http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (PhysOrg.com) -- Using a unique and relatively simple cell-based fluorescent assay they developed, scientists with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California (UC), Berkeley have identified a means by which fluoxetine, the active ingredient in Prozac, suppresses the activity of the TREK1 potassium channel. TREK1 activity has been implicated in mood regulation and could be an important target for fluoxetine and other antidepressant drugs. http://phys.org/news216308648.html Medicine & Health Mon, 07 Feb 2011 13:44:26 EST news216308648 Shooting steady pulses of electricity through slender electrodes into a brain area that controls complex behaviors has proven to be effective against several therapeutically stubborn neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. Now, a new study has found that this technique, called deep brain stimulation (DBS), targets the same class of neuronal cells that are known to respond to physical exercise and drugs such as Prozac. http://phys.org/news211558459.html Medicine & Health Tue, 14 Dec 2010 14:40:01 EST news211558459 Phenytoin is a well known antiepileptic agent widely used throughout the world. Recent clinical studies in patients with bipolar disorder have suggested that, as for other anticonvulsant drugs commonly used in the treatment of bipolar patients including valproate and carbamazepine, phenytoin may have mood-stabilizing effects in addition to its well-known anticonvulsant properties. http://phys.org/news189083202.html Medicine & Health Mon, 29 Mar 2010 12:30:01 EST news189083202 One of many reasons that attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings helps people with alcohol use disorders stay sober appears to be alleviation of depression. A team of researchers has found that study participants who attended AA meetings more frequently had fewer symptoms of depression - along with less drinking - than did those with less AA participation. The report will appear in the journal Addiction and has been release online. http://phys.org/news183906335.html Medicine & Health Thu, 28 Jan 2010 13:05:58 EST news183906335 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Cincinnati have documented that the brain hormone serotonin is made in human breast cancer cells and functions abnormally, contributing to malignant growth. http://phys.org/news178308579.html Medicine & Health Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:20:02 EST news178308579 Removing the PKCI/HINT1 gene from mice has an anti-depressant-like and anxiolytic-like effect. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Neuroscience applied a battery of behavioral tests to the PKCI/HINT1 knockout animals, concluding that the deleted gene may have an important role in mood regulation. http://phys.org/news177276531.html Medicine & Health Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:30:03 EST news177276531