Antipsychotics--history of development and field of indication, new wine--old glassess

More than half a century ago, Delay and colleagues have discovered, quite accidentally, that antihistamine (chlorpromazine) relieves psychotic symptoms. This discovery prompted further investigation through a series of performed experiments aimed to elucidate the antipsychotic mechanism of action. Initial results have shown that antipsychotic drugs in experimental animals lead to "neuroleptic effect" (indifference). However, not until the end of 1960s, it becomes clear that all previously known antipsychotics block dopamine receptors, particularly postsynaptic D2 receptors. The next three decades marked the development and application of these so-called classic neuroleptics in the treatment of psychotic patients. During the nineteen nineties, as a result of ongoing efforts to achieve greater efficiency and reduce the scope of side effects, novel antipsychotics were synthesized (second generation antipsychotics--SGA). As a result the notion of serotonin-dopamine antagonist (SDA) was formulated. According to one of the hypothesis, "new", so called atypical antipsychotic drugs strongly block the serotonin (5-HT2), and weakly block the dopamine (D2) receptors. Yet, there is still a debate as to the molecular basis of atypicality, whether it is in dopaminergic and serotonergic antagonism of neurotransmission or it lays exclusively in the modulation of dopaminergic system and dissociation rate at the level of D2 receptors in specific brain regions. Although the synthesis and use of antipsychotics in clinical practice have radically changed not only the basic approach to the patient, but also the quality of life of millions of people, the question remains whether this is just "old wine in new glasses".