Elsevier

Life Sciences

Volume 63, Issue 15, 4 September 1998, Pages 1289-1303
Life Sciences

Minireview
GABA function in mood disorders: An update and critical review

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0024-3205(98)00241-0Get rights and content

Abstract

Over the past twenty years, several lines of evidence from preclinical and clinical studies has accumulated suggesting that a GABA deficit may be involved in mood disorders, particularly in depression, and that increasing GABAergic neurotransmission may exert an antidepressant effect and perhaps a mood stabilizing effect. Given that GABA has an inhibitory effect on biogenic amine neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine and serotonin and this inhibition may be involved in local circuits and interneurons, it has been suggested that the hypothesis of a GABA deficit in mood disorders does not compete with but complements the well-established hypotheses of alterations in noradrenergic and serotonergic function in mood disorders. In this paper, we systematically reviewed the results from preclinical and clinical studies of GABA function in the pathophysiology of mood disorders and in the mechanism of action of mood stabilizers, antidepressants and electroconvulsive therapy. We also discussed the unifying theory of the neurochemistry of mood disorders, which integrates the GABA hypothesis into the biogenic amine hypotheses, and indicated future directions for research.

References (137)

  • R.G. Paredes et al.

    Neurosci. Biobehav. Rev.

    (1992)
  • R.R. Matsumoto

    Brain Res. Rev.

    (1989)
  • K.G. Lloyd et al.

    Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatr.

    (1989)
  • F. Petty

    J. Affect. Disord.

    (1995)
  • F. Petty et al.

    Pharmacol. Biochem. Behav.

    (1981)
  • A.D. Sherman et al.

    Behav. Neural. Biol.

    (1982)
  • A.D. Sherman et al.

    BEHAV. Neural. Biol.

    (1980)
  • M. Poncelet et al.

    Pharmacol. Biochem. Behav.

    (1987)
  • S. Jancsar et al.

    Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatr.

    (1984)
  • T. Dennis et al.

    Pharmacol. Biochem. Behav.

    (1993)
  • B.E. Leonard et al.

    Int. Rev. Neurobiol.

    (1981)
  • R. Zimmer et al.

    Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatr.

    (1981)
  • R.M. Post et al.

    Brain Res. Bull.

    (1980)
  • W.H. Berrettini et al.

    Biol. Psychiatry

    (1986)
  • A. Honig et al.

    J. Psychiatr. Res.

    (1988)
  • F. Petty et al.

    J. Affect. Disord.

    (1981)
  • F. Petty et al.

    J. Affect. Disord.

    (1984)
  • F. Petty et al.

    Biol. Psychiatry

    (1992)
  • F. Petty et al.

    Biol. Psychiatry

    (1995)
  • H. Kaiya et al.

    Psychiatr. Res.

    (1982)
  • W.H. Berrettini et al.

    Psychiatr. Res.

    (1982)
  • E.K. Perry et al.

    J. Neurol. Sci.

    (1977)
  • S.C. Cheetham et al.

    Brain Res.

    (1988)
  • E.R. Korpi et al.

    Biol. Psychiatry

    (1988)
  • G.M. Stocks et al.

    J. Affect. Disord.

    (1990)
  • J.A. Cross et al.

    Psychiatr. Res.

    (1988)
  • C. Marchesi et al.

    Psychoneuroendocrinology

    (1991)
  • P. Monteleone et al.

    J. Affect. Disord.

    (1990)
  • L.L. Davis et al.

    Psychoneuroendocrinology

    (1997)
  • N. Motohashi et al.

    Eur. J. Pharmacol.

    (1989)
  • F. Petty et al.

    Biol. Psychiatry

    (1996)
  • R. Zimmer et al.

    Brain Res. Bull.

    (1980)
  • I-S. Shiah et al.

    Neuropsychopharmacology

    (1997)
  • A. Pilc et al.

    Life Sci.

    (1984)
  • B.E. Suranyi-Cadotte et al.

    Eur. J. Pharmacol.

    (1984)
  • J.A. Cross et al.

    Eur. J. Pharmacol.

    (1987)
  • D.J. McManus et al.

    Biochem. Pharmacol.

    (1991)
  • Y. Nakagawa et al.

    Brain Res.

    (1996)
  • W. Haefely
  • D.R. Hill et al.

    Nature

    (1981)
  • H.M. Emrich et al.

    Arch. Psychiatr. Nervenkr.

    (1980)
  • W.H. Berrettini et al.
  • G. Bartholini et al.

    Psychopharmacol. Bull.

    (1985)
  • K.G. Lloyd
  • F. Petty et al.
  • M.E.P. Seligman et al.

    J. Exp. Psychol.

    (1967)
  • K.G. Llyod et al.

    Pharmacol. Biochem. Behav.

    (1983)
  • P. Martin et al.

    Neuropsychobiology

    (1989)
  • K.G. Lloyd et al.

    Br. J. Pharmacol.

    (1985)
  • B.I. Gold et al.

    Am. J. Psychiatry

    (1980)
  • Cited by (0)

    View full text