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Review
. 2015 Jan;40(1):113-28.
doi: 10.1038/npp.2014.230. Epub 2014 Sep 2.

Adult neurogenesis and mental illness

Timothy J Schoenfeld  1 , Heather A Cameron  1
Affiliations
Review

Adult neurogenesis and mental illness

Timothy J Schoenfeld et al. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2015 Jan.

Abstract

Several lines of evidence suggest that adult neurogenesis, the production of new neurons in adulthood, may play a role in psychiatric disorders, including depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. Medications and other treatments for mental disorders often promote the proliferation of new neurons; the time course for maturation and integration of new neurons in circuitry parallels the delayed efficacy of psychiatric therapies; adverse and beneficial experiences similarly affect development of mental illness and neurogenesis; and ablation of new neurons in adulthood alters the behavioral impact of drugs in animal models. At present, the links between adult neurogenesis and depression seem stronger than those suggesting a relationship between new neurons and anxiety or schizophrenia. Yet, even in the case of depression there is currently no direct evidence for a causative role. This article reviews the data relating adult neurogenesis to mental illness and discusses where research needs to head in the future.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Summary of the effects of psychiatric drugs and other therapies on different processes involved in neurogenesis. The processes, shown below, include division of stem and precursor cells to generate additional neuronal progenitors (proliferation), development of neuronal morphology and functional synapses (maturation), and avoidance of cell death that normally eliminates a large fraction of new neurons (survival).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Diagram showing a potential role for new neurons in maintaining mental health. Genetic, developmental, physiological, experiential, and therapeutic interventions can upregulate or downregulate adult neurogenesis. The population of functioning new neurons may protect an individual from negative or inappropriate effects of stress, increasing resilience and thereby promoting mental health.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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