Posted by ShawnThomas on January 19, 2008, at 17:22:03
In reply to Serotonin and thermoregulation, posted by Jamal Spelling on January 17, 2008, at 7:20:01
The best place to learn about this or any other topic related to neurotransmitters is PubMed. I strongly encourage every capable person on this board to consult PubMed before answering a question. Personal anecdotes are the bread and butter of the original Psycho-Babble board, and they will play an important role here as well. However, providing links to citations for peer-reviewed medical literature from PubMed or other sources is a way to share scientific information and enable others to explore advanced topics in more detail. Even if you cannot always access full text articles, abstracts (article summaries) found in PubMed can often help to provide answers to questions about neurotransmitters, drugs, and a whole lot more.
I often begin a PubMed search by going to the MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) Database to find controlled vocabulary terms that enable me to create precise search statements. You can find the MeSH database at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/entrez?db=mesh
Try these searches at http://www.pubmed.gov ...
"serotonin"[MeSH Terms] AND "body temperature regulation"[MeSH Terms]"Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT1A"[Mesh] AND "Hypothermia"[Mesh]
"Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT2A"[Mesh] AND hyperthermia
I use hyperthermia in the last search statement instead of the MeSH term, "fever," because it leads to more results. Relying on MeSH terms can lead to more precise search results, but this approach can sometimes lead to a lower recall (number of relevant results). Also, all PubMed users can benefit by learning about its automatic term mapping feature at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=helppubmed.section.pubmedhelp.Appendices#pubmedhelp.How_PubMed_works_aut
Here are two articles of interest:
http://qjmed.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/96/9/635
An overdose of a drug that increases extracellular serotonin can result in potentially fatal hyperthermia. Mixing such drugs can amplify the risk. This is due in part to an increase in the activation of 5-HT2A serotonin receptors. Activation of presynaptic 5-HT1A autoreceptors in the hypothalamus can lead to hypothermic effects, and this may be a result of decreased serotonin release. Activation of serotonin 5-HT2C receptors may also contribute to the ability of drugs that increase extracellular serotonin to raise body temperature (see http://pubmed.gov/15563762).
I believe that at least 99% of depressive episodes are not *caused* by "serotonergic dysfunction." I have never found any evidence that made me question this belief. I do acknowledge that variations in serotonin receptor activity can influence what symptoms are present in a depressive episode and how severe they are. The key symptoms of concern involve suicidal thoughts or attempts.
poster:ShawnThomas
thread:807181
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/neuro/20080114/msgs/807752.html