Conquering Depression
Adapted from Medicine
at Michigan
What does stress do to your brain?
Stress doesn’t cause depression,
but recurrent episodes of stress appear
to make some people more vulnerable to developing
it, says Juan F. Lopez, M.D., an associate
professor of psychiatry in the Medical School
and assistant research scientist in the
U-M Mental
Health Research Institute.
Lopez studies the effect on the brain of
stress-related hormones called glucocorticoids.
Working with U-M colleague Stanley J. Watson,
M.D., Ph.D., he found that rats secreting
high levels of these stress hormones for
long periods of time develop biochemical
and molecular changes in their brains. He
sees the same changes in human brains from
people with severe depression who committed
suicide.
People with depression do have an enhanced
physical and emotional response to stress,
says Lopez. But the brain’s perception
of stress is just as important as the reality.
Lopez believes there may be many sub-types
of depression, which could explain why certain
medications work well in some patients,
but are ineffective in others.
“We are trying to determine what
is the core of depression and what is a
by-product of the illness,” he says.
“It’s humbling, because we can
see just how complicated the system really
is.”
Also:
Conquering
Depression
What’s
the best way to help depressed teens?
Can
primary care docs treat depression?
What
happens to when Mom is depressed?
How
do antidepressants work?
View
original article...
Last updated on:
Friday, 26-Jan-2007 15:00:06 EST
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