Current Psychiatry Reviews - Volume 1, Issue 3, 2005

Novel mechanistic concepts of the neurobiology of depression and bipolar disorder are evolving based on recent pre-clinical and clinical studies. Ongoing research could lead not only to a breakthrough in identifying the causative factors associated with mood disorders but also to the development of novel therapeutic interventions. One such recent breakthrough concerns the observed abnormalities in the two major si Read More

The field of "mitochondrial medicine" has advanced rapidly since the first patient with a mitochondrial disorder, a concept primarily used for defects of the respiratory chain, was described in 1962 and the first mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations were described in 1988. Because of the ubiquitous requirement for energy and unique aspects of mtDNA genetics, mtDNA mutations are known to cause a bewildering spectru Read More

Lying and deception are common human activities and may occur in a wide variety of clinical contexts. These behaviours implicate higher neural systems within the brains of humans and other primates. Recent functional neuroimaging studies suggest that prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices are particularly engaged during certain forms of deception, hence, that executive processes support deceit. Congruent with the Read More

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a debilitating disorder that is prevalent in pediatric populations. Due to the high prevalence and poor prognosis if left untreated, research into the effectiveness and efficacy of psychological and pharmacological treatments has expanded. Accompanying efforts to disseminate such treatments to practitioners has significantly lagged behind, resulting in many children and ad Read More

Drug treatment of OCD entails serotonin re-uptake inhibitors as first-line interventions. However, many patients with OCD do not benefit from standard treatments with SRIs; this proportion of patients may be approximately estimated between 40 and 50 percent of all subjects who are initially treated with these agents. One of the most studied approaches for treatment-resistant patients is antipsychotic augmentation, w Read More

Alcohol dependency is a complex multi-factorial clinical presentation characterized by etiological ambiguity, poor treatment adherence and unfavorable prognosis. Recent evidence suggest considerable heterogeneity in this patient group across a number of neurological, genetic, psychological and personality parameters which relate directly to the clinical manifestation and course of this chronic condition. The cur Read More

Apart from the well-known serotoninergic and noradrenergic receptors located at the plasma membrane, the pharmacological response to antidepressant drugs also includes the long term recruitment of nuclear transcription factors, such as CREB (AMPc response element binding protein), and neurotrophic factors such as BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor) that are also known to exhibit neuroprotective activi Read More

The advent of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and the dual serotonin noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) has been welcomed by patients, largely owing to their superior tolerability profile as compared to older antidepressants. However, individual SSRIs and SNRIs do not have the same effect on all patients all the time. The characteristics of fluvoxamine, paroxetine, and milnacipran used for the tre Read More

Postpartum disorders include a spectrum of psychopathology including the postpartum blues, postpartum depression, and postpartum psychosis. Brief episodes of hypomania are quite common immediately after delivery but are rarely diagnosed. There is substantial evidence that postpartum psychosis is usually a variant of bipolar disorder in the form of a mixed or manic episode. Research studies however, have neglected the Read More

In these last years, emotions and feelings, such as attachment, pair and parental bonding and even love, typical of higher mammals, neglected for centuries by experimental sciences, have become the topic of extensive neuroscientific research in order to elucidate their biological mechanisms. Several observations have highlighted the role of distinct neural pathways, as well as of monoamines and neuropeptides, in particular ox Read More

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic progressive disorder characterized by dementia, but often featuring behavioral and psychological syndromes (BPSD), such as depression, overactivity, psychosis or aggressive behavior. Traditional treatments for BPSD are neuroleptics and sedatives, which are not devoid of serious adverse effects. Neurochemically, the classical hallmark of AD is the disruption of basal forebrain cholinergic p Read More

Very few studies on the neurotransmitter systems involved in frontotemporal dementia (FTD) have been published. No cholinergic deficiency is associated with FTD. Correlating non-specific, serotoninergic dysfunction and behavioral disorders permitted developing clinical trials on selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). All five trials included a limited number of patients. Two preliminary trials involving the treatment o Read More