Evidence for the absence of a relationship between inflammation and cognition in a cohort of 1565 individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders: a Bayesian analysis of network
Previous studies have reported variable associations between peripheral inflammatory markers and cognitive functioning in individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders (BSD), with some identifying significant links and others finding no relationship. Such inconsistencies raise important questions about the role of inflammation in cognitive impairment among individuals with BSD. This study aims to investigate the relationship between peripheral inflammatory markers and cognitive function in a clinical sample of individuals with BSD using a Bayesian network analysis framework. We analyzed data from a large cohort (n = 1565) focusing on hsCRP and a subsample (n = 249) that included concurrent assessments of additional cytokines including Interleukin-6 and Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha. A Bayesian approach was utilized to quantify uncertainty regarding the presence or absence of associations between inflammation and cognitive function. Our findings revealed no significant associations between inflammatory markers and cognitive performance in both samples. Strong evidence was found supporting the absence of association, with network analysis indicating distinct clusters for cognitive and inflammatory variables, suggesting they function as independent constructs with limited interactions. In our clinical sample of individuals with BSD, our findings do not support a direct association between some inflammatory markers and cognition, aligning with studies that found minimal or no associations. Our study emphasizes the importance of utilizing Bayesian methods to assess these relationships rigorously and suggests further exploration of individual differences and subgroup effects in future research.
Authors
- Émmanuel Haffen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4091-518X)
- Wahid Boukouaci
- Frank Bellivier (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3660-6640)
- Arnaud Carré (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9914-5565)
- Paula Martínez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2620-7643)
- Thomas Bastelica (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1515-1488)
- Ludovic Samalin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0740-4019)
- Ophélia Godin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5004-5475)
- Mircea Polosan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3849-3981)
- Lefrere Antoine
- P. Agnes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7117-1251)
- Ching‐Lien Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3254-6433)
- Marion Leboyer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5473-3697)
- Raymund Schwan
- Louis‐Ferdinand Lespine (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5747-4838)
- Paul Roux (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0321-4189)
- Noomane Bouaziz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1009-4891)
- Thierry d’Amato (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8983-0315)
- Bruno Étain (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5377-1488)
- Ryad Tamouza (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6732-6062)
- Émilie Olié
- Romain Rey
- Caroline Dubertret
- Bruno Aouizerate
- Pierre-Michel Llorca
Institutions
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (FR)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Université de Bordeaux (FR)
- Inserm (FR)
- Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (FR)
- Université Paris-Est Créteil (FR)
- Université de Montpellier (FR)
- Université Paris Cité (FR)
- Université Paris-Saclay (FR)
- Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Grenoble (FR)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR)
- Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon (FR)
- Fondation FondaMental (FR)
- Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (FR)
- Centre de recherche en Epidémiologie et Santé des Populations (FR)
- Hôpital de Ville-Évrard (FR)
- Grenoble Institute of Neurosciences (FR)
- Centre Hospitalier Charles Perrens (FR)
- Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale (FR)
- Université Marie et Louis Pasteur (FR)
- Université Savoie Mont Blanc (FR)
- Université Grenoble Alpes (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Brain Behavior and Immunity
- Published
- 2025-11-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2025.106164
- Primary Topic
- Bipolar Disorder and Treatment
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche