© РИА Томск. Яков Андреев
TOMSK, Dec 12 – RIA Tomsk. Scientists of Tomsk Mental Health Research Institute (MHRI) are looking
for marker proteins that will help doctors diagnose bipolar affective disorder
and depression by blood tests, the website of innovative organizations of the
Tomsk region reported on Thursday.
"Now the diagnosis to patients is made on the
basis of a survey: a psychiatrist talks with a patient, describes the
appearance, pace of speech, mood, facial expressions and other signs. If we can
find marker protein, we can take a person’s blood and help the doctor make a
diagnosis. <...> An erroneous diagnosis can worsen the patient’s quality
of life", – an employee of Tomsk Mental Health Research Institute (MHRI)
Alexander Seregin is quoted.
It is specified that the human body has a certain protein
composition, which reflects its current state and is constantly changing
depending on various factors. For example, when a cell breaks down, the protein
enters the bloodstream and can be detected by analysis. The idea of Tomsk
scientists is to find a protein that can serve as a diagnostic marker for
bipolar affective disorder.
© предоставлено Галиной Сахаревич
It is also added that right now there are
approximately 50 patients with bipolar disorder and the same number with
depression remain under care of MHRI. Scientists examine their blood serum and
make a table of the proteins that are found in it. They have to collect and
process a large amount of data: science knows about fifty thousand proteins.
The study is carried out together with specialists of Orekhovich Research
Institute of Biomedical Chemistry.
It was previously reported that according to World
Health Organization (WHO) 4-7% of the world's population suffers from
depression. Repeated episodes of depression occur in approximately 60% of
patients, and up to 15% of patients are taken their own lives. Worldwide, 350
million people suffer from depression. According to forecasts, by 2020,
depression will take the second place in the ranking of socially significant
diseases, and by the middle of the XXI century – the first.