Hydrogen Sulfide: a target to modulate oxidative stress and neuroplasticity for the treatment of pathological anxiety.

Hydrogen Sulfide: a target to modulate oxidative stress and neuroplasticity for the treatment of pathological anxiety. Expert Rev Neurother. 2019 Sep 18;: Authors: Chen M, Pritchard C, Fortune D, Kodi P, Grados M Abstract Introduction Anxiety disorders result in a high burden for patients and utilize health care resources. Evidence-based treatments for pathological anxiety include targeted psychotherapy and use of serotonin-augmenting agents. Limitations in access to cognitive behavioral therapy and potential downsides to the use of psychotropics make the need for novel approaches to therapeutics in anxiety salient. Areas Covered Neuroplasticity mechanisms, as well as managing oxidative stress and inflammatory cellular allostatic loads can decrease anxiety. The gasotransmitter hydrogen sulfide (H2S) can impact these mechanisms through: a) maintaining intracellular reduced glutathione in the CNS to decrease oxidative stress; b) facilitating neuroplasticity in amygdalar regions through the 2B subunit of n-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, in conjunction with the cAMP messenger system and a CNS kinase, PKC-γ; and c) regulating intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis in neurons and glial cells, among others. Expert Opinion Given the mounting evidence for the role of H2S in neuronal health, the current challenge in H2S therapeutics remains finding an efficient delivery system of this gasotransmitter in a reliable, safe and non-toxic form to engage in clinical tria...
Source: Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics - Category: Neurology Tags: Expert Rev Neurother Source Type: research