Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors

Breakthrough Project Research Topic

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors(SSRI’s) are a group of antidepressants that are theorized to aid in the treatment of many mental disorders including depression,anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, and eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa. True to their name, these medications increase the amount of serotonin in the gaps, or synapses, between the neurons by preventing the reuptake of serotonin between the neurons. With all of these uses, there are questions to the exact mechanism to how these medications work, and the mechanism is far more complex than merely increasing serotonin levels. The exact mechanisms of how these medications work is still

This means that the amount of these neurotransmitters inside the synapses increase almost immediately. Additionally, this clinical delay reveals a very large shortcoming in the monoamine theory of depression. One explanation for this clinical delay is the theory that involves an enzyme receptor called the 5HT1A receptor. The 5HT1A receptor is one of 14 different serotonin receptors on a serotonergic neuron. This particular enzyme works by inhibiting the release of serotonin in the neuron. Additionally, the serotonin transport protein works inside the synaptic spaces to move the serotonin molecules back into the neuron that released it, thus creating the reuptake of serotonin. When an SSRI is taken, many of these serotonin transporters are blocked; thus leaving much more serotonin in between the synaptic gaps. This immediate action is;however, mostly contained within the region between the two

As a result of this disinhibition, the serotonergic neuron essentially becomes conditioned to release more serotonin. This neural reconditioning is also theorized to reduce the side effects of the medication over time by the increased amount of the 5T enzyme at the presynaptic and postsynaptic neuron. There is, of course, much more than serotonin or any other neurotransmitter in the development of depression. The monoamine theory of depression completely ignores the obvious psychological,environmental, and genetic factors that would influence the development of depression. Traits such as having high levels of neuroticism, having an increased liability to stay in negative emotional states for longer periods of time, extreme perfectionism, having a history of abuse or neglect as a child, or situational factors such as experiencing a break up of a relationship or living in poverty can increase the