BACKGROUND Use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) during pregnancy is common while the effect on the infant's neurological outcome is unknown. Our objective was to determine the effects of prenatal SSRI-exposure on the infants' neurological functioning, adjusted for maternal mental health. METHODS A prospective observational study from May 2007 to April 2010. The study groups c...

Serotonin receptors of the 5-HT(2A) subtype are robustly expressed in the cerebral cortex where they have been implicated in the pathophysiology and therapeutics of mental disorders and the actions of hallucinogens. Much less is known, however, about the specific cell types expressing 5-HT(2A) receptors in cortex. In the current study we use immunohistochemical and electrophysiological approach...

KEY POINTS In the dorsal raphe nucleus, it is known that serotonin release activates metabotropic 5-HT1A autoreceptors located on serotonin neurons that leads to an inhibition of firing through the activation of G-protein-coupled inwardly rectifying potassium channels. We found that in mouse brain slices evoked serotonin release produced a 5-HT1A receptor-mediated inhibitory postsynaptic curren...

L-5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is the immediate precursor of serotonin. It is readily synthesized into serotonin without biochemical feedback. This nutrient has a large and strong following who advocate exaggerated and inaccurate claims relating to its effectiveness in the treatment of depression and a number of other serotonin-related diseases. These assertions are not supported by the science....

Serotonin receptors play central roles in neuromodulation and are critical drug targets for psychiatric disorders. Optical control of serotonin receptor subtypes has the potential to greatly enhance our understanding spatiotemporal dynamics function. While other neuromodulatory have been successfully rendered photoswitchable, reversible photocontrol not achieved, representing a major gap GPCR p...

Cisapride is a synthetic drug which binds, in vitro, to type 2 serotonin receptors. We examined the influence of serotonin and cisapride on ion transport across intestinal mucosa in vitro and studied the effect of cisapride on the response to serotonin. Segments of ileum of male Sprague-Dawley rats were stripped of muscle layers and mounted in flux chambers. The addition of serotonin (10(-8) to...

Growing evidence shows that the neurotransmitter serotonin (5-HT) modulates the fine-tuning of neuron development and the establishment of wiring patterns in the brain. However, whether serotonin is involved in the maintenance of neuronal circuitry in the adult brain remains elusive. Here, we use a Tph2fl°x conditional knockout (cKO) mouse line to assess the impact of serotonin depletion during...

A series of photolabile o-nitrobenzyl derivatives of serotonin (caged serotonin) were synthesized: the amine-linked serotonin derivatives N-(2-nitrobenzyl) serotonin (Bz-5HT) and N-(alpha-carboxy-2-nitrobenzyl) serotonin (N-CNB-5HT), and O-alpha-carboxy-2-nitrobenzyl) serotonin (O-CNB-5HT), which has the caging group attached to the phenolic OH group. All the derivatives released free serotonin...

  Although cisplatin is one of the most effective cancer drugs which is widely used in the treatment of various neoplasms, its side effects, especially vomiting may limit its use. It has been demonstrated that cytotoxic drugs lead to a sudden release of serotonin (5-HT). The following study was performed to determine the possible interactions of cisplatin with 5-HT receptors. In this study, the...