Antidepressant News and Research

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Antidepressants are medicines that treat depression. Your doctor can prescribe them for you. They can improve your mood, sleep, appetite and concentration. It may take several weeks for them to help. There are several types of antidepressants. You and your doctor may have to try several before finding what works best for you.

New brain imaging technique can trace effects of SYN115 drug in Parkinson's disease

Neuroscientists using a new brain imaging technique could see an investigational drug for Parkinson's disease get into a patient's brain and affect blood flow in several key structures, an indicator the drug may be effective.

1 Dec 2010

CAMH neuroscientists develop novel protein peptide for targeted treatment of depression

Neuroscientists at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) have developed a protein peptide that may be a novel type of highly targeted treatment for depression with a low side-effect profile. Depression affects one in ten Canadians at some time in their lives and is a leading cause of disability worldwide.

30 Nov 2010

FDA warning leads to decrease in antidepressant prescribing for young patients

An FDA warning regarding increased suicide risk in children and teens taking antidepressant drugs has led to an overall decrease in antidepressant prescribing for young patients, reports a study in the November issue of Medical Care. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals, and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health, and pharmacy.

24 Nov 2010

VYTORIN reduces major vascular events in patients with chronic kidney disease

In a new investigational study of VYTORIN, the cholesterol-lowering medicine from Merck, VYTORIN 10/20 mg reduced the incidence of first major vascular events defined as non-fatal heart attacks or cardiac death, stroke or any revascularization procedure by a highly statistically significant 16.1 percent compared to placebo, Study of Heart and Renal Protection study involved more than 9,000 patients who, on average, had advanced or end-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD)

22 Nov 2010

Naurex's antidepressant shares efficacy mechanisms with NMDA receptor antagonist ketamine

Naurex Inc., a company developing innovative treatments to address unmet needs in psychiatry and neurology, today reported that data presented at Neuroscience 2010 show that GLYX-13, its clinical-stage candidate for the treatment of depression, shares key mechanistic features associated with the antidepressant efficacy of the NMDA receptor antagonist ketamine.

18 Nov 2010

Neuralstem files NSI-189 IND with FDA for Phase I safety trials for major depression

Neuralstem, Inc. announced that it has filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin two Phase I safety trials to test NSI-189, its first small molecule compound, for the treatment of major depression. NSI-189 is a proprietary new chemical entity discovered by Neuralstem that stimulates new neuron growth in the hippocampus, an area of the brain that is believed to be involved in depression.

18 Nov 2010

New animal research identifies factors that may play key roles in depression

New animal research has identified factors, such as the stress response and immune system, that may play important roles in depression. Scientists have also found that the regulation of nerve cell signals influences depression in animals, and that new drug combinations may more effectively treat it. The findings were presented at Neuroscience 2010, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news on brain science and health.

17 Nov 2010

Optivia, UCSF receive SBIR grant to develop transporter-based assay system

Optivia Biotechnology Inc., a leading provider of in vitro transporter assay services, today announced that the company and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), have received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop an innovative system for characterizing the role transporter proteins play in the disposition of drugs by the liver.

16 Nov 2010

Labopharm receives notice about Activis' ANDA for OLEPTRO

Labopharm Inc. today announced that on November 11, 2010 it received notice from Actavis South Atlantic LLC advising that Actavis has submitted an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval to market 150 and 300 mg generic versions of OLEPTRO (trazodone hydrochloride extended-release 150 and 300 mg tablets) in the United States.

15 Nov 2010

Labopharm receives notice of Activis' ANDA submission for generic OLEPTRO

Labopharm Inc. today announced that on November 11, 2010 it received notice from Actavis South Atlantic LLC advising that Actavis has submitted an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval to market 150 and 300 mg generic versions of OLEPTRO™ (trazodone hydrochloride extended-release 150 and 300 mg tablets) in the United States.

12 Nov 2010

Labopharm third quarter total revenue increases to $9.6 million

Labopharm Inc. today reported its financial results for the third quarter and first nine months ended September 30, 2010.

11 Nov 2010

NEWMEDS launches largest database to advance drug development for depressio, schizophrenia

In a remarkable and unprecedented collaboration NEWMEDS (Novel Methods leading to NeW MEdications in Depression and Schizophrenia) have pooled resources to bring together data of 23,401 anonymized patients from 67 trials on 11 compounds in over 25 countries to form the single largest database of clinical trial data ever amassed in psychiatric research.

10 Nov 2010

Clinical Data receives $500,000 grants under QTDP program

Clinical Data, Inc. today announced that the Company has received two grants totaling nearly $500,000 under the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project.

8 Nov 2010

TriRima shows positive result in food-induced cardiovascular effects associated with MAO inhibitors

CeNeRx BioPharma, Inc., today announced that a new formulation of TriRima, its lead agent for treatment resistant depression, showed excellent safety in a study designed to test whether it is free of the food-induced cardiovascular effects associated with conventional MAO inhibitors.

2 Nov 2010

Shire announces results of Vyvanse Phase 2 signal finding study for Major Depressive Disorder

Shire plc the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced results from a Phase 2 signal finding study of Vyvanse(R) [lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (or SPD489)] in patients who have had residual symptoms of depression following treatment with LEXAPRO(escitlopram) for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD).

29 Oct 2010

Glaxo to pay $750 million settlement for defective, unsafe medicines

The New York Times: "GlaxoSmithKline, the British drug giant, has agreed to pay $750 million to settle criminal and civil complaints that the company for years knowingly sold contaminated baby ointment and an ineffective antidepressant — the latest in a growing number of whistle-blower lawsuits that drug makers have settled with multimillion-dollar fines." The 20 medicines that were produced with "questionable safety" measures included "Avandia, a troubled diabetes drug; Coreg, a heart drug; and Tagamet an acid reflux drug."

28 Oct 2010

First Edition: October 27, 2010

Today's headlines note that the new health law has Democrats playing defense, while Republicans offer few new alternatives to the sweeping measure.

27 Oct 2010

Glaxo to pay $750 million in defective drug settlement

GlaxoSmithKline Plc, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, has agreed to pay $750 million to settle a U.S. government false-claims lawsuit over the sale of defective drugs. The lawsuit first filed in 2004 by Cheryl D. Eckard, a former global quality assurance manager for the London-based company came to a settlement finally. Eckard, 51, said, “This is not something I wanted to do, but because of patient safety it was necessary.” Being the one to bring this to notice she would receive $96 million from the settlement money. She had warned the company earlier but was fired because of her efforts.

26 Oct 2010

Researcher creates novel theory about chronic depression

Chronic depression is an adaptive, reparative neurobiological process gone wrong, say two University of California, San Diego School of Medicine researchers, positing in a new theory that the debilitating mental state originates from more ancient mechanisms used by the body to deal with physical injury, such as pain, tissue repair and convalescent behavior.

21 Oct 2010

Antidepressant Reboxetine ineffective: Review

According to a new study, an antidepressant prescribed over the last 13 years is ineffective and potentially harmful. The drug in question is called Reboxetine and is available under the name of Edronax. The study showed that it works no better than a placebo.

13 Oct 2010