Antidepressant therapy prevents structural brain changes

Abstract

Chronic stress leads to several structural changes in the brain, most notably a reduction in hippocampal volume. A recent study describes the effects of antidepressant therapy on hippocampal plasticity in a primate model of chronic psychosocial stress. Treatment with tianeptine prevented stress-induced changes in brain markers of neuronal viability, normalized the proliferation of adult hippocampal cells, and corrected the stress-induced changes in hippocampal volume. Tianeptine, an unusual antidepressant agent that is believed to promote rather than inhibit 5-HT uptake, joins the list of antidepressant drugs that have beneficial effects on neurogenesis. [Czeh, B. et al. (2001) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 98, 12796–12801]. AB