"Investigation of the role of mitochondrial dynamics in psychiatric disorders"

Abstract

Psychiatric disorders affect millions of people worldwide and are among the leading causes of global disease burden. As current treatments are largely ineffective with low response rates and severe side-effects, understanding the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in psychiatric disorders will provide novel therapeutic targets to improve psychiatric health management. Mitochondria are emerging pathobiology hubs and promising targets for therapeutic approaches in psychiatry. Although the modulatory role of mitochondrial pathways in neuropsychiatric phenotypes has received increasing attention, little is known about how alterations in the morphology, shape, number and distribution of mitochondrial populations can contribute to psychopathology. Deficits in the processes regulating these events, collectively known as mitochondrial dynamics (i.e. mitochondrial biogenesis, fission, fusion and mitophagy) have only recently been discussed in the context of psychobiology. 

Here, we summarize the existing data on changes in mitochondrial dynamics in major psychiatric disorders – including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – by addressing mitochondrial dynamics-related readouts in disease vs. control groups. Moreover, we also discuss brain-specific and periphery-specific alterations of mitochondrial dynamics as a common mechanism contributing to psychopathology.

Critically reviewing current literature on which molecular players of mitochondrial dynamics machines are affected in psychiatric disorders will pave the way towards understanding the molecular mechanisms of psychiatric disorders and devising novel, personalized therapy approaches to alleviate disease symptomatology in patients suffering from psychiatric disorders.

PAPAGEORGIOU Maria