Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
5 years ago

Neuroadaptations to antipsychotic drugs: Insights from pre-clinical and human post-mortem studies

Antipsychotic drugs, all of which block the dopamine D2 receptor to a greater or lesser extent, are the mainstay for the pharmacological treatment of schizophrenia. Engaging in a deeper understanding of how antipsychotics act on the brain and body, at the cellular, molecular and physiological level is vital to comprehend both the beneficial and potentially harmful actions of these medications and stimulate development of novel therapeutics. To address this, we review recent advances in our understanding of neuroadaptations to antipsychotics, focusing on (1) treatment efficacy, (2) impact on brain volume and (3) evidence from human post-mortem studies that attempt to dissect neuropathological effects of antipsychotic drugs from organic schizophrenia neurobiology and (4) cardio-metabolic side effects. Our aim is to stimulate discussion on these highly clinically relevant topics and consider how we might use current and evolving knowledge and new methodologies in the fields of neuropharmacology and neuroscience, to advance our understanding of the long-term impact of antipsychotic treatment. Ultimately, this may inform the clinical use of these drugs.

Publisher URL: www.sciencedirect.com/science

DOI: S0149763415303341

You might also like
Discover & Discuss Important Research

Keeping up-to-date with research can feel impossible, with papers being published faster than you'll ever be able to read them. That's where Researcher comes in: we're simplifying discovery and making important discussions happen. With over 19,000 sources, including peer-reviewed journals, preprints, blogs, universities, podcasts and Live events across 10 research areas, you'll never miss what's important to you. It's like social media, but better. Oh, and we should mention - it's free.

  • Download from Google Play
  • Download from App Store
  • Download from AppInChina

Researcher displays publicly available abstracts and doesn’t host any full article content. If the content is open access, we will direct clicks from the abstracts to the publisher website and display the PDF copy on our platform. Clicks to view the full text will be directed to the publisher website, where only users with subscriptions or access through their institution are able to view the full article.