The sensitivity of neurones in the cingulate cortex of the rat to iontophoretically applied substance P (SP) was tested one hour after a single dose of various antidepressant drugs and also 1 day following the termination of a chronic dosing schedule (14 once daily injections) of the same agents. One hour after a single injection of desipramine (DMI), chlorimipramine (CMI), trimipramine (TMI) o...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common mental disorder associated with a significant negative impact on quality of life, morbidity/mortality, and cognitive function. Individuals who suffer with MDD display lower serum/plasmatic total antioxidant potentials and reduced brain GSH levels. Also, F2-isoprostanes circulatory levels are increased in MDD subjects and are correlated with the severi...

Accumulating evidence supports an association between depression and inflammatory processes, a connection that seems to be bidirectional. Clinical trials have indicated antidepressant treatment effects for anti-inflammatory agents, both as add-on treatment and as monotherapy. In particular, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and cytokine-inhibitors have shown antidepressant treatment...

A number of different psychotropic agents have been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and these relationships have been difficult to interpret due to the presence of confounding factors. Recently, there has been renewed interest in the potential for certain antidepressants to cause QT prolongation, which is a predisposing factor for arrhythmia. However, the optimum me...

An enhancement of neurotransmission of serotonin (5-HT), noradrenaline, or both, underlies the antidepressant response associated with most agents presently available to treat major depression. With respect to the 5-HT system, antidepressant drugs exert immediate effects on some neuronal elements controlling overall transmission, but it is the gradual changes in neuronal responses to such treat...

Cognitive and psychomotor impairment are important considerations in the treatment of depression in the elderly due to both the underlying slowing of cognitive and psychomotor processes as a normal function of aging and the superimposed deficits associated with the disease itself. Only the latter are reversible with effective antidepressant therapy. Yet certain antidepressant drugs possess seda...

Antidepressant agents inhibit the neuronal reuptake of monoamines such as serotonin (5-HT), noradrenaline (NA), and dopamine (DA). Several clinical and animal studies have advocated the use of these agents in the management of pain. In this study, therefore, the possibility of a correlation between the analgesic activity of six serotonin specific reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants an...

The synthesis of five new tetracyclic benzopsoralen analogues, compounds 2-6, with 9H-xanthen-9-one or 9H-carbazole frameworks, is described. Their inhibitory effects on the growth of three human tumor cell lines (MCF-7, SF-268, and NCI-460) were evaluated, and discussed in terms of structure-activity relationship, taking into account both geometric and electronic features. Generally, the angul...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common and costly disorder. MDD often occurs with comorbid symptoms of anxiety. While symptoms of anxiety are not part of the diagnosis criteria of MDD, it has been recognized for many years that anxiety may play a critical role in depressive illness. The presence of anxiety has been associated with greater severity of depression and functional impairment, a...

Although the proportion of the adult population in the United States that smokes has decreased steadily, the rate of successful quit attempts is still low. Smokers develop nicotine dependence that resembles other addictions, and may require multiple attempts and long-term treatment to sustain abstinence. Currently available first-line agents for smoking cessation therapy include nicotine replac...