Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40042667›Full record

ArticleEuropean archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience2025

Psychosomatic - psychotherapeutic treatment of stress-related disorders impacts the sphingolipid metabolism towards increased sphingosine and sphingosine-1-phosphate levels.

Franziska Werner, Fabian Schumacher, Christiane Mühle, Werner Adler, Caterina Schug, Eva Schäflein, Eva Morawa, Burkhard Kleuser, Johannes Kornhuber, Yesim Erim and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Forest Bathing (Medical sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026
    Review
  4. Sphingolipids in Emotional Well-Being.Journal of neurochemistry · 2026
    Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Franziska WernerDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Fabian SchumacherInstitute of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Christiane MühleDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Werner AdlerDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Caterina SchugDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Eva SchäfleinDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Eva MorawaDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Burkhard KleuserInstitute of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Johannes KornhuberDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Yesim ErimDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany.
Cosima RheinDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander- Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany. Cosima.Rhein@uk-erlangen.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3010-2169

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveChronic stress is a risk factor for developing stress-induced mental disorders like major depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Low-grade inflammatory processes seem to mediate this association. The sphingolipid metabolism with its most important lipid messengers ceramide and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) was shown to play an important role in the pathophysiology of affective disorders and inflammation.

methodWe conducted an exploratory trial to investigate the effect of intensive psychosomatic - psychotherapeutic treatment of stress-induced disorders on the biological level. Before and after eight weeks of treatment, blood plasma of 67 patients was analyzed for sphingolipid levels and their metabolizing enzymes. Symptom severity of depression (PHQ-9), anxiety (GAD-7), and somatization (PHQ-15) was assessed in parallel.

resultsDuring psychosomatic - psychotherapeutic treatment, symptom severity of depression, anxiety, and somatization decreased significantly. Levels of the stress molecule cortisol decreased upon treatment. Enzymatic activities of secreted acid sphingomyelinase (S-ASM) and neutral sphingomyelinase (NSM) increased significantly upon treatment, as well as of neutral ceramidase (NC). Regarding the lipid level, the molar ratio of ceramide species Cer16:0 and Cer18:0 decreased upon treatment, whereas sphingosine and S1P levels increased.

conclusionsPsychosomatic - psychotherapeutic treatment was associated with a reduction in specific ceramide ratios and an increase in sphingosine and S1P levels potentially resulting from increased activity of sphingolipid metabolizing enzymes. Stress-induced mental disorders might be associated with disturbed sphingolipid levels that seem to be balanced during psychosomatic treatment. This study offers a further piece of evidence that the sphingolipid metabolism could be involved in the pathophysiology of stress-induced disorders, and its analysis could be helpful for treatment monitoring.

Indexed as

LysophospholipidsSomatoform DisordersSphingolipidsSphingosineStress Disorders, Post-TraumaticStress, PsychologicalAdultCeramidesFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedCeramidesLysophospholipidsSphingolipidsSphingosinesphingosine 1-phosphateAcid ceramidaseCeramideDepressionPost-traumatic stress disorderPsychosomatic medicinePsychotherapySphingosineSphingosine-1-phosphate, acid SphingomyelinaseStress-induced psychiatric disorders

Identifiers

PMID40042667
PMCPMC12589259

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.