A Glutamate Pathway to Faster-Acting Antidepressants?

Activation of mTOR, a ubiquitous protein, in the prefrontal cortex could be a key goal of new drugs. Depressive illness was described by Hippocrates in ancient Greece, but effective therapeutic agents did not emerge until the 1950s. Today, almost all antidepressant drugs in clinical use increase lev...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2010-08, Vol.329 (5994), p.913-914
Main Authors: Cryan, John F., O'Leary, Olivia F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
AIDS
Antibodies
Antidepressants
B lymphocytes
DNA
Drug therapy
Enzymes
Grants
Immunoglobulin constant regions
Mental depression
Neurotransmitters
PERSPECTIVES
Promoter regions
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Summary:Activation of mTOR, a ubiquitous protein, in the prefrontal cortex could be a key goal of new drugs. Depressive illness was described by Hippocrates in ancient Greece, but effective therapeutic agents did not emerge until the 1950s. Today, almost all antidepressant drugs in clinical use increase levels of certain neurotransmitters in the brain, in particular norepinephrine and serotonin. Although these medications are beneficial, a sizeable minority of patients remain resistant to their therapeutic effects ( 1 ). Moreover, in most patients, there is a delay of weeks to months before the drugs take full effect. As a result, there is an urgent need to develop faster-acting drugs ( 2 – 4 ).
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1194313