Depression Antidepressants

Depression Antidepressants. Common Antidepressants. Antidepressants SSRi. An endless list Antidepressants drugs may help the immune system fight serious illness. Research suggests that they can enhance the activity of natural killer cells, which are key elements of the immune system and could help the body combat infections such as HIV, and even cancer.

Natural killer (NK) cells are white blood cells which home in on infected or cancerous cells, releasing agents that induce apoptosis, or “cell suicide”. NK cells are especially active against viruses.

The research emerged from findings that stress and depression impair NK cell function and can accelerate the progress of HIV/ Aids. Scientists recruited depressed and non-depressed HIV-positive women and treated them with drugs to treat stress and depression. Citalopram and the “substance P antagonist”. Citalopram increased NK cell activity, while “substance P” had no effect.

The study leader, Dr Dwight Evans of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, said: “The findings show that natural killer cell function in HIV infection may be enhanced by selective serotonin re-uptake inhibition and substance P antagonism.”

You can read the full report in ‘The Biological Psychiatry’.

Interesting….Don’t you think?

Dawn Pugh Psychotherapist