Neurobiological Mechanisms and Novel Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder

Dear Colleagues,

Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder, and by virtue will be experienced by many people throughout their life time. Associated with a heterogenous symptomatology and varied severity, according to the World Health Organisation it is the second most leading cause for disability adjusted life-years worldwide.

My research fascination with depression began over 30 years ago when undertaking my PhD which focused on the role of stress in the etiology of one of the core symptoms of depression i.e. the inability to experience pleasure or anhedonia. Of particular interest was the use of preclinical models of depression to elucidate the role of the dopaminergic reward circuitry in mediating the mood enhancing properties of a range of pharmacologically diverse antidepressant drugs. 

Since this time, huge advances have been made in understanding the neural basis of a disorder that is inherently characterised by decreased responsiveness to reward and an increased responsiveness to punishment. Research has shown that depression is underpinned by complex and wide neural circuitry changes which parallel the heterogenous symptomatology associated with the disorder. It has also become evident that the neurobiological mechanisms underlying depression cannot simply be equated to the neurobiological mechanisms underpinning the therapeutic effects of antidepressants. Very briefly, treatment advances have included cognitive behavioural therapy becoming much more of a mainstay option and newer pharmacological approaches have been targeted towards more specific monoaminergic neurotransmitter sites. Although not necessarily boosting clinical efficacy, the beneficial effects of these newer antidepressants have been increased tolerability and reduced side effect profiles. The ability of acute and controlled doses of the NMDA antagonist ketamine to address treatment resistant depression has continued to shed light on the glutamate system being a plausible alternative neurobiological approach for antidepressant action. However, some key themes remain, notably the continued reliance of effective antidepressants on enhancing monoaminergic activity, limited efficacy and the time lag to onset of therapeutic action. Thus, the search for more efficacious treatments for major depression continues. 

Authors are invited to submit relevant original research articles based on primary or longitudinal collaborative datasets (e.g., UK Biobank). Preclinical and translational research which focuses on a high degree of originality, significance and is underpinned by methodological rigor is welcomed. Opinion and review papers that help to inform on how to bridge the current gap between the advanced knowledge gained on the neurobiology of depression and antidepressants vs. developing alternative pharmacological treatment options for this disorder are also encouraged.

Dr. Survjit Cheeta
Dr. Andrew J Grottick
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• anhedonia
• animal models of depression
• antidepressants
• cognition/cognitive biases
• cognitive behavioural therapy
• diathesis/stress model
• depression
• emotional processing
• mood
• neurobiology of antidepressants
• neurobiology of depression
• stress
• treatment-resistant depression
• vulnerability to depression