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Sci Total Environ 2021 Apr 30;786:147434. Epub 2021 Apr 30.

College of Environment, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, PR China.

Sertraline hydrochloride (Ser-HCl) is an effective and commonly used antidepressant drug, which is also frequently detected in aquatic environments. Our previous research showed that Ser-HCl changes the community composition of aquatic microbiome, but the understanding of the expression of functional pathways in microbial communities is still incomplete; to address this knowledge gap, we used meta-transcriptomics analysis to evaluate the toxicity of Ser-HCl to natural aquatic microbial communities cultured in laboratory microcosms. Meta-transcriptomic results show that a 15-day exposure to 50 μg/L Ser-HCl significantly changed the functional expression activity of aquatic microbial communities. Read More

Heliyon 2021 Apr 16;7(4):e06620. Epub 2021 Apr 16.

Postgraduate Programs in Pharmaceutical Sciences and Laboratory of Research in Experimental Neurochemistry (LAPNEX), Federal University of Piauí, 64049-550, Teresina, Brazil.

Rose oxide (RO) is a monoterpene found in rose oil fragrances. This monoterpene has been reported to possess anti-inflammatory activity, however, little is known regarding its pharmacological activity. The present study was carried out to evaluate its antidepressant action and possible mechanisms of action. Read More

Polymers (Basel) 2021 Apr 29;13(9). Epub 2021 Apr 29.

Wits Advanced Drug Delivery Platform Research Unit, Department of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, School of Therapeutic Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, 7 York Road, Parktown, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa.

Nanotechnology has aided in the advancement of drug delivery for the treatment of several neurological disorders including depression. Depression is a relatively common mental disorder which is characterized by a severe imbalance of neurotransmitters. Several current therapeutic regimens against depression display drawbacks which include low bioavailability, delayed therapeutic outcome, undesirable side effects and drug toxicity due to high doses. Read More

Front Pharmacol 2021 12;12:586788. Epub 2021 Apr 12.

School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.

It is revealed that Xiaoyaosan could reduce glutamate level in the hippocampus of depressed rats, whose metabolism leads to the pathophysiology of depression. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study aims to explore the effect of Xiaoyaosan on glutamate metabolism, and how to regulate the excitatory injury caused by glutamate. Read More

Arch Pharm Res 2021 Apr 24. Epub 2021 Apr 24.

Department of Life Sciences, School of Pharmacy, International Medical University (IMU), Bukit Jalil, 57000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Artemisia and its allied species have been employed for conventional medicine in the Northern temperate regions of North America, Europe, and Asia for the treatments of digestive problems, morning sickness, irregular menstrual cycle, typhoid, epilepsy, renal problems, bronchitis malaria, etc. The multidisciplinary use of artemisia species has various other health benefits that are related to its traditional and modern pharmaceutical perspectives. The main objective of this review is to evaluate the traditional, modern, biological as well as pharmacological use of the essential oil and herbal extracts of Artemisia nilagirica, Artemisia parviflora, and other allied species of Artemisia. Read More

Clin Toxicol (Phila) 2021 Apr 21:1-5. Epub 2021 Apr 21.

Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA.

Background: Bupropion is an aminoketone antidepressant. A major concern in bupropion toxicity is seizure activity, which can occur up to 24 h from ingestion. It is difficult to predict which patients will have seizures. Read More

Nanomaterials (Basel) 2021 Mar 3;11(3). Epub 2021 Mar 3.

Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Environmental Protection, University of Novi Sad Faculty of Sciences, Trg Dositeja Obradovića 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia.

This work is focused on the kinetics, mineralization, and toxicological assessments of the antidepressant drug amitriptyline hydrochloride (AMI) in UV or solar illuminated aqueous suspensions of ZnO, TiO Degussa P25, and TiO Hombikat. ZnO was proven to be the most effective photocatalyst, and it was used for all further experiments under solar irradiation. The highest reaction rate was observed at 1. Read More

Aquat Toxicol 2021 May 12;234:105808. Epub 2021 Mar 12.

NORMANDIE UNIV, UNILEHAVRE, FR CNRS 3730 SCALE, UMR-I02, Environmental Stress and Biomonitoring of Aquatic Environments (SEBIO), 76600 LE HAVRE, France. Electronic address:

Juvenile crabs of Carcinus maenas thrive in coastal waters reputed to be the receptacle of continental pollution. Amongst the many pollutants encountered, antidepressants, such as fluoxetine (FLX) and venlafaxine (VEN), often detected at the ng•L range, are particularly worrying because of their action on the levels of monoamines, such as serotonin, noradrenaline and dopamine. In crustaceans, those monoamines are involved in colour change through their action on neuropeptide hormones. Read More

Science 2021 03;371(6536)

Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.

Vacuolar myelinopathy is a fatal neurological disease that was initially discovered during a mysterious mass mortality of bald eagles in Arkansas in the United States. The cause of this wildlife disease has eluded scientists for decades while its occurrence has continued to spread throughout freshwater reservoirs in the southeastern United States. Recent studies have demonstrated that vacuolar myelinopathy is induced by consumption of the epiphytic cyanobacterial species growing on aquatic vegetation, primarily the invasive Here, we describe the identification, biosynthetic gene cluster, and biological activity of aetokthonotoxin, a pentabrominated biindole alkaloid that is produced by the cyanobacterium We identify this cyanobacterial neurotoxin as the causal agent of vacuolar myelinopathy and discuss environmental factors-especially bromide availability-that promote toxin production. Read More

Case Rep Psychiatry 2021 1;2021:8868023. Epub 2021 Mar 1.

Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstrasse 2-10, 80804 Munich, Germany.

Background: The pharmacological treatment options of Parkinson's disease (PD) have considerably evolved during the last decades. However, therapeutic regimes are complicated due to individual differences in disease progression as well as the occurrence of complex nonmotor impairments such as mood and anxiety disorders. Antidepressants in particular are commonly prescribed for the treatment of depressive symptoms and anxiety in PD. Read More

Int J Nanomedicine 2021 9;16:2013-2044. Epub 2021 Mar 9.

Department of Industrial Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.

Background: Sulpiride (SUL), is a selective antidopaminergic drug that had extensive biological activities. However, its sparingly aqueous solubility and limited gastrointestinal permeability lead to scanty oral bioavailability which hinders its clinical efficacy.

Objective: SUL-loaded lipospheres (SUL-LPS) were designed to serve as an oral biocompatible nanovector for improving SUL permeability as well as conquering its low oral absorption and then in turn enhancing its antidepressant action. Read More

Eur Geriatr Med 2021 Mar 15. Epub 2021 Mar 15.

Department of Internal Medicine, Geriatrics, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Purpose: The aim of this clinical review was to summarize the existing knowledge on fall risk associated with antidepressant use in older adults, describe underlying mechanisms, and assist clinicians in decision-making with regard to (de-) prescribing antidepressants in older persons.

Methodology: We comprehensively examined the literature based on a literature search in Pubmed and Google Scholar, and identified additional relevant articles from reference lists, with an emphasis on the most commonly prescribed drugs in depression in geriatric patients. We discuss use of antidepressants, potential fall-related side effects, and deprescribing of antidepressants in older persons. Read More

Bull Exp Biol Med 2021 Feb 13;170(4):436-439. Epub 2021 Mar 13.

Research Institute of Clinical and Experimental Lymphology - Affiliated Branch of the Federal Research Centre Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Siberian Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia.

The use of lithium drugs in clinical practice requires constant monitoring of lithium plasma concentration, because toxicity is sometimes observed at therapeutic concentrations of lithium. This is often associated with fluctuations of plasma concentration of lithium ions after intake of individual doses. Therefore, the use of a porous carrier providing a stable blood level of the drug is extremely promising and important for clinical practice. Read More

Environ Pollut 2021 Jun 24;278:116777. Epub 2021 Feb 24.

Department of Biology, Murray State University, Murray, KY, United States.

A recent surge in the use and abuse of diverse prescribed psychotic and illicit drugs necessitates the surveillance of drug residues in source water and the associated ecological impacts of chronic exposure to the aquatic organism. Thirty-six psychotic and illicit drug residues were determined in discharged wastewater from two centralized municipal wastewater treatment facilities and two wastewater receiving creeks for seven consecutive days in Kentucky. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae were exposed to the environmental relevant mixtures of all drug residues, all illicit drugs, and all prescribed psychotic drugs. Read More

Sci Total Environ 2021 Jul 18;776:145945. Epub 2021 Feb 18.

University of Messina, Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences, Messina, Italy. Electronic address:

Nowadays the presence of pharmaceuticals in the environment is a real problem. Ending up in aquatic environments they negatively affect non-target organisms. Considering the limited studies on the negative effects of pharmaceuticals in amphibians, a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying the sub-lethal effects of drug mixtures in wildlife is an urgent call. Read More

Curr Drug Targets 2021 Feb 21. Epub 2021 Feb 21.

Shiekh Zayed Medical College, Rahim Yar Khan. Pakistan.

Coumarins, a heterocyclic benzo-α-pyrones and naturally occurring ring structure that possess significant pharmacological properties, has attracted the attention of researchers and medicinal chemists to reveal the suitability of both natural and synthetic coumarins as drugs. Many compounds have been synthesized utilizing the basic coumarin structure. The diverse synthetic methods resulted in synthesis of important coumarin derivatives that offers wide range of biological properties as antimicrobial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic and antidepressant that makes them potential drug candidate. Read More

Environ Pollut 2021 May 13;276:116738. Epub 2021 Feb 13.

Animal Ecology, Global Change and Sustainable Development, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Centre for Environmental Management, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. Electronic address:

Low doses of neuroactive chemicals end up in the environment and disrupt behaviour of non-target organisms. Although a whole range of studies have documented pollutant-induced changes in behaviour, natural daily variability in behaviour is rarely taken into account. This is surprising because biological rhythms may affect the outcome of experiments, are adaptive and are expected to be sensitive to neurochemical exposure. Read More

Toxicol Lett 2021 May 17;342:73-84. Epub 2021 Feb 17.

Department of Predictive Toxicology, Korea Institute of Toxicology, 141 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34114, Republic of Korea; Department of Human and Environmental Toxicology, University of Science & Technology, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea. Electronic address:

Trovafloxacin (TVX) is associated with idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (iDILI) and inflammation-mediated hepatotoxicity. However, the inflammatory stress-regulated mechanisms in iDILI remain unclear. Herein, we elucidated the novel role of tumor-necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), an inflammatory stress factor, in TVX-induced in vitro hepatotoxicity and synergistic toxicity. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2021 28;12:622204. Epub 2021 Jan 28.

Research Center for Pharmacology and Toxicology, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development (IMPLAD), Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.

Depression is a common yet severe neuropsychiatric condition that causes imposes considerable personal, economic, and social burdens worldwide. Medicinal plant species (e.g. Read More

Exp Neurol 2021 May 8;339:113638. Epub 2021 Feb 8.

Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse & Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, United Kingdom; Swansea University Medical School, Institute of Life Sciences 2, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom.

The use of several new psychoactive substances (NPS) has become very popular and is posing global health risks. Chemically and pharmacologically diverse molecules are constantly emerging and are presenting with a wide range of clinical implications. Serotonin toxicity, and specifically Serotonin Syndrome (SS), might develop as a result of an over-activation of the serotoninergic system caused by several mechanisms resulting in a classic triad of altered mental status, neuromuscular effects, and autonomic hyperactivity. Read More

Epilepsy Behav 2021 03 6;116:107797. Epub 2021 Feb 6.

Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ondokuz Mayis Samsun, Turkey.

Aim: Depression is the major psychiatric disorder in patients with epilepsy. Vortioxetine is a novel antidepressant drug for the treatment of major depressive disorders. In the present study, effects of vortioxetine were evaluated in different experimental epilepsy models of rats. Read More

Molecules 2021 Feb 4;26(4). Epub 2021 Feb 4.

Nutrition and Bromatology Group, Department of Analytical and Food Chemistry, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, University of Vigo-Ourense Campus, E32004 Ourense, Spain.

The current study attempted, for the first time, to qualitatively and quantitatively determine the phytochemical components of methanol extract and their biological activities. The present study represents an effort to correlate our previously reported biological activities with a computational study, including molecular docking, and ADME/T (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion/toxicity) analyses, to identify the phytochemicals that are potentially responsible for the antioxidant, antidepressant, anxiolytic, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory activities of this plant. In the gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy analysis, a total of 24 compounds were identified, seven of which were documented as being bioactive based on their binding affinities. Read More

Therapie 2021 Jan 23. Epub 2021 Jan 23.

Service de pharmacologie toxicologie et pharmacovigilance, CHU de Limoges, 87000 Limoges, France.

Venlafaxine is the third most frequently prescribed antidepressant in France the last decade, with about 400,000 daily doses. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of this medication, by measuring the active moiety venlafaxine (V) and O-desmethylvenlafaxine (ODV), is recommended (level of recommendation 2). However, this antidepressant seems to be the one for which clinicians most often use TDM, much more frequently than escitalopram, which is more prescribed and for which TDM is also recommended. Read More

Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 2021 Apr 4;212:111999. Epub 2021 Feb 4.

University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Zátiší 728/II, 389 25 Vodňany, Czech Republic.

Tramadol is a widely used analgesic with additional antidepressant and anxiolytic effects. This compound has been reported in continental waters reaching concentrations of µg/L as a consequence of its inefficient removal in sewage treatment plants and increasing use over time. In this study, European chubs (Squalius cephalus) were exposed to 1 µg/L of tramadol in water for 42 days with a subsequent 14 days of depuration. Read More

Plants (Basel) 2021 Feb 3;10(2). Epub 2021 Feb 3.

Nutrition and Bromatology Group, Department of Analytical and Food Chemistry, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, University of Vigo-Ourense Campus, E32004 Ourense, Spain.

Dhaiphul () is a frequently demanded plant in South-East Asian regions for its diverse medicinal values. This study was proposed to examine antioxidant, antidiabetic, and antidepressant potentials of methanol extract of leaves (MEWF) and its derived n-hexane (NHFMEWF) and ethyl acetate (EAFMEWF) fractions through in vitro, in vivo, and computational models. Among test samples, MEWF and EAFMEWF contained the highest phenolic content and showed maximal antioxidant activity in DPPH radical scavenging and ferric reducing power assays. Read More

Curr Pharm Des 2021 Feb 3. Epub 2021 Feb 3.

Student Research Committee, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari. Iran.

The Mandragora genus (Solanaceae) is well known for its association with myths and has been used in herbal medicine since ancient times. This extensive literature review synthesizes the information currently available on the ethnobotany, Persian medicine (PM), traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and toxicity profile of Mandragora spp. The electronic search engines Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, Google Scholar, and ScienceDirect were searched using keywords such as Mandragora, mandrake, phytochemistry, ethnopharmacology, Persian medicine, ethnobotany, and toxicity. Read More

Environ Pollut 2021 Apr 20;274:116535. Epub 2021 Jan 20.

Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada. Electronic address:

Ubiquitous use of antidepressants has resulted in increased concentrations of these pharmaceuticals in waterways receiving municipal wastewater effluent. Amongst these, venlafaxine, a selective serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, is commonly found at concentrations surpassing 1 ppb in surface waters. We recently showed that the deposition of venlafaxine in zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos impacts neural development in the hypothalamus, suggesting the possibility of neuroendocrine disruptions due to this antidepressant. Read More

Food Chem 2021 Jun 19;348:129152. Epub 2021 Jan 19.

Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Cintia 4, I-80126 Naples, Italy. Electronic address:

A red pigment was prepared by reaction of chlorogenic acid (CGA) with tryptophan (TRP) in air at pH 9 (37% w/w yield) and evaluated as food dye. The main component of pigment was formulated as an unusual benzochromeno[2,3-b]indole linked to a TRP unit, featuring a cyanine type chromophore (λ 542, 546 nm, 1% extinction coefficient of the sodium salt = 244 ± 2). The chromophore showed a minimal pH dependence and proved stable for at least 3 h at 90 °C, both at pH 3. Read More

Sr Care Pharm 2021 02;36(2):68-82

When selecting and managing psychoactive medications in older people, it is equally important to focus on avoidance of toxicity as it is to focus on efficacy. Higher psychoactive medication load is associated with increased rate and risk of all cause hospitalization. The medication classes used to treat depression and related comorbidities include antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, mood stabilizers, lithium, anxiolytics and sedative hypnotics. Read More

Strahlenther Onkol 2021 Jan 24. Epub 2021 Jan 24.

Department of Radiation Oncology, Heidelberg University Hospital, Im Neuenheimer Feld 400, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.

Background: Metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) often requires a multimodal treatment including chemotherapy, targeted therapy and radiotherapy. In addition to this, many patients take supportive drugs. Since only scarce data on possible interactions between radiotherapy and pharmaceutical or herbal drugs exist, description of clinical cases is of special interest. Read More