Photo: flickr
The research, published March 14 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, involves studies of an inhibitor of soluble epoxide hydrolase in rodents. Soluble epoxide hydrolase, or sEH, is emerging as a therapeutic target that acts on a number of inflammatory or inflammation-linked diseases.
"The research in animal models of depression suggests that sEH plays a key role in modulating inflammation, which is involved in depression," said Hammock, a distinguished professor of entomology with a joint appointment at the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Inhibitors of sEH protect natural lipids in the brain that reduce inflammation and neuropathic pain. Thus, these inhibitors could be potential therapeutic drugs for depression."
"Most drugs for psychiatric diseases target how neurons communicate; here we are targeting the wellness and environment of the neurons," said UC Davis researcher Christophe Morisseau.
The researchers also discovered that postmortem brain samples of patients with psychiatric diseases, including depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, showed a higher expression of sEH than controls.
Category(s):Depression
Source material from University of California - Davis
