Serotonergic compounds reveal encouraging results in patients with schizophrenia

This blog post brings us closer to the relationship between serotonin and schizophrenia through studies on the role of the serotonergic compounds in schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a mental illness chronic condition for which a definitive cure has not yet been found, so affected people will suffer from it throughout their lives with few mechanisms available to control it.

Las Chemical brain alterations, genetics and environmental factors are some of the underlying elements associated with schizophrenia. People affected by this disorder lose touch with reality and experience problems with mental agility and memory. Other characteristic symptoms of this disorder are confused thoughts, auditory hallucinations and social withdrawal.

The symptoms of schizophrenia are divided into two main groups: positive (e.g., hallucinations, delusions) and negative (e.g., introversion, lack of motivation). As the disease progresses, the symptoms can become quite debilitating.

Over the years, researchers have been testing different treatments to minimize the effects of these symptoms; one of these treatments is the use of serotonin compounds. In a recent study, a team of researchers discovered a new class of compounds that could be effective in treating schizophrenia.

These compounds inhibited a serotonin receptor that had not been previously targeted. The researchers contend that this treatment is more effective than conventional options and presents fewer side effects than typical antipsychotics.

Relationship between serotonin and schizophrenia

The serotonin, also called 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), is a neurotransmitter monoamine that is credited with feelings of happiness and well-being in humans. Current treatments focus on areas of the brain where dopaminergic and serotonergic pathways are located, which regulate various cognitive functions.

The impairments of cognitive functions are one of the manifestations of borderline schizophrenia, thus justifying the efficacy of serotonin receptor antagonists. Symptoms such as mood changes, aggressive behaviors and reduced attentional levels are associated with serotonin levels in the brain.

It could be argued that the use of serotonergic medications can have effects on the psychopathology of schizophrenia. In fact, most antidepressants and antipsychotics work by increasing dopamine and serotonin levels.

During the early years of schizophrenia research, scientists focused on the effects serotonin could have on brain function and how blocking certain receptors could have implications for treating the disease. Studies of serotonergic agonists, antagonists and precursors were carried out, but the results were not encouraging.

Interest in how 5-HT deficiency influenced schizophrenic symptoms waned when researchers began to focus more on the neurotransmitter dopamine.

The serotonin hypothesis

In the study led by William C. Wetsel the signals of the 5-HT2C receptor were analyzed, a mixture of several compounds. Previous attempts to inhibit 5-HT2C were unsuccessful because researchers were not able to create a drug cocktail good enough to interact specifically with that receptor. The researchers, in mouse studies, observed that this new class of drugs was able to reduce the hyperactivity associated with acute psychosis. Side effects such as involuntary movements of the limbs were scarce.

This study may have sparked debate about whether serotonin receptor antagonists are effective in the treatment of schizophrenia, but it is essential to bear in mind that the results were obtained in animals. The aim of pharmacological manipulation of the serotonergic system is to improve the positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Clozapine and other 5-HT receptor antagonists

The renewed interest in the theory that serotonergic drugs are effective for treating schizophrenia was rekindled with the arrival of atypical antipsychotics such as clozapine, risperidone and olanzapine. Clozapine has superior antipsychotic properties due to its high affinity for serotonin receptors 5-HT2A, 5-HT2C and 5-HT3, while its affinity for the dopaminergic D2 receptor is lower.

It has been shown that this class of medications (better serotonin antagonists) combats schizophrenic symptoms more effectively than conventional or typical antipsychotics (mainly dopamine antagonists). Weight gain, motor seizures and myoclonic seizures are some of the known side effects of clozapine.

It is evident that some of the cognitive impairments present in people who suffer from schizophrenia are associated with a serotonin deficiency. In these individuals, structural alterations such as decreased prefrontal lobe volume and a reduction in medial temporal lobe volume are also observed, as well as enlarged ventricles.

However, other mental illnesses such as mood disorders have similar characteristics. A direct relationship between serotonin and schizophrenia has not been established, so doubts remain about the efficacy of some serotonergic medications.

Conclusion

The argument is based on the premise that schizophrenia is due solely to a chemical imbalance. However, there is still debate about the role the organism plays in mental illness. Studies on the role of serotonin in psychological disorders continue to seek to determine the exact effect of serotonergic drugs. At this time, new antipsychotic agents, which are antagonists of 5-HT2A receptors, adequately control the negative symptoms of treatment-resistant schizophrenia.

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“This article has been translated. Link to the original article in Spanish:”
Compuestos serotoninérgicos revelan resultados alentadores en pacientes con esquizofrenia