Page 67 - JCBP-2-2

Journal of Clinical and
Basic Psychosomatics Psychosomatic medicine in 2023

has contributed to noteworthy advancements in landmark with these inflammation-related proteins correlated
brain psychosomatic signatures, neuroscience method with heightened reactivity in the salience network
advances, and the “brain–x” axis, all of which have been compared to baseline. The finding indicates that airway
highlighted in the past year. inflammation may influence neuronal activity through a
specific neuroinflammatory pathway, potentially leading
This paper reviews the key research advancements
in the field of psychosomatic medicine over the past to adverse emotional and cognitive effects. Addressing
specific elements of asthma-related airway inflammation
year, discussing their potential impact on future medical could prove crucial in mitigating associated comorbidities
research and practice.
and preventing a broader decline in brain health. These
2. Research progress in 2023 findings highlight the significant extrapulmonary impacts
of lung inflammation in asthma, suggesting that innovative
2.1. Psychosomatic cardiology therapeutic strategies could effectively target these effects.
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Zhao et al. have identified a significant genetic link between Hou et al. performed an analysis of inflammatory
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the heart and the brain. Utilizing magnetic resonance biomarkers and levels of depression and anxiety in four
imaging (MRI) data from over 40,000 participants, they cohorts from the European U-BIOPRED project. The
quantitatively assessed the interrelationship between cohorts included 198 non-smoking patients with severe
cardiac and cerebral characteristics, examining 82 cardiac asthma (SAn), 65 smokers with severe asthma (SAs),
and 458 cerebral MRI features. The findings revealed 61 non-smoking patients with mild-to-moderate asthma
a substantial correlation between numerous cardiac (MMA), and 20 healthy non-smokers (HC). It was revealed
MRI features and various aspects of brain structure and that the levels of anxiety and depression were significantly
functionality, including gray matter morphology, white higher in the SAn and SAs groups compared to the MMA
matter microstructure, and functional neural networks. and HC groups. The analysis revealed statistically significant
Through Mendelian randomization analysis, a method differences among the four groups in serum levels of IL6,
used in epidemiology to assess causal relationships between MCP1, CCL18, CCL17, IL8, and eotaxin. Depression
potentially modifiable risk factors and health outcomes, exhibited significant associations with levels of IL6,
they elucidated a causal link between cardiac health and MCP1, CCL18, and CCL17, while anxiety was specifically
brain pathologies. Moreover, 80 associated genomic loci associated with CCL17. These results suggest a correlation
were identified for heart MRI features, sharing genetic between severe asthma and heightened levels of anxiety and
influences with cardiovascular and brain diseases. These depression, indicating that inflammation may serve as an
results highlight the necessity for further investigations underlying factor contributing to these comorbidities.
into the bidirectional pathways influencing cardiac and
cerebral health. 2.3. Psychosomatic gastroenterology
Gong et al. presented genetic pleiotropy analysis evidence
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2.2. Psychosomatic respiratory
elucidating the comorbidity between gastrointestinal
Dill-McFarland et al. used bronchoscopy and functional diseases and psychiatric disorders. Utilizing genome-wide
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magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from 23 association summary statistics from publicly available data
mild asthma patients before and after allergen-induced sources, they conducted extensive pleiotropy analyses on
bronchial provocation, uncovering a novel link between four gastrointestinal diseases (inflammatory bowel disease,
asthma-related airway inflammation and emotion-related irritable bowel syndrome [IBS], peptic ulcer disease,
neural function. The study revealed significant alterations and gastroesophageal reflux disease) and six psychiatric
in the molecular characteristics of airway inflammation, disorders (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive
predominantly in the eosinophil-related pathway. disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-
These changes encompassed variations in Th17-related traumatic stress disorder, and anorexia nervosa). These
inflammation and cell proliferation markers observed analyses, conducted at genome-wide, single nucleotide
in both lung and brain tissues, such as NOTCH1 and polymorphism, gene, and biological mechanism levels,
VEGFA. NOTCH 1, a cell surface receptor, is involved in aimed at elucidating the potential common genetic basis of
regulating cell development and differentiation, as well these diseases. The results unveiled widespread pleiotropic
as playing a role in the development and homeostasis loci between gastrointestinal diseases and psychiatric
of tissues. Dysfunctional NOTCH1 can precipitate disorders across the genome. This finding not only supports
pathological conditions. Meanwhile, VEGFA is a key the gut–brain axis hypothesis as a common genetic basis
protein in stimulating angiogenesis and maintaining for these conditions but also provides new perspectives for
vascular integrity. The upregulation of genes associated their concurrent intervention and treatment.

Volume 2 Issue 2 (2024) 2 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcbp.2601