Findings suggest blood tests could aid
PTSD can occur after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. It is currently diagnosed based on symptoms such as flashbacks, difficulty sleeping or concentrating, negative thoughts, memory problems, and avoidance of triggering situations. Since other disorders can have some of these same symptoms, it can be challenging to diagnose PTSD and assess changes in response to treatment.
This research, which involved over 1,000 service members, represents the largest prospective study to date to assess the biological markers of PTSD over time.
“This study provides valuable insights into the natural history of PTSD and the effectiveness of interventions, which can inform the development of treatment guidelines and improve the care for individuals suffering from PTSD,” said Stacy-Ann Miller, a researcher at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Silver Spring, Maryland. “Better methods of predicting or screening for PTSD could help to overcome the disorder by identifying individuals at high risk of developing PTSD and providing them with early intervention or prevention strategies. This could potentially reduce the severity of symptoms or prevent the disorder from developing altogether.”
Miller presented the new research at Discover BMB, the annual meeting of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, March 25–28 in Seattle.
Biomarkers, which reflect biological processes, can provide an objective measure of physiological changes associated with diseases such as PTSD. For the study, researchers analyzed four biomarkers in blood samples from active-duty service members taken before a 10-month deployment, three days after their return and three to six months after their return. The biomarkers have previously been linked to stress, depression, anxiety and mental health disorders. They included: the glycolytic ratio, a measure of how the body breaks down sugar to produce energy; arginine, an amino
Comparing these biomarkers in people with different PTSD status and levels of resilience, the results showed that those with PTSD or sub-threshold PTSD had significantly higher glycolytic ratio and lower arginine than those with high resilience. People with PTSD also had significantly lower serotonin and higher glutamate than those with high resilience. These associations were independent of factors such as gender, age, body mass index, smoking and caffeine consumption.
The researchers said the biomarkers could help to predict which individuals face a high risk of PTSD, improve the
Meeting: Discover BMB
The research was conducted in collaboration with the PTSD Systems Biology Consortium, a network of government and academic laboratories. Collaborators include Aarti Gautam, Ruoting Yang, Seid Muhie, Marti Jett and Rasha Hammamieh of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Inyoul Lee, Kai Wang and Leroy Hood of the Institute for Systems Biology; Charles Marmar of