Decreased Serum Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) in Individuals with Depression Correlates with Severity of Disease

AIM: To assess serum Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) levels in individuals with depression and to test the hypothesis that there is a relationship between severity of depression and HGF concentration. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Serum from 26 clinically depressed individuals and 19 controls were tested for serum HGF using ELISAs. Correlation was established between HGF concentration and disease severity. RESULTS: Depressed individuals had significantly lower serum levels of HGF compared to controls (P < 0.0001). HGF concentration correlated with overall depressive behavior (P = 0.03) and specifically depression (P = 0.02), but not anxiety (P = 0.36). DISCUSSION: These results suggest an association between HGF serum levels and clinically depressed individuals and demonstrate a correlation between severity of depression and HGF levels. Further studies of the predictive strength of HGF as a biomarker for depression may be warranted.