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Author Spotlight: Understanding Adolescent Social Adversity Effects on Neurodevelopment in Mice
Published on: March 15, 2024
New perspectives on the neurodevelopmental effects of SSRIs
Judith R Homberg1, Dirk Schubert, Patricia Gaspar
1Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Centre for Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Geert Grooteplein 21, 6525 EZ Nijmegen, The Netherlands. j.homberg@cns.umcn.n
Abstract:
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are widely prescribed for the treatment of depression and anxiety-related disorders. These drugs target the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) and increase serotonin signalling. Although chronic SSRI administration has few reported side effects, recent observations suggest that it could have long-term effects on neurodevelopment. First, 5-HTT is transiently expressed in many brain areas during development. Second, 5-HTT blockade during development causes wiring defects in these areas. These effects are seen most clearly in the sensory systems. Third, the behavioural effects of 5-HTT blockade during development are sometimes dramatically different from the effects of 5-HTT blockade during adulthood. Most of this evidence was collected from studies with 5-HTT knockout mice and rats. However, the phenotypes associated with low or high functioning 5-HTT alleles in humans can result from similar developmental alterations in 5-HT levels. Here, we review the existing evidence on the long-term effects of developmental SSRI exposure.
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