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Dysthymia and depressive disorders: dopamine hypothesis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

GL Gessa
GL Gessa*
Affiliation:
Department of Neuroscience, “Bernard B Brodie”, University of Cagliari, via Porcell 4, 09124Milan. Italy
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Summary

This paper reviews the recent literature supporting the hypothesis that reduced neurotransmission in the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system may sustain some of the symptoms of depressive conditions including dysthymia. Experimental evidences indicate that mesolimbic DA plays a crucial role in controlling incentive, motivation and reward. Additionally, in different models of depression, a reduced DA activity in the limbic system, reversed by chronic antidepressant treatment, is observed. Finally, different antidepressants, irrespective of their acute action on the uptake of norepinephrine or serotonin, have the common property when given chronically to potentiate behavioural responses to DA agonists. The DA hypothesis of depression offers an explanation for the antidepressive effect of drugs such as sulpiride and amisulpride given at low doses, that preferentially block DA autoreceptors and thereby increase DA output.

Keywords

dopaminedysthymiadepressionanimal modelsantidepressants
Type
Research Article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 11 , Issue S3 , 1996 , pp. 123s - 127s
Copyright
Copyright © Elsevier paris 1996

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