A recent study conducted by scientists at Tufts University School of Medicine found that chronic stress impairs an animal’s production and response to allopregnanolone, a key neurosteroid that plays a role in ensuring effective communication between neurons. The newest generation of antidepressants works by mimicking these neurosteroids, however, the exact connection between neurosteroids and depression and how they work remains unknown.
Najah Walton, a PhD student in neuroscience at the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, explained.
“Our findings suggest that the behavioral deficits following chronic stress involve impaired neurosteroid synthesis and signaling. We found that mice subjected to chronic unpredictable stress had an impairment in allopregnanolone production within the basolateral amygdala, a brain region crucial for mediating emotional responses.”
The study found that mice with low levels of the neurosteroid allopregnanolone exhibited depressive behaviors, while those with elevated levels showed greater resilience to chronic stress. This finding suggests that synthetic neurosteroid analogs could offer a new therapeutic target for individuals with depression.
The senior author of the study, Jamie Maguire, a professor of neuroscience at the School of Medicine, says that fewer than half of patients with major depression respond to traditional antidepressants, making it important to explore alternative approaches.
The team plans to continue their research to better understand the role of neurosteroids in depression and chronic stress, and how neurosteroid-based treatments can benefit the brain.
According to Walton, this research offers hope in understanding the neurobiology of psychiatric disease and the impact of chronic stress on the genes that produce allopregnanolone.
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In-Article Image Credits
Side view illustration of the brain via Tufts University by National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health with usage type - Public DomainFeatured Image Credit
Side view illustration of the brain via Tufts University by National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health with usage type - Public Domain
