Scientists discover new compounds that are expected to rapidly treat depression

Release date: 2015-07-17

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine have discovered a promising compound in a new study that can successfully treat depression in less than 24 hours while minimizing side effect. Although they have not been tested in humans, this compound has shown significant advantages in terms of treatment time compared to currently used antidepressants.

The study was led by Dr. Scott Thompson, professor and director of the Department of Physiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and the article was published this month in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.

According to Dr. Thompson, the results open a new door to antidepressants, and there is evidence that these compounds can alleviate the devastating effects of depression in less than a day. Such short treatment times are currently The treatment method used does not have.

The drugs currently used by most depressed patients increase the level of the neurochemical serotonin (serotonin) in the brain. The most commonly used drugs, such as Prozac and Lexapro, are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, while SSRIs are effective in only one-third of patients with depression. Even if these drugs work, they usually take 3-8 weeks to slow down the symptoms of depression, so they often have to suffer for months before they find a drug that makes them feel good. This will not only bring mental pain to the patient, but also cause suicidal behavior in some cases, which is fatal. Clearly there is a need for better treatment of depression.

Dr. Thompson and his team focused their research on another neurotransmitter other than serotonin, an inhibitory compound called GABA. Dr. Thompson and his team believe that in the case of depression, excitatory signals in some brain regions are not strong enough. Because there is no safe way to directly enhance the transmission of excitability, they studied a class of compounds that transmit signaling through GABA reduction and predict that such compounds can restore excitatory intensity. These compounds, called GABA-NAMs, minimize toxic side effects because their location is precise: it only works in the brain part that is critical to mood.

The researchers tested the compounds in chronic mild stress rats (which can produce behavior similar to human depression). After administration of GABA-NAMs in stressed rats, the experimental phenomenon of a key symptom of depression (lack of pleasure, or lack of pleasure) was successfully improved. It is worth noting that the beneficial effects of this compound occur within 24 hours, requiring much less time than the SSRIs produce the same effect.

Dr. Thompson pointed out that these compounds produce the most exciting effects in animal experiments, whether they will produce similar effects in human depression, and further research related to them will be very exciting. If these compounds can quickly attenuate the symptoms of human depression (such as the idea of ​​suicide), then it will completely change the way patients are treated.

In experiments in the mouse brain, the researchers found that areas of the brain that were weakened by stress (those in human depression were also attenuated), these compounds rapidly increased the intensity of excitatory transmission. The effects of this compound are not detected in unstressed animals, which increases their hope that they will not cause side effects in human patients.

A well-known industry source pointed out that this work emphasizes the importance of basic research for clinical applications. Dr. Thompson's research work lays an important foundation for the transformation of depression treatment methods and the reduction of tragic losses caused by suicide.

Source: New Kangjie