP-93,129 were behaviorally specific. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the importance of the serotonergic system in the modulation of aggression and suggest that the behaviorally specific effects of 5-HT(1B) receptor agonists are regionally selective. 5-HT(1B) receptors in a medial subregion of the prefrontal cortex, the ILC, appear to be critically involved in the attenuation of species-typical levels of aggression