Imaging new neurons in vivo: a pioneering tool to study the cellular biology of depression?
Hippocampal neurogenesis has been implicated in the pathogenesis of and recovery from depression. However, most of the underlying studies were endpoint investigations in experimental animals yielding conflicting results, and it has been under debate to which extent these results could be transferred to human patients. Now, researchers have developed a powerful new tool to address these questions by a non-invasive method in humans and animals in vivo, using magnetic resonance spectroscopy to detect a biomarker for proliferating progenitor cells that give rise to new neurons. This makes it possible to study the role of neural progenitor cells in a wide variety of human brain disorders.
Römer
Benedikt
B
Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Germany.
Sartorius
Alexander
A
Inta
Dragos
D
Vollmayr
Barbara
B
Gass
Peter
P
D000818:Animals; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000378:metabolism / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology
D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D015415:Biomarkers