Impulse control is a well-documented casualty of low serotonin. This same impulsivity is seen in depressed people who commit suicide, the researchers say, which suggests these mice could be a model for testing drugs to lessen suicide or bulimia. When the researchers treated the mice with Prozac, which increases available serotonin, the fighting and compulsive eating stopped. Because one of the major side effects of the most potent schizophrenia medications is obesity with a bulimic aspect, says Koliatsos, the study may offer ways to tone down that behavior while maintaining the therapy's helpful effects. Md. The work was funded by grants from the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Mental Health and a Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award.
Footage showing overweight, aggressive BDNF-deprived mice in action is available.
The article is in the September issue of Cardiovascular Research, vol 43, no.4, pp.