Decrease in Brain Serotonin 2 Receptor Binding in Patients With Major Depression Following Desipramine Treatment

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Abstract
THE MECHANISMS by which antidepressants exert their therapeutic effects in major depression have remained elusive. Since there is a time lag of about 2 to 4 weeks between initiating antidepressant treatment and the clinical response, it has been suggested that alterations in neurotransmitter receptors occurring within this time frame might be relevant to therapeutic effects of these drugs.1 Because 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin [5-HT]) has been implicated in depression,2,3 a number of animal studies4-15 have assessed the changes in 5-HT receptors after 2 to 4 weeks of the administration of antidepressants. Serotonin 2 receptors are the most widely studied,4-9,11-13,15 and these studies have shown that long-term administration of tricyclic antidepressants,4-6,8,9,11-13 monoamine oxidase inhibitors,4,6,8,12 atypical antidepressants such as iprindole4,6,12 and mianserin hydrochloride,7,8,13 and most but not all serotonin reuptake inhibitors4,9,12,16-19 decreases the density of cortical 5-HT2 receptors in rats. It is, however, unknown if antidepressant treatment would lead to similar changes in 5-HT2 receptor density in depressed patients.

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