Role of neuropeptides in various mental disorders
Neuropeptides are produced in the central nervous system and are implicated in a variety of mental disorders and anxiety conditions. They are involved in the regulation of various processes at the cellular and organ levels.
At the cell level, a neuropeptide can be involved in the development of mental disorders, since it can interact with a classical neurotransmitter that triggers the disease process. At the organ level, the neuropeptide plays a role in neuronal function.
Neuropeptides such as substance P, corticotropin- releasing factor, neuropeptide Y, galanin , vasopressin can cause depression and anxiety. The alteration of monoaminergic transmission is the mechanism through which neuropeptides affect mental disorders. Therefore, receptors and neuropeptides are promising targets for drug action in the treatment of depression and anxiety.
In recent years, agonists and antagonists of neuropeptide receptors, which easily pass through the blood-brain barrier, have been intensively studied . Thus, the action of non-protein antagonists of the CRF receptor subtype as a new drug approach for the treatment of anxiety and depression is of interest . Because clinical studies have shown impaired functions of the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal axis and increased CRF levels in depression and anxiety.
Neuropeptides and their effect on them or on their receptors are a new approach to the treatment of depression and anxiety. Advances in science are deepening knowledge of the etiology of depression and anxiety, contributing to a paradigm shift in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness.