Antidepressant treatment in adult monkeys induces new nerve cell growth

A new study has found that an antidepressant treatment in adult monkeys induces new nerve cell growth in the hippocampus, a brain area responsible for learning and memory.

Washington, May 5 : A new study has found that an antidepressant treatment in adult monkeys induces new nerve cell growth in the hippocampus, a brain area responsible for learning and memory.

This study may help explain the effectiveness of antidepressant treatments in humans.

The research was conducted by a team of researchers led by Tarique Perera at Columbia University.

As part of the study, researchers treated a group of monkeys with electroconvulsive shock (ECS), an animal version of the highly effective clinical antidepressant electroconvulsive therapy.

Researchers found that there was an increase in new nerve cells in the hippocampus. Over four weeks, a majority of these cells became mature neurons.

The brain changes were not a response to tissue damage as no evidence of increased cell death was found in the animals. In fact the treatment increased production of a protein (BCL2) that protects neurons from damage.

"These findings support the hypothesis that induction of neurogenesis is a necessary component in the mechanism of action of antidepressant treatments," Perera said.

According to Eric Nestler of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, the growth of new nerve cells in the hippocampus has been suggested as the way antidepressants work in rodents. The results, are similar to those of a previous study in rodents which suggested that creation of new nerve cells, a process known as neurogenesis, is an important part of antidepressant therapy.

"However, the clinical relevance of this action has remained controversial, in part, because of uncertainty as to whether similar neurogenesis occurs in humans. This finding further supports the potential clinical relevance of changes in neurogenesis seen in rodent models," Nestler said.

The findings of the research were published in the May issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

ANI