Category: Psychiatry

Elevated Proinflammatory Cytokines in Patients with Depression

June 24, 2022 Elizabeth Bixler
Elizabeth Bixler Introduction: Major Depressive Disorder (depression) is a mood disorder thought to be driven by neurotransmitter imbalance. It is the leading cause of disability worldwide1, and in any given year, 17.3 million Americans suffer from depression2. Many groups have studied the link between elevated proinflammatory cytokines and depression and…
Engineering Medicine Inflammation Psychiatry

Ketamine Increases Expression of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor for the Treatment of Depression

June 20, 2022 Megan Mitchell
Megan Mitchell Introduction. Depressive disorders are a leading cause of disability worldwide. In the US, prevalence ranges from 5-10% with only half receiving adequate treatment.1,2 The Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) protein induces survival, development, and function of neurons; it plays a role in hippocampal learning and memory.1 BDNF elevation in…
Neuroscience Psychiatry

Effects of the FKBP5 Gene on Glucocorticoid Receptors in Relation to Major Depressive Disorder

June 12, 2022 Sandra Kumar
Sandra Kumar Introduction: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a mood disorder involving persistent feelings of anhedonia that affects approximately 350 million people around the world.1 While the etiology of depression can be traced back to the hypersecretion of cortisol and faulty hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, studies look at the role of…
Endocrinology Psychiatry

Psilocybin Causes a Long Term Change in 5-HT2A Receptors that Increased Neuroplasticity in Patients with Depression

May 31, 2022 Justin Dugie
Justin Dugie Introduction: MDD(Major Depressive Disorder) is the largest global burden on disease with a 15% lifetime prevalence.7 MDD is associated with increased resting FC(Functional Connectivity) in the medial frontal lobe, temporal lobe and basal ganglia to other regions, and decreased cerebellum FC.7 FC is used as one of the…
Neuroscience Psychiatry

The Role and Consequences of Methadone, in the Face of the Ongoing Opioid Crisis, on the hERG Channel in Prolonged QT Interval

August 18, 2021 Austin Hughes
Austin Hughes Introduction. Prolonged QT interval results from genetic or acquired causes, characterized by prolongation of the QT interval, the period from onset of cardiac ventricular depolarization to the end of ventricular repolarization.1  Drug-induced QT prolongation is common among recovering opioid dependents, particularly in those who are prescribed racemic methadone, the…
Cardiology Psychiatry

Psilocybin Promotes Neuroplasticity through 5-HT2A Receptor agonism: Implications for Treatment of Depression

August 16, 2021 Brianna Peacock
Brianna Peacock Introduction. Depression is a state of low mood with a lifetime prevalence of about 20% globally.1 Potential etiologies include the monoamine hypothesis which describes a decrease in molecules like serotonin.1,2 Loss or alteration of neuroplasticity may also play a role in pathogenesis, as suggested by the decreased BDNF…
Featured Abstracts Neuroscience Psychiatry

The Role of DNA Methylation as an Epigenetic Mechanism of the Neuroadaptations Associated with Cocaine Use Disorder

August 6, 2021 Rachael Wong
Rachael Wong Introduction. Cocaine use disorder is 79% heritable, and 2 million Americans use cocaine monthly with over 850,000 of them meeting the DSM-V criteria for cocaine dependence.5,9 While identification of specific genetic factors and pharmacological treatment has remained elusive, promising results are arising from the study of epigenetic modifications…
Featured Abstracts Neuroscience Psychiatry

The Role of FKBP5 in the Development of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

August 5, 2021 Arthi Tarugu
Arthi Tarugu Introduction. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder characterized by abnormal, prolonged stress response to a trauma.1 Susceptibility to development of PTSD following exposure to trauma varies among individuals, suggesting that genetic and environmental factors modulate this stress response.1-5 FK506 Binding Protein 5 (FKBP5) is a major…
Neuroscience Psychiatry

Microglial Polarization into M1 and M2 Phenotypes: A New Mechanistic Target for Post-Traumatic Epilepsy Treatment

August 3, 2021 Elias Perli
Elias Perli Introduction: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a change in normal brain function caused by an external insult. More than 3 million people in the United States suffer a TBI annually, accounting for around 300,000 hospitalizations and 50,000 fatalities per year.1,4 One notable sequela of TBI is Posttraumatic Epilepsy…
Immunology Neuroscience Psychiatry