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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by mist on December 8, 2000, at 16:37:13
Does anyone know how close researchers are to finding a way to test for what type of AD is best for you? Or to making some that work faster--say in two hours rather than eight weeks? Or to making a kinder, gentler AD that doesn't create more problems from side effects than it's supposed to solve? Is anyone working on this? It seems like the drug companies keep coming out with new ADs saying, this is better, "cleaner" but then you hear the same set of side effects from people who use them.
Posted by Bradley on December 8, 2000, at 18:48:35
In reply to What are the researchers doing?, posted by mist on December 8, 2000, at 16:37:13
They have now idea what causes depression or how AD's sometimes work and everything else associated with mood disorders. We have a long way to go in oder to have appropriate treatment.
> Does anyone know how close researchers are to finding a way to test for what type of AD is best for you? Or to making some that work faster--say in two hours rather than eight weeks? Or to making a kinder, gentler AD that doesn't create more problems from side effects than it's supposed to solve? Is anyone working on this? It seems like the drug companies keep coming out with new ADs saying, this is better, "cleaner" but then you hear the same set of side effects from people who use them.
Posted by stjames on December 8, 2000, at 20:57:55
In reply to FLOGGING THEIR DUMMIES!!!!!!, posted by Bradley on December 8, 2000, at 18:48:35
> They have now idea what causes depression or how AD's sometimes work and everything else associated with mood disorders. We have a long way to go in oder to have appropriate treatment.James here.....
Kind of painting it with broad strokes, aren't we ?
Saying "They have now(sic) idea" is not correct and
ignores all the the research that has been going on
for 50 or more years. We have lots of ideas, theories,
and concepts. We do know some of what AD's do and the effect
on the body.About matching drugs to people, this is mentioned as a posibility
with greater genetic understanding. This will take a while. I don't know
about tests for mental illness. The cause, and therefor something
to test for, is a complex issue. It is not a tit for tat, X=Y thing.
Many systems and processes go into the cause of depression, ect.
There are quite a few new meds in the pipeline. More SNRI's (which is good for me)
and some meds that work thru new pathways.james
Posted by Sunnely on December 8, 2000, at 23:25:34
In reply to What are the researchers doing?, posted by mist on December 8, 2000, at 16:37:13
> Does anyone know how close researchers are to finding a way to test for what type of AD is best for you? Or to making some that work faster--say in two hours rather than eight weeks? Or to making a kinder, gentler AD that doesn't create more problems from side effects than it's supposed to solve? Is anyone working on this? It seems like the drug companies keep coming out with new ADs saying, this is better, "cleaner" but then you hear the same set of side effects from people who use them.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hi mist,
Here's my own 2 cents:
A look at the future regarding drug development (including antidepressants):
Although we are still in the infancy of human genomics, it has the potential to enable researchers to define truly novel mechanisms of drug action. While the entire human genome has now been sequenced in several individuals, the project is far from complete. The best estimate is that only 10% of the genes that code for human proteins have been identified. One of the next phases of the project will be to go through the sequenced human genome with the aim of identifying the remaining approximately 90,000 genes and then identifying their structural or regulatory protein products. Each of the regulatory proteins could represent a clinically useful target for drug action and a possible novel mechanism of action. At the same time, another goal will be to identify biologically important mutations in these genes that may either represent disease mechanisms or influence drug action either pharmacodynamically or pharmacokineticaly. In short, the field of "Pharmacogenomics" is the inevitable future.
A separate note.A look at the possible cause of depression and action of antidepressants or, "The birth of new nerve cells (neurogenesis) and depression":
It is now recognized that the brain continues to generate new neurons (nerve cells) well into adulthood and has made a marked impact on the field of neuroscience in general and specfically on neurobiological models of the pathogenesis (cause) of major depression. Stress, neuroendocrine activation, neurotransmitter systems, and other factors can downregulate (decrease) the process of neurogenesis and may contribute to certain morphological changes seen depression. Evidence is emerging that antidepressant treatments may mitigate these effects by stimulating neurogenesis in particular regions of the brain.
This is the end of the thread.
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