14 November 2013
Managing the Mind
Around a quarter of those suffering from schizophrenia also struggle with depression. Since around one in ten people with schizophrenia commit suicide, effective treatment for depressive episodes is crucial. Scientists have begun to question the effectiveness of antidepressants marketed by pharmaceutical giants, since not all trial data have been made public. Research teams are therefore running their own tests to validate drug efficacy. This scan highlights a study aimed at understanding how antidepressants work in the brain. The red regions of the brain scan on the right indicate where there are changes in the amount of a neurotransmitter called serotonin caused by a single dose of citalopram, a commonly used antidepressant.
Written by
- Original image by Sudhakar Selvaraj
- Courtesy of the Psychiatric Imaging Group, MRC Clinical Sciences Centre
- Research published in Molecular Psychiatry, December 2012
Search The Archive
Submit An Image
Like us on Facebook
Follow on Twitter
Follow on Tumblr
Follow on Instagram
What is BPoD?
BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.
BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.