Stress-induced structural remodeling in hippocampus: Prevention by lithium treatment
I thought this article was very interesting considering how much our approach to psychiatric disorders have shifted away from the simple approaches to a much more complicated, drug ridden approach. Lithium was used for decades as a treatment for bipolar disorder but has now fallen out of favor and replaced with new drugs that affect the central nervous system. Interestingly, lithium was also used for many years as a treatment for diabetes because of its insulin sensitizing properties. Might this protection to the hippocampal region be mediated through its effects on insulin? Incidently, many of the side effects associated with lithium treatment come from using the carbonate form, which is less bioavailable than other forms of lithium.
PNAS — Abstracts: Wood et al. 101 (11): 3973 –