New publications
Antidepressants can help deliver other drugs to the brain
Last reviewed: 02.07.2025
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
Since the 1980s, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants have been the mainstay of treatment for depression and other mental disorders around the world. In the UK alone, tens of millions of prescriptions for these drugs are written each year. However, their mechanisms of action and their wider effects on the body are still not fully understood.
Now, research led by scientists at King's College has been published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, identifying a key biological process that SSRIs target and suggesting new clinical applications for the drugs.
In this study, all current SSRIs were tested in different types of cells grown in petri dishes, using drug concentrations similar to those found in the blood of patients being treated for depression. Surprisingly, almost all antidepressants were found to interfere with the ability of cells to transport materials in and out through a process called membrane trafficking.
Moreover, a single injection of the antidepressant fluvoxamine into mice allowed the fluorescent compound, which normally remains outside the brain, to accumulate inside the brain, crossing the cellular barrier that separates the brain from the rest of the body.
Dr Oleg Glebov, from King's IoPPN, said: "Given how little is known about the wider effects of antidepressants, we wanted to find out more about how these drugs affect cells in our brains and bodies. We found that most antidepressants regulate the same key biological process in many tissues, which probably has little to do with their effect on depression.
“In addition, our data show that a single dose of antidepressant may be sufficient to effectively open the blood-brain barrier for delivery of other drugs. We hope that this discovery will help improve the clinical effectiveness and reduce the cost of treatment with new dementia drugs that are currently out of reach for the millions of people who need them. We are also excited by the prospect of exploring whether antidepressants can help deliver drugs to other hard-to-reach areas of the body.”
Exactly how SSRIs control membrane trafficking remains unclear, and unraveling the molecular details will require collaboration across multiple disciplines. It will also be necessary to determine in a clinical setting whether SSRIs are truly suitable for delivering other drugs into the human body.
Still, it's entirely possible that this study could mark the beginning of a new era for these venerable drugs, which are more than 30 years old - this time, helping other drugs do their jobs.