Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

Women are understudied in health research, despite sex (biological) and gender (sociocultural) differences influencing the risk of developing disorders. Women are twice as likely as men to experience major depressive disorder (MDD) and have higher rates of autoimmune disorders, which also increases MDD risk. Inflammation is associated with MDD, but only for a subset of patients. It is unclear who will have the inflamed subtype of MDD and why. Research has shown sex differences in inflammation levels in MDD. Gender may also play a role as women experience more depressed mood and social disconnection in response to inflammation, and gender inequality worsens MDD symptoms particularly for non-white, less educated, unmarried, and lower income women. Social adversity can lead to inflammation and MDD, yet no studies have explored sex/gender differences in immune subtypes in MDD. Antidepressants often do not work for individuals with MDD and inflammation, and anti-inflammatory medications have been shown to improve MDD symptoms based on sex: all males improved, but only females with high inflammation improved. We need to study sex differences as current anti-inflammatory treatments are not equitable. Yet, studying sex alone is not enough; gender-based analyses can reveal how social factors contribute to inflammation and health inequities within males and females. To address this, we will study 883 blood samples from high risk, MDD, and healthy individuals. We will use clustering analysis on 12 inflammation markers to identify immune subtypes. Then, we will examine how sex (male/female) and/or gender-related factors (ethnicity, education, income, marital and employment status) explain differences in these subtypes. This has never been done before and represents a major advance as studies often examine single biomarkers which cannot capture the multi-faceted nature of MDD. This research may improve our understanding of MDD risk in females and lead to equitable treatments.