Journal
NEUROSIGNALS
Volume 17, Issue 4, Pages 298-310Publisher
KARGER
DOI: 10.1159/000231896
Keywords
Muscarinic receptors; Schizophrenia; Bipolar disorder; Depression; Signaling pathways
Funding
- Australian Rotary Health Research Fund
- Department of Human Services, Government of Victoria
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The concept that acetylcholine is involved in the pathophysiologies of psychiatric disorders has existed since the 1950s. There is very strong evidence implicating a dysfunctional muscarinic system in schizophrenia, +with less information available for bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder. The translation of this evidence into clinically viable treatments has been disappointing; hampered by problems associated with developing drugs that target the requisite members of the muscarinic family, rather than all of the receptors, which results in unacceptable side-effect profiles. The discovery of additional binding sites, other than the one occupied by acetylcholine, has revitalised research into this aspect of psychopharmacology. New compounds are now being developed that have the potential to selectively target individual muscarinic receptors in the central nervous system. The question that remains to be answered is whether stimulating central muscarinic receptors will result in the re-establishment of normal central muscarinic activity? The purpose of this review is to (i) summarise the data supporting a role of the muscarinic system in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder, and (ii) give an overview of some of the new selective muscarinic ligands that are currently in development and try to address the issue of reestablishing appropriate central muscarinic function. Copyright (C) 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available