Serum levels of carbonylated and nitrosylated proteins in mobbing victims with workplace adjustment disorders

Abstract

Aim Today the most important problem in the work place is psychological abuse, which may affect the health because of high levels of stress and anxiety. There is evidence that most psychiatric disorders are associated with increased oxidative stress but nothing is reported about the presence of oxidative stress in mobbing victims. Methods This study has been carried out in a group of 19 patients affected by workplace mobbing-due adjustment disorders, in comparison with 38 healthy subjects, to evaluate whether oxidative stress may be induced by mobbing. Results Serum levels of protein carbonyl groups and of nitrosylated proteins, biological markers of oxidative stress conditions, were higher than those measured in healthy subjects. Conclusions These findings may contribute to a better understanding of the redox homeostasis dysregulation occurring in victims of workplace mobbing.