• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.198-210
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• 1997

To examine the double-faced thymoleptic(antidepressant and antimanic) effects of risperidone in mood disorders, this article reviews the psychotropic-induced mania, thymoleptic effects of antipsychotics, therapeutic effects of risperidone and risperidone(RIS)-induced mania(RIM) in mood disorders, risk factors of RIM, possible neurochemical mechanism of these thymoleptic effects, pathophysiological and clinical significance of thymoleptic effects, and suggestive clinical guideline of RIS in mood disorders. RIS appeared effective for bipolar disorder at a lower dose than that recommended for schizophrenia, especially in the cases of maintenance of mood stabilizers, and gradual titration from low doses. Manic induction/exacerbation can occur by chance during RIS treatment in mood disorders, schizoaffective disorders, and schizophrenias. The possible risk factors for RIM are refractory mood disorder, especially in bipolar I disorder with poor initial response ; refractory schizoaffective disorders, especially in bipolar type with poor initial response ; refractory chronic schizophrenias, especially with initial responses ; psychotic features ; higher initial doses ; rapid titration ; combined therapy with antidepressants in refractory depression ; and RIS monotherapy in mania/hypomania. RIS is a drug that preferentially block 5-HT2 receptors. The effects of low dose are due mainly to the blockade of 5-HT2 receptors. There are more gradual increase in D2 blockade with increasing dose and this D2 blocking properties become apparent at higher doses. This may be related to a modulation of dopaminergic transmission by 5-HT2 antagonism at lower doses with the direct action of RIS on DA receptors coming into play at higher dose. The serotonergic antagonistic effect may be important for its effects on depressive symptoms. This, together with adequate blo-ckade of D2 receptors, may not necessarily lead to destabilization of mood disorder, but rather to more therapeutic effects. Therefore, this dose-receptor affinity relationship with both antidepressant and antimanic effects according to treatment duration can explain a continuum of antidepressant effect, antimanic effect, behavioral stimulation, and manic/hypomanic induction/exacerbation. It was the recognition of a useful psychiatric side effects by a thoughtful observer with fertile minds that led to their ultimate utilization as psychotropic drugs, i.e., phenothiazine, MAOI, TCA, and lithium. And, in vivo pharmacological challenge by novel psychotropics, as a neurochemical probe, with more specific actions is a useful tool to select pharmacologically homogeneous subgroup of the same phenotypical(clinical) condition, to further study the unknown underlying pathogenesis of various mental illnesses. Finally, RIS may be a useful alternative or adjunctive drug for patients with mood disorders without psychotic features or refractory to treatment with standard antipsychotic drugs. The more conservative doses(tirated slowly from 1-3 mg/d) of RIS, and maintenance of mood stabilizer in the cases with risk factors of RIM are recommended in mood disorder.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.1701-1705
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• 2005

We have established an efficient method for the synthesis of the arylpiperazine derivatives in which the acylation of 2-aminopyridine, the coupling reaction of the acyl compound with piperazines, and reduction of the arylpiperazines were performed under a microwave irradiation (300 W) to afford the corresponding target compounds in quantitative yields. In all cases, the reaction times were remarkably reduced when compared with those of the conventional method.

• Proceedings of the Ginseng society Conference
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• 2003.12a
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• pp.41-41
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• 2003

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.86-90
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• 2018

Methallylescaline, 2-(3,5-dimethoxy-4-[(2-methylprop-2-en-1-yl)oxy]phenyl)ethanamine, is a new psychoactive substance with potent agonist of 5-HT receptor, but there is little information on its pharmacological effect, metabolism, and toxicity. It is necessary to characterize the metabolic profiling of methallylescaline in human hepatocytes using liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry. Methallylescaline was metabolized to three hydroxy-methallylescaline (M1-M3) and dihydroxy-methallylescaline (M4) via hydroxylation in human hepatocytes. CYP2D6, CYP2J2, CYP1A2, and CYP3A4 enzymes were responsible for the metabolism of methallylescaline. The metabolites as well as methallylescaline would be used for monitoring the abuse of methallylescaline.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.189-193
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• 1993

Exposure of dissociated cultures from fetal rat brainstem to glutamate for upto 6 h decreased cellular contents of 5-hydroxytryptamine and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. In addition, glutamate induced lactate dehydrogenase leakage. Tetrodotoxin did not block the effects induced by glutamate. MK-801 $(1{\mu}M)$, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) channel blocker, but not 6-cyano-2,3-dihydroxy-7-nitro-quinoxazoline $(CNQX;\;3{\mu}M)$, a non-NMDA receptor antagonist, blocked glutamate-induced effects, indicating that these glutamate-induced responses are mediated through NMDA receptors.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.113-123
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• 2006

Objectives: Pharmacopuncture which is a combination of acupuncture and herbal medicine helps to prevent and treat the diseases and symptoms including various pains. However, little was known about the therapeutic effects and its mechanisms on acute pain, although pharmacopuncture has been used frequently in acupuncture clinics. Acupuncture is known for producing analgesia for persistent ankle sprain pain in human. Furthermore, it also produces analgesia in a rat model of ankle sprain pain. Methods: To illuminate the underlying mechanisms of capsaicin pharmacopuncture-induced analgesia, weight bearing force (WBF) was observed on the acute ankle sprained rat model. Ankle sprain was induced in the rat by manually hyper-extending ligaments of the right ankle. Capsaicin pharmacopuncture was applied to SI6 (Yanglo) on the left forelimb (contralateral to the sprained ankle). Results: In behavioral test, capsaicin pharmacopuncture produced marked analgesic effects on acute ankle sprained animals as measured by WBF of the affected limb similar to manual acupuncture. Capsaicin pharmacopuncture was also suppressed by serotonin (5-HT) receptor antagonist methysergide (2 mg/kg, Lp.), but not by opioids receptor antagonist naltrexone (10 mg/kg, Lp.) and alpha adrenoceptor antagonist phentolamine (5 mg/kg, Lp.). Conclusion: The data suggest that capsaicin pharmacopuncture-induced analgesia is accomplished by activating the descending serotonergic inhibitory systems.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.3-12
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• 2005

Most suicides(about 90%) occur in the context of psychiatric disorders. Prediction of suicide risk in patients with mental illness is very important in preventing suicide attempts. However, current approaches to predict suicidality are based on clinical history and have low specificity and biological markers are not yet included. Many studies have explored the association between different biological parameters and suicidality. Studies of cerebro-spinal fluid(CSF) demonstrated that 5-HIAA and HVA levels were lower in patients with a history of suicide. Platelet serotonin transporter and the 5-HT2 serotonin receptor have also been studied in relation to violence and suicide. Depressive patients with greater suicidal tendency had significantly lower cholesterol concentrations but some researchers failed to find the correlation. DST non-supression is reported to predict suicidality in major depression. Several studies demonstrated a relationship between intron 7 polymorphism of tryptophan hydroxylase and suicidal behavior. Since suicide is not occurred in a single disease, the systematic and comprehensive study in large samples with various diagnoses is necessary to find the biological and genetic predictors of suicidal behavior.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.12
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• pp.1629-1635
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• 2012

Previously, we demonstrated that the erythropoietin receptor (EpoR) is present on fibroblasts, where it regulates focal contact. Here, we assessed whether this action of EpoR is involved in the reduced cell adhesion observed in colonocytes exposed to Clostridium difficile toxin A. EpoR was present and functionally active in cells of the human colonic epithelial cell line HT29 and epithelial cells of human colon tissues. Toxin A significantly decreased activating phosphorylations of EpoR and its downstream signaling molecules JAK-2 (Janus kinase 2) and STAT5 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 5). In vitro kinase assays confirmed that toxin A inhibited JAK 2 kinase activity. Pharmacological inhibition of JAK2 (with AG490) abrogated activating phosphorylations of EpoR and also decreased focal contacts in association with inactivation of paxillin, an essential focal adhesion molecule. In addition, AG490 treatment significantly decreased expression of occludin (a tight junction molecule) and tight junction levels. Taken together, these data suggest that inhibition of JAK2 by toxin A in colonocytes causes inactivation of EpoR, thereby enhancing the inhibition of focal contact formation and loss of tight junctions known to be associated with the enzymatic activity of toxin A.

• CELLMED
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.38.1-38.6
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• 2012

The present study aimed to determine the possible mechanisms of the peripheral antinociception of the aqueous extracts of Dicranopteris linearis (AEDL), Melastoma malabathricum (AEMM) and Bauhinia purpurea (AEBP) leaves in mice. Briefly, the antinociceptive profile of each extract (300, 500, and 1000 mg/kg; subcutaneous (s.c.)), was established using the abdominal constriction test. A single dose (500 mg/kg) of each extract (s.c.) was pre-challenged for 10 min with various pain receptors' antagonists or pain mediators' blockers and 30 min later subjected to the antinociceptive assay to determine the possible mechanism(s) involved. Based on the results obtained, all extracts exerted significant (p < 0.05) antinociceptive activity with dose-dependent activity observed only with the AEMM. Furthermore, the antinociception of AEDL was attenuated by naloxone, atropine, yohimbine and theophylline; AEMM was reversed by yohimbine, theophylline, thioperamide, pindolol, reserpine, and 4-chloro-DL-phenylalanine methyl ester hydrochloride; and of AEBP was inhibited by naloxone, haloperidol, yohimbine and reserpine. In conclusion, the antinociceptive activity of those extracts possibly involved the activation of several pain receptors (i.e. opioids, muscarinic, ${\alpha}_2$-adrenergic and adenosine receptors, adenosine, H3-histaminergic and $5HT_{1A}$, dopaminergic receptors).

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.291-297
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• 2016

Cytisine (CYT), a partial agonist of ${\alpha}4{\beta}2-nicotinic$ receptors, has been used for antidepressant efficacy in several tests. Nicotinic receptors have been shown to be closely associated with depression. However, little is known about the effects of CYT on the depression. In the present study, a mouse model of depression, the unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS), was used to evaluate the activities of CYT. UCMS caused significant depression-like behaviors, as shown by the decrease of total distances in open field test, and the prolonged duration of immobility in tail suspension test and forced swimming test. Treatment with CYT for two weeks notably relieved the depression-like behaviors in the UCMS mice. Next, proteins related to depressive disorder in the brain region of hippocampus and amygdala were analyzed to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of CYT. CYT significantly reversed the decreases of 5-HT1A, BDNF, and mTOR levels in the hippocampus and amygdala. These results imply that CYT may act as a potential anti-depressant in the animals under chronic stress.