ArticleJournal of psychiatry & neuroscience : JPN2021
Chronic lithium treatment alters the excitatory/ inhibitory balance of synaptic networks and reduces mGluR5-PKC signalling in mouse cortical neurons.
Article in Journal of psychiatry & neuroscience : JPN, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 32 citations in OpenAlex.
- Overlap and Divergence in Ketamine and Lithium Response in Bipolar Disorder: A Scoping Review.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Identification of peripheral biomarkers through metabolomic analysis in patients with bipolar disorder treated with mood stabilizers: an exploratory study.The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology · 2025Article
- Monoallelic loss-of-function variants in GSK3B lead to autism and developmental delay.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Article
- Astragalin relieves inflammatory pain and negative mood in CFA mice by down-regulating mGluR5 signaling pathway.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Alpha-Synucleinopathies: Potential Links and Underlying Mechanisms.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Review
- New Advances in the Pharmacology and Toxicology of Lithium: A Neurobiologically Oriented Overview.Pharmacological reviews · 2024Review
- Chronic Lithium Treatment Alters NMDA and AMPA Receptor Synaptic Availability and Dendritic Spine Organization in the Rat Hippocampus.Current neuropharmacology · 2024Article
- Exploring the Neuroprotective Effects of Lithium in Ischemic Stroke: A literature review.International journal of medical sciences · 2024Review
- Association of polygenic score and the involvement of cholinergic and glutamatergic pathways with lithium treatment response in patients with bipolar disorder.Molecular psychiatry · 2023Article
- USP19 deubiquitinase inactivation regulates α-synuclein ubiquitination and inhibits accumulation of Lewy body-like aggregates in mice.NPJ Parkinson's disease · 2023Article
- The Mood Stabilizer Lithium Slows Down Synaptic Vesicle Cycling at Glutamatergic Synapses.Neuromolecular medicine · 2023Article
- Association of Polygenic Score and the involvement of Cholinergic and Glutamatergic Pathways with Lithium Treatment Response in Patients with Bipolar Disorder.Research square · 2023Article
- Glial-Neuronal Interaction in Synapses: A Possible Mechanism of the Pathophysiology of Bipolar Disorder.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2023Review
- Palmitoylation controls the stability of 190 kDa ankyrin-G in dendritic spines and is regulated by ZDHHC8 and lithium.Frontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2023Article
- Lithium Biological Action Mechanisms after Ischemic Stroke.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Transcriptomic effects of propranolol and primidone converge on molecular pathways relevant to essential tremor.NPJ genomic medicine · 2022Article
- Insights into the Promising Prospect of G Protein and GPCR-Mediated Signaling in Neuropathophysiology and Its Therapeutic Regulation.Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity · 2022Review
- Inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase 3 by lithium, a mechanism in search of specificity.Frontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Bipolar disorder is characterized by cyclical alternation between mania and depression, often comorbid with psychosis and suicide. Compared with other medications, the mood stabilizer lithium is the most effective treatment for the prevention of manic and depressive episodes. However, the pathophysiology of bipolar disorder and lithium’s mode of action are yet to be fully understood. Evidence suggests a change in the balance of excitatory and inhibitory activity, favouring excitation in bipolar disorder. In the present study, we sought to establish a holistic understanding of the neuronal consequences of lithium exposure in mouse cortical neurons, and to identify underlying mechanisms of action. Methods: We used a range of technical approaches to determine the effects of acute and chronic lithium treatment on mature mouse cortical neurons. We combined RNA screening and biochemical and electrophysiological approaches with confocal immunofluorescence and live-cell calcium imaging. Results: We found that only chronic lithium treatment significantly reduced intracellular calcium flux, specifically by activating metabotropic glutamatergic receptor 5. This was associated with altered phosphorylation of protein kinase C and glycogen synthase kinase 3, reduced neuronal excitability and several alterations to synapse function. Consequently, lithium treatment shifts the excitatory–inhibitory balance toward inhibition. Limitations: The mechanisms we identified should be validated in future by similar experiments in whole animals and human neurons. Conclusion: Together, the results revealed how lithium dampens neuronal excitability and the activity of the glutamatergic network, both of which are predicted to be overactive in the manic phase of bipolar disorder. Our working model of lithium action enables the development of targeted strategies to restore the balance of overactive networks, mimicking the therapeutic benefits of lithium but with reduced toxicity.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.