On Depression and Its Underlying Causes

The World Health Organization estimates that more than 350 million individuals of all ages have depression and approximately one-third of all patients with depression fail to respond to conventional antidepressant therapies like SSRI’s.
The good news is that today, perhaps more than ever, good science is starting to illuminate some of the underlying biological mechanisms surrounding the development of depression. This new understanding may soon help the clinical world develop new approaches to treatment that may be vastly more effective and for a greater number of people than the traditional approaches.
Publications mentioned:
Antidepressants versus placebo in major depression: an overview
Inflammation: Depression Fans the Flames and Feasts on the Heat
Association of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein with de novo major depression.
Sex Differences in Depressive and Socioemotional Responses to an Inflammatory Challenge: Implications for Sex Differences in Depression
Dopaminergic Mechanisms of Reduced Basal Ganglia Responses to Hedonic Reward During Interferon Alfa Administration
Inflammation-induced anhedonia: endotoxin reduces ventral striatum responses to reward.
Structural and functional features of central nervous system lymphatic vessels
Endurance exercise increases skeletal muscle kynurenine aminotransferases and plasma kynurenic acid in humans
Psychological stress and corticotropin-releasing hormone increase intestinal permeability in humans by a mast cell-dependent mechanism
Neurobiology: Rise of resilience
First biological marker for major depression could enable better diagnosis, treatment
Low to moderate sugar-sweetened beverage consumption impairs glucose and lipid metabolism and promotes inflammation in healthy young men: a randomized controlled trial
Sweetened-Beverages, Coffee, and Tea in Relation to Depression among Older US Adults (P05.122)
Consuming highly refined carbohydrates increases risk of depression