Serotonin News and Research

Latest Serotonin News and Research

Gambling addict wins 3 years jail sentence

A 55-year-old travel agent's gambling addiction has won her a three year jail sentence after she stole $52,558 from her Brisbane employer.

19 Jan 2009

Savella - Fibromyalgia treatment approved by FDA

Forest Laboratories, Inc. and Cypress Bioscience, Inc. have announced that Savella (milnacipran HCl), a selective serotonin and norepinephrine dual reuptake inhibitor, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the management of fibromyalgia.

19 Jan 2009

Genetic variation cues social anxiety in monkeys and humans

A genetic variation involving the brain chemical serotonin has been found to shape the social behavior of rhesus macaque monkeys, which could provide researchers with a new model for studying autism, social anxiety and schizophrenia.

15 Jan 2009

Antidepressants improve symptoms of fibromyalgia

The use of antidepressant medications by patients with fibromyalgia syndrome is associated with a reduction in pain, sleep disturbances and depressed mood and improvement of health-related quality of life, according to an analysis of previous studies, which is published in the January 14, 2009 issue of JAMA.

14 Jan 2009

Updated guidelines for irritable bowel syndrome

Although irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common disease diagnosed by gastroenterologists, it's also one of the most misunderstood.

18 Dec 2008

Tricyclic antidepressants best for depression in Parkinson's

A new study shows that antidepressant drugs which only affect serotonin, often used as first choice treatments, may not be best for depression in people with Parkinson's disease.

17 Dec 2008

Irritable bowel may be genetic

Irritations of the bowel can have genetic causes. Researchers at the Institute of Human Genetics at Heidelberg University Hospital have discovered this correlation.

10 Dec 2008

Merck Serono's Kuvan receives European marketing authorization

Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, today announced that the European Commission has granted marketing authorization for Kuvan(R) for the treatment of hyperphenylalaninemia (HPA) in phenylketonuria (PKU) or BH4 deficient patients.

10 Dec 2008

Discovery of gene variants that impact the placebo effect

It is a well-known fact in drug trials that individuals can respond just as well to placebos, sugar pills, as to the active drug.

3 Dec 2008

Eli Lilly withdraws application for additional U.S. indication for Cymbalta for chronic pain

Eli Lilly and Company has withdrawn its supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Cymbalta (duloxetine HCl) for the management of chronic pain.

30 Nov 2008

Discovery of mechanism linking serotonin with regulation of food intake

Genetic mouse models have provided surprising insight into mechanisms linking serotoninergic compounds with the regulation of feeding behavior and body weight.

26 Nov 2008

Gut found to exert control over bone

When it comes to remodeling our bones-an ongoing process of break down and renewal that goes on throughout adulthood--researchers have new evidence that our guts play a surprisingly important role.

26 Nov 2008

Researchers find clue to safer obesity drugs

Once hailed as a miracle weight-loss drug, Fen-phen was removed from the market more than a decade ago for inducing life-threatening side effects, including heart valve lesions. Scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center are trying to understand how Fen-phen behaves in the brain in order to develop safer anti-obesity drugs with fewer side effects.

25 Nov 2008

FDA accepts Labopharm's NDA for formulation of trazodone

Labopharm Inc. has announced that its New Drug Application (NDA) for the Company's novel once-daily formulation of trazodone (DDS-04A), a serotonin antagonist reuptake inhibitor (SARI), for the treatment of major depressive disorder, has been accepted for review and filed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

24 Nov 2008

Valdoxan - a melatonergic antidepressant - receives positive European opinion for major depressive disorder

The first melatonergic antidepressant - Valdoxan/Thymanax (agomelatine) - has received a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency's (EMEA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) for its use in the treatment of adult patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).

21 Nov 2008

FDA approves tapentadol immediate-release tablets for pain in adults

Millions of Americans with moderate to severe acute pain and their health-care providers will soon have a new treatment option.

21 Nov 2008

DNA variations of serotonin transporter gene can influence drinking intensity

The brain's serotonergic system plays an important role in alcohol preference and consumption.

20 Nov 2008

Promising clinical trial for patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) affects 2% of the population and is considered a psychiatric disorder. It is the number four psychiatric pathology in terms of frequency following phobias, disorders relating to alcohol and drugs, and depression.

12 Nov 2008

Three effective treatments for childhood anxiety disorders found

Treatment that combines a certain type of psychotherapy with an antidepressant medication is most likely to help children with anxiety disorders, but each of the treatments alone are also effective, according to a new study funded by the National Institute's of Health's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) The study was published online Oct. 30, in the New England Journal of Medicine.

30 Oct 2008

In mice, anxiety is linked to immune system

In the first study ever to genetically link the immune system to normal behavior, scientists at Rockefeller and Columbia universities show that mast cells, known as the pharmacologic bombshells of the immune system, directly influence how mice respond to stressful situations.

27 Oct 2008