The most common reason for chronic disability is major depression. The currently available pharmacotherapautical approach targets the central monoaminergic systems. Unfortunately, one third of patients do not respond properly to the pharmacotherapy. Despite decades of stress research we do not have equivocally accepted reliable animal models for depression to solve these intriguing challenges.

The Research group for mood disorders performs behavioral and functional morphological experiments to develop reliable models for major depression in mice and rats.

Members of the group (Dr. L. Kovács, Dr. T. Gaszner, Dr. J. Farkas, B. Ujvári) test how the three hit concept for major depression is applicable in rodents. Genetically modified mice carry an inherited risk factor causing depression-like phenotpye. The genetically predisposed animals are exposed to early life stress (i.e. maternal deprivation) and additional chronic stress in adulthood. The (mal)adaptive changes in behavior, physical and endocrinological factor as well as functional morphological changes in the brain including the corticotropin-releasing factor, urocortin1, serotonin dopamine containing centers are evaluated.

The group (Dr. L. Kovács, Dr. T. Gaszner, Dr. J. Farkas, B. Ujvári) also tests the validity of the match-mismatch hypothesis in rats and attempts to combine this with the three hit concept of depression. Offspring form low, middle and high stress responsive Wistar rats are exposed to maternal deprivation and chronic stress versus controls.

The group (N. Füredi, Á. Nagy, Dr. L. Kovács) also performs experiments to clear the neurobiological background of Parkinson’s disease-associated depression and anxiety. Post mortem human brain and cerebrospinal fluid samples are studied by biochemical and functional morphological tools. Toxic models for Parkinson’s disease are tested in rat models using the same approaches including behavioral tests also including the energetics of stress response. The main focus here is to study the significance of the urocortinergic centrally projecting Edinger-Wespthal nucleus in Parkinson’s disease.

Basic research is the main focus. However, results may be of great translational value, since a reliable and valid animal model would help to understand how therapy resistance develops in mood disorders. A new model would also help to test the efficacy of candidate antidepressant drugs. Since the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease like depression and anxiety precedes the occurrence of motor symptoms and they deteriorate the quality of life in a greater extent than motor symptoms per se, our results might help the early diagnosis of the disease and to increase the quality-of-life in this very common condition.

Foot fault test
Forced Swim Test
Immunohistochemistry
In situ hybridization
Confocal microscopy, morphometry
Light-dark box test
Marble burying test
Open field animal test
Radioimmunoassay
RNAscope in situ hybridization
Rotarod performance test
Sucrose preference test
Tail suspension test