Table 1.
Summary of the main clinical and preclinical findings supporting the involvement of zinc in depression.
| Serum/plasma zinc status—human data | References |
|---|---|
| ↓ Major depressed patients; negative correlation between the serum zinc and severity of depression | Maes et al., 1994; Nowak et al., 1999 |
| ↓ Depressed patients vs. control | Siwek et al., 2010 |
| ↓ Patients with affective disorders | McLoughlin and Hodge, 1990 |
| ↓ Women with antepartum and postpartum depressive symptoms | Wojcik et al., 2006 |
| ↓ Depressed patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing hemodialysis | Roozbeh et al., 2011 |
| ↔ Depressed patients; zinc concentrations differ dependent on comorbid disorders and severity of depression | Irmisch et al., 2010 |
| ↔ Depressed patients; significantly higher zinc level in recovered patients compared to patients with depression | Narang et al., 1991 |
| Effect of zinc deficiency—human study | |
| Correlation between dietary zinc intake and the serum zinc concentrations; the inverse correlation between serum zinc levels and depression scales | Amani et al., 2010 |
| Zinc intake moderates the association between stress and depressive symptoms | Roy et al., 2010 |
| Effect of zinc deficiency—animal study | |
| ↑ Immobility time in FST in rats | Tassabehji et al., 2008; Tamano et al., 2009; Watanabe et al., 2010 |
| ↑ Immobility time in FST in mice | Whittle et al., 2009; Mlyniec et al., 2012 |
| ↑ Immobility time in TST in mice | Whittle et al., 2009; Mlyniec and Nowak, 2012 |
| ↓ Saccharin preference in rat | Tassabehji et al., 2008 |
| Effect of zinc treatment/supplementation in depression—clinical trials | |
| Zinc supplementation (25 mg/12 weeks) significantly reduced scores in HDRS and BDI when compared with placebo treatment | Nowak et al., 2003a |
| Zinc supplementation (25 mg/12 weeks) augments the efficacy and speed of onset of therapeutic response to imipramine treatment, particularly in patients previously non-responsive to antidepressant pharmacotherapies | Siwek et al., 2009 |
| Zinc supplementation (25 mg/12 weeks) significantly reduced HDRS compared to placebo | Ranjbar et al., 2013 |
| Women who took multivitamins and zinc (7 mg/10 weeks) showed a significant reduction in anger-hostility score and depression-dejection score in the Profile of Moods State (POMS) | Sawada and Yokoi, 2010 |
| Zinc deficiency changes the brain function but zinc and macronutrient treatment improves altered brain functions | Sandstead, 2012 |
| Zinc supplementation (10 mg/6 months) did not induce differences in mental health outcomes between zinc and placebo groups, however, increases in serum zinc concentrations were associated with decreases in internalizing symptoms (depression and anxiety) | DiGirolamo et al., 2010 |
| No effect of zinc supplementation on the improvement of depressive symptoms | Nguyen et al., 2009 |
| Effect of zinc treatment—animal study | |
| ↓ In immobility time in both FST and TST | Kroczka et al., 2000, 2001; Nowak et al., 2003b; Rosa et al., 2003; Cunha et al., 2008; Franco et al., 2008 |
| ↓ Reduction in the number of trials in the passive-avoidance test in OB model; ↓ OB- induced hyperactivity in open field test in OB model | Nowak et al., 2003b |
| Zinc reversed the CMS-induced reduction in the consumption of sucrose | Sowa-Kucma et al., 2008 |
| Zinc prevented deficits in the fighting behavior in CUS model | Cieslik et al., 2007 |
| Zinc intensifies the effects of standard antidepressants in FST, TST, and CUS | Szewczyk et al., 2002, 2009; Rosa et al., 2003; Cieslik et al., 2007; Cunha et al., 2008 |