CART peptide may be an endogenous antidepressant

TL;DRAbstract

CART p (cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript peptide) may be an endogenous antidepressant. Anatomically, CART mRNA is situated in various brain regions that are thought to be involved in depression, and CARTp interacts with various neurochemical systems associated with mood, stress and reward. In a human study (Miraglia del Giudice et al., 2006, Depress Anxiety 23:90–92), it was discovered that subjects carrying a missense mutation of the CART gene displayed an increase in depression. Also, in animal studies, injection of CARTp reduced immobility time in the forced swim test (Dandekar et al., 2009, Neuropsychopharmacology 34:1288–1300). Interestingly, electroconvulsive therapy, which is an effective treatment for depression in humans, increased CART mRNA expression in the nucleus accumbens of rats. Furthermore, CARTp upregulates BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor ‐ which is thought to play an essential role in the mechanism of antidepressants) levels in hippocampal neurons

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