The Red Blood Cell Acetylcholinesterase Levels of Depressive Patients with Suicidal Behavior in an Agricultural Area

Abstract

Long-term exposure to organophosphate pesticides (OPs) without acute poisoning can lead to various OPs. Environmental exposure to organophosphate pesticides may be associated with depression and suicide attempts in a population living in a rural agricultural area. Patients (n = 149) suffering from major depressive disorder (with and without attempted suicide) and a control group of healthy individuals (n = 64) who had been living in the same rural district for at least 1 year were selected. Red blood cell acetylcholine esterase (RBC-AChE) activity was examined as the basis of evaluating the degree of chronic environmental exposure to OPs residues. There were negative association between RBC-AChE activity levels and suicide attempts, the number of past suicide attempts and hopelessness levels in the depressive patients. The results of the study may support the idea that environmental exposure to OPs may be associated with mental health in individuals living in agricultural districts who are not farmers or working in occupations with access to OPs.

Keywords: Acetylcholinesterase; Depression; Organophosphate; Suicide.

Fig. 1

Comparison of levels of AChE activity of the control 348.58 ± 118.94 IU/HgB, depression (without suicide) 349.34 ± 122.21 IU/HgB and suicide attempters (depression with suicide) 291.56 ± 112.94 IU/HgB (F = 5.672, df = 2, p = 0.004)