Advances in the Pharmacology of Depression and Mood Disorders

Dear Colleagues,

Recently, the field of depression and mood disorders has been characterized by the emergence of several new avenues of research. This development mainly began with studies showing that ketamine, administered at a low, subanaesthetic dose, can relieve the symptoms of some depressed patients with an impressive rapidity of action when compared to the canonical classes of antidepressant molecules. This discovery paved the way for new hypotheses, and subsequently a number of innovative concepts have been developed, especially for the purpose of achieving fast-acting treatments. One of the most illustrative examples probably resides in the current trials conducted with other psychedelic drugs, such as LSD or psylocibin. Additional paths of research have arisen, including the role played by the different types of glutama-tergic receptors in the regulation of neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity within brain regions involved in mood control. Still, in parallel, researchers have also focused on the serotonergic (5-HT) system, more classically studied, and new targets have been identified among the different 5-HT receptors (e.g., the 5-HT4 and 5-HT6 types).

Due to this conceptual development, the theories that have been proposed up to this point to address the neuropharma-cology of depression and mood disorders, such as the “plastic hypothesis” or “the serotonergic/aminergic theory”, need to be revisited and/or challenged. For instance, the role played by 5-HT and other monoamines in the therapeutic poten-tial of psychedelics remains virtually unknown, and, similarly, the ability of 5-HT pharmacological agents to modulate the neuroplastic and circuit changes induced by these same compounds has not yet been studied. This Special Issue welcomes both research papers and reviews addressing these points by proposing new mechanisms of action and/or hypotheses. Studies presenting potential new targets are also encouraged. 

Dr. Guillaume Lucas
Guest Editor

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