Faster way of getting rid of depression

Main point:

Researchers have found that the sleep deprivation could relieve depression and elevates mood.

Journal:

Translational Psychiatry

Study Further:

Sleep deprivation is found to be more efficient in reducing depression by 60-70% of the times as compared to the presently available drugs.

Researchers found, in mice model, that the glia cells are responsible behind this activity. Moreover, adenosine accumulation is thought to be responsible for the antidepressant effect of the sleep deprivation. This antidepressant effect takes place immediately than the traditional antidepressant drugs that could take 6-8 weeks to start working.

“For many years neuroscientists focused almost exclusively on neurons, whereas the role of glia was neglected,” Dustin Hines, lead author and a postdoctoral fellow at Tufts, said in a statement. “We now know that glia play an important role in the control of brain function and have the potential to aid in the development of new treatments for many illnesses, including depression and sleep disorders,”

Source:

Scientific American

Further Reading:

Levine, D. (2013). A Fast-Acting Antidepressant Scientific American Mind, 24 (2), 17-17 DOI: 10.1038/scientificamericanmind0513-17a