Cognition, motor symptoms, and glycolipid metabolism in Parkinson’s disease with depressive symptoms

Depressive symptoms and abnormal glycolipid metabolisms are common in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), but their relationship has not been fully reported. It is not clear whether glycolipid impairments lead to poor cognitive and motor function, and aggravate depressive symptoms. Therefore, we aimed to explore the relationships between glycolipid variables, cognition, motor and depressive symptoms in PD patients cross-sectionally. Two hundred ten PD patients were recruited. Glycolipid parameters and Uric acid (UA) were measured. Depressive symptoms, cognitive function and motor symptoms were assessed using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale-17 (HAMD-17), the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) and the Movement Disorder Society Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale Part-III (UPDRS-III). Depressive PD patients had significantly worse motor symptoms and higher levels of fasting plasma glucose (FPG) than those in non-depressive patients ( F = 24.145, P < 0.001). Further, logistic regression analysis indicated that UPDRS-III (OR = 1.039, 95% CI 1.019–1.057, P = 0.044), FPG (OR = 1.447, 95% CI 1.050–1.994, P = 0.024) were independently associated with depression. In PD patients without depression, UA ( β = − 0.068, t = − 2.913, P = 0.005) and cholesterol (CHOL) ( β = − 3.941, t = − 2.518, P = 0.014) were independent predictors of the UPDRS-III score; in addition, UPDRS-III score was negatively associated with MOCA score ( β = − 0.092, t = − 2.791, P = 0.007). FPG levels and motor symptoms were related to depressive symptoms in PD patients. Further, in non-depressive PD patients, UA and CHOL showed putative biomarkers of motor symptoms.