Researchers at Yale University, led by Ronald S. Duman, have identified a gene that is linked to the onset of depression and can help create a new class of antidepressants. Considering that scientists are constantly having trouble in trying to figure out what exactly causes depression, this is a pretty big step for Duman.
In order to make this discovery, Duman and his team did whole genome scans on 21 deceased human beings who in their lives were diagnosed with some form of depression and compared those with 18 individuals who were not diagnosed. What they found was that the gene MKP-1 was more than doubly increased in the brain tissue of the depressed individuals. This in return caused the researchers to be very happy with this discovery because that particular gene "inactivates a molecular pathway crucial to the survival and function of neurons."
On top of that, they tested out the theory on mice and found that when the MKP-1 gene was deactivated, the mice became resilient to stress. And when tested with the gene, the mice showed symptoms that mirrored depression. It'll be interesting to see just how far this will go, and if it can really help figure out a new way to lessen depression in America.
I find this article very interesting since its future implications could also be used for genetic tests for people who are predisposed to have depression. I hope this can further lower the stigma of this psychological disorder now that it has genetic backing and perhaps help lower the disturbingly high suicide rate among young adults.
ReplyDeleteThis article was very intersting. I think alot of research is now being done to see the role our genes may have on our behaviour. Why some people get more upset then others may have a genetic reason behind it, rather then they are just sensitive. If more research is done on this and proves to be true I think this could be a great discovery to help those who are depressed rather then just treat them with anxiety medication.
ReplyDeleteThis article is interesting because it proves that there is more to clinical depression than people just being sad. Society sometimes believes that with depression you can just snap out of it if you go to therapy. Finding out that genetics can play a major role may help to take some of the social stigma out of it. It's not you're environment, it's your DNA.
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