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. 2010 Jun 3:9:25.
doi: 10.1186/1744-859X-9-25.

Human depression: a new approach in quantitative psychiatry

Massimo Cocchi  1 , Lucio Tonello, Mark M Rasenick
Affiliations

Human depression: a new approach in quantitative psychiatry

Massimo Cocchi et al. Ann Gen Psychiatry. .

Abstract

The biomolecular approach to major depression disorder is explained by the different steps that involve cell membrane viscosity, Gsalpha protein and tubulin. For the first time it is hypothesised that a biomolecular pathway exists, moving from cell membrane viscosity through Gsalpha protein and Tubulin, which can condition the conscious state and is measurable by electroencephalogram study of the brain's gamma wave synchrony.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distribution of the human subjects (normal and depressive) over the self-organising map (SOM) (a), and SOM areas (b). (a) The distribution of the 144 subjects studied, 60 apparently healthy (green) and 84 diagnosed as depressed (red) effected by the SOM allowed us to identify 4 areas: 2 specific ones (exclusively normal and exclusively pathological) and 2 mixed with different concentrations of pathological subjects and apparently normal subjects of the sample. The red subjects in the two intermediate areas (yellow and orange) have been interpreted as having a misleading diagnosis of major depression, as described in the literature [14]. (b) SOM areas. Green = normal, red = depressive, yellow = high density of normal subjects, orange = high density of pathological subjects.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Description of the biomolecular steps possibly involved in depressive disorder.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Description of protein kinase C (PKC) activation.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Ligand reaches the receptor and guanosine-5'-triphosphate (GTP) reaches the protein. Cell membrane proteins coupled to cell surface receptors bind to GTP upon stimulation of the receptor by an extracellular signalling molecule (as a hormone or neurotransmitter) to form an active complex that mediates an intracellular event (for example, activation of adenylate cyclase).
Figure 5
Figure 5
cAMP signalling pathway.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Schematic representation of a lipid raft microdomain.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Schematic description of the possible link between the two research projects on platelet fatty acids and Gsα protein [1,14].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

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