There is growing number of researches showing evidence about the role of inflammation in pathophysiology of bipolar disorder. Besides inflammation in central nervous system, systemic inflammation is also thought to be associated with the acute and euthymic episodes and clinical outcome of illness. In this reviewö we firstly focus on the quantitative and structural changes in immune cells and their relationship with the illness episodes. Also cytokines, which have an important role in inflammation and are measurable in systemic circulation, are summarized. In addition to changes of inflammatory markers in different episodes of bipolar disorder, we mention the effect of bipolar disorder treatments on these markers. Acute phase proteins, which are produced and induced by the effect of cytokines, are also reviewed. Finally, we discuss the role of anti-inflammatory agents in treatment of bipolar disorder and offer suggestions about future researches.
Key words: bipolar disorder, inflammation, cytokines, immune system, inflammatory biomarkers
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