During depression, the brain becomes less plastic and adaptable, and thus less able to perform certain tasks, like storing memories. Researchers at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have now traced the brain’s lower plasticity to reduced functionality in its support cells, and believe that learning more about these cells can pave the way for radical new therapies for depression. “We were able to cure memory dysfunction in ‘depressed’ rats by giving them doses of D-serine,” says Mia Lindskog, biologist and Assistant Professor at Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Neuroscience.
Dr Lindskog and her team used FSL rats, which are rats that have been specially bred with a disposition for ‘depression’. The rats were first put through two tests to confirm that they had the symptoms that are also characteristic of human depression. In the first, the rats’ memories were checked by repeatedly being exposed to different objects; in the second, the team assessed their level of apathy by releasing them in a container of water and observing whether they merely stayed floating in the container or immediately tried to climb out (non of the rats had to stay in the water for more than five minutes). In both cases the FSL rats’ results were compared with normal laboratory rats, and memory disorders and apathy could be confirmed.
The researchers then injected the rats with D-serine. This substance improved their memories but had no effect on the apathy. “We have shown that there are two symptoms here that can be influenced independently of one another, which means they could be treated in tandem in patients with depression,” says Dr Lindskog. The researchers also studied the synaptic activity in the hippocampus of the rats, a part of the brain which plays an important part in the memory. [continue reading…]
Do antidepressants work? Since the introduction of Prozac in the 1980s, prescriptions for antidepressants have soared 400 percent, with 17 million Americans currently taking some form of the drug. But how much good is the medication itself doing? “The difference between the effect of a placebo and the effect of an antidepressant is minimal for most people,” says Harvard scientist Irving Kirsch. Will Kirsch’s research, and the work of others, change the $11.3 billion antidepressant industry? Lesley Stahl investigates. Read Story: Treating Depression: Is there a placebo effect?
CautionIf you are depressed you should see your doctor. If you are already on Anti-depressants you should not stop taking them
Most of us know that we need vitamin D for strong bones. Now it appears researchers have identified a relationship between vitamin D levels and an individual’s risk of depression.
The finding comes from a four-year cross-sectional study of more than 12,000 participants conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, who reported their findings in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Depression was assessed with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Data pointed to a decreased risk of current depression in those with the highest vitamin D levels. The association was strongest in subjects with a history of depression. The researchers urge assessment of vitamin D levels in primary care patients who have a history of depression.
Depression isn’t the only mental illness associated with vitamin D levels. Psychiatric News has reported on a link between vitamin D levels in newborns and risk of developing schizophrenia. Click here to read that article.
Researchers from the University of Southampton, in collaboration with psychologists from six other universities, have started a study to assess the impact of a new psychological therapy for chronic, or treatment-resistant, depression (Refractory Depression).
Led by Thomas Lynch, Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Southampton, the approach is based on Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), a treatment with a proven track record in overcoming other serious mental health problems.
Refractory Depression is a common and chronic condition which severely disrupts the family, social and working lives of sufferers. Patients are often rigid and self-critical, exert unnecessary control over their emotions, and show little mental flexibility. At its most extreme, this pattern of behavior constitutes a maladaptive personality style known as emotional over-control. Particularly when under stress, such people prefer order to novelty and are relatively sensitive to threat, but insensitive to reward, for example, in a rose garden, they see the thorns but miss the flowers.
The REFRAMED (REFRActory Depression: Mechanisms and Efficacy of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy) study is the first large clinical trial to extend the principles of DBT to refractory depression. Professor Lynch’s key insight is the idea that pre-existing personality characteristics-rooted in brain processes that emerge in childhood-are central to understanding why some individuals are prone to the disorder.
Professor Lynch comments: “Self-control, the ability to manage competing urges, impulses, behaviours, or desires, is highly valued in society. In fact, a lack of self-control characterizes many of the personal and social problems that afflict modern civilisation. But too much self-control can be equally damaging. People who are emotionally closed-off may find it difficult to get on with others or to recruit help when they encounter difficulties. This social isolation may lead to the development of severe and difficult-to-treat mental health problems-such as refractory depression.” [continue reading…]
