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What happens in the brain to cause depression?

Drugs that target the neurotransmitter serotonin have long been prescribed to treat depression. Now the spotlight is turning to other aspects of brain chemistry. In this episode, the neuropharmacologist John Krystal shares findings that are overturning our understanding of depression.

And so it was really clear right from the beginning when these medications were being prescribed that depression was more complicated than just low serotonin or norepinephrine levels, and that these drugs worked by producing adaptations in the brain over time that accounted for their therapeutic effects. And then on top of that the fragmentation of circles of friends, social connections, that we’ve had on an extended basis during Covid, I think has made us more vulnerable to all of the things we’re having to deal with in the world today. From Quanta Magazine, John Rennie and Thomas Lin provided editorial guidance, with support from Matt Carlstrom, Samuel Velasco, Nona Griffin, Arleen Santana and Madison Goldberg.

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