Chemistry of Depression - Essay Example

Chemistry of Depression Depression is one of the most prominent psychological disorders seen among the adults and teenagers. Even though depression is a psychological disorder, the major reason behind this problem is the irregularities in brain chemistry. Along with depression, irregularities in brain chemistry can cause anxiety, mood swings, schizophrenia suicide tendency etc. Moreover, depression like mental problems seen more among females than among males. In order to know the reasons of such differences, it is important to know the brain chemistry deeply. In short, brain chemistry is an important topic for the psychologists and psychiatrists. They analyses the problems in brain chemistry before prescribing any medicines to correct it. The importance of chemistry in human life is very much important. Chemistry influences human life both directly and indirectly. Even though the indirect influence of chemistry on human life is known to many people, the direct influence of chemistry on human and animal life are unknown to many people. Chemical changes in our body can cause physical as well as mental diseases. This paper briefly analyses the role of chemistry (brain chemistry) in causing depression and other psychological problems, taking the chemicals serotonin and dopamine as the examples. “Brain chemicals called neurotransmitters send messages around the brain. Several specific neurotransmitters, including one called serotonin, are responsible for regulating moods, as well as appetite, sleep and stress response functions” (Depression Biology). Serotonin is neurotransmitter with the following molecular or structural formula. (Serotonin) From the above illustration, it is evident that serotonin is a monoamine neurotransmitter. It is an aromatic compound in organic chemistry known as 5-hydroxytryptamine. In simple terms the molecular formula of Serotonin can be represented as C10H12N2O. In other words, serotonin consists of 10 carbon atoms, 12 hydrogen atoms, 2 nitrogen atoms, and one oxygen atom. It is a hormone commonly seen in the pineal gland, the digestive tract, the central nervous system, and blood platelets (What Is Serotonin? What Does Serotonin Do?). The following figure shows the serotonin pathways through brain. (What is Serotonin?) The primary function of serotonin is to transmit nerve impulses across nerve cells and neurons. It should be noted that neurons is responsible for raw data from different parts of body organs to the brain. Again, after processing the information brain gives instructions to body organs through the same neuron. In short, neuron activity is important in keeping all bodily activities intact. When variations occur in serotonin content in our body, communication between brain and body organs may not work properly. Depression is mainly seen among females even though it is common among males also. Medical science was confused about this discrepancy in the occurrence of depression among males and females. However, recent studies have shown the reasons. “Scientists from the Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, showed that the brain's serotonin systems in males and females are different. They think they might have found one of the reasons why more women are affected with depression and chronic anxiety than me” (What Is Serotonin? What Does Serotonin Do?). Apart from Serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, melatonin, insulin and prostaglandins are some other chemicals which affect mood and emotions. Dopamine is also an aromatic compound in organic chemistry. It is a kind of neurotransmitter which controls the movement of emotional responses. Dopamine deficiency can cause not only depression, but also other disorders such as schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease etc. “Pharmacological treatments support the idea that an overactive dopamine system may result in schizophrenia: Medications that block dopamine receptors, specifically D2 receptors, reduce schizophrenia symptoms. The brain regions known as the thalamus and the striatum are affected by dopaminergic activity” (Gromisch). The neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) and the dopaminergic neurones play an important role in schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease (PD). A decrease in DA in the substantia nigra of the brain has been implicated as the cause of PD. By contrast, it is argued that a functional excess of DA or oversensitivity of certain DA receptors is one of the causal factors in schizophrenia. These factors are reflected in the treatment of both conditions; drugs aimed at increasing DA are prescribed to patients with Parkinson's disease, while most antipsychotic drugs block and reduce the effects of DA. In schizophrenia the antipsychotic effects of traditional 'neuroleptic' drugs such as chlorpromazine are highly correlated with their ability to block DA receptors and reduce the effects of DA (Birtwistle & Baldwin, p.832). From the above descriptions it is evident that brain chemistry can make or break a person. Chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine are playing vital roles in keeping a sound mind on a sound body. Many people have the illusion that chemistry is the study of some kind of chemicals alone. From the above descriptions, it evident that chemistry is much more than the study of chemicals. To conclude, chemistry is contributing heavily both directly and indirectly to human life. Human body consists of thousands of chemicals. Each of them has some specific roles in maintaining body metabolism and activities in a normal status. Any changes occur in the functioning of bodily chemicals may result in physical or mental disorders. Serotonin and dopamine are two important chemicals or neurotransmitters present in the brain. Both of them are aromatic compounds with ring structure. When the quantity of these chemicals increases or decreases in our body, several mental and physical problems may arise. Depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, etc are some of the bodily problems developing as a result of the problems in the serotonin or dopamine content in the body. In short, the study of chemistry is important in keeping our body healthy; both physically and mentally. Works Cited Birtwistle J, & Baldwin D. “Role Of Dopamine In Schizophrenia And Parkinson's Disease”. Br J Nurs. 1998 Jul 23-Aug 12;7(14):832-4, 836, 838-41.Print. “Depression Biology”. Web. 04 December 2012. Gromisch Elizabeth Stannard. “The Dopamine Connection Between Schizophrenia and Creativity” Web. 04 December 2012. Serotonin”. Web. 04 December 2012. “What Is Serotonin? What Does Serotonin Do?”. Web. 04 December 2012. “What is Serotonin?”. Web. 04 December 2012. Read More