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Elsevier

Neurobiology of Depression

Road to Novel Therapeutics

  • 2nd Edition - October 15, 2026
  • Latest edition
  • Editors: Joao L. de Quevedo, Mario Juruena, Carlos A. Zarate
  • Language: English

Neurobiology of Depression: Road to Novel Therapeutics, Second Edition provides the latest research advances, including interacting pathways implicated in the pathop… Read more

Description

Neurobiology of Depression: Road to Novel Therapeutics, Second Edition provides the latest research advances, including interacting pathways implicated in the pathophysiology of MDD, omics technologies, genetic approaches, and the novel optogenetic techniques revolutionizing depression research. This new edition aids advanced students and researchers in their understanding of MDD, presenting chapters that explore groundbreaking topics such as the neurobiology of treatment-resistant depression, the mechanisms that make ketamine a better antidepressant, and the link between depression and Alzheimer's disease. Additionally, it covers the neurobiology of suicide in depression, the impact of psychedelics as therapy, and the unique aspects of bipolar depression.

The book also examines computational models in depression, the neurobiology of psychotherapy, and the putative mechanisms of action for vagus nerve stimulation as a therapeutic approach. These additions help provide a broader and more comprehensive understanding of depression and its treatment.

Key features

  • Features new chapters on emerging topics such as the neurobiology of suicide, the link between depression and Alzheimer's disease, and the mechanisms of action of psychedelics as therapy, offering readers the latest insights
  • Explores major depressive disorder (MDD) within the framework of the NIMH Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) recommendations
  • Covers a wide array of existing and potential pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment options, including lifestyle adjustments, antidepressants, and emerging novel therapeutics
  • Synthesizes discussions on the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying depressive symptoms with clinical aspects, bridging the gap between basic neuroscience and clinical practice

Readership

Advanced students and researchers in neuroscience, psychology, medicine, health sciences, and pharmacology

Table of contents

1. The Classification of Depression: Embracing Phenotypic Heterogeneity in the Era of the RDoC

2. Incidence, Prevalence, and Global Burden of Depression

3. The Role of Environmental and Psychosocial Factors in Depression

4. Gene-Environment Interactions and Epigenetic Mechanisms in Depression

5. Pathophysiology of Cognitive Impairment in Depression

6. Anhedonia in Depression: Mechanisms, Assessment, and Therapeutics

7. The Neurotrophic Hypothesis of Depression Revisited: New Insights and Therapeutic Implications

8. The Monoamine Hypothesis of Depression Revisited: Could It Lead to Mechanistically Novel Antidepressant Strategies?

9. Neuro-Immune Interactions in Depression: Mechanisms and Translational Implications

10. The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis in Depression: Molecular Regulation, Pathophysiological Role, and Translational Implications

11. Intracellular Signalling Pathways Implicated in the Pathophysiology of Depression

12. The Long-Lasting Neurobiological Scars of Early-Life Stress: Implications for the Neurobiology of Depression

13. Molecular, Cellular, and Circuit Basis of Depression Susceptibility and Resilience

14. More Than a Gut Feeling: Emerging Roles of the Microbiome in the Pathophysiology and Treatment of Depression

15. Optogenetics: Illuminating the Neural Circuits of Depression

16. Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oxidative Stress: Relevance to the Pathophysiology and Treatment of Depression

17. Obesity and Depression: Shared Pathophysiology and Translational Implications

18. Neurobiology of Antidepressant-Induced Weight Gain

19. Depression and Cardiovascular Risk: Epidemiology, Mechanisms, and Implications

20. Poststroke Depression: Pathophysiology and Treatment Strategies

21. Is Depression Associated with Accelerated Aging? Mechanisms and Implications

22. Relationship Between Complicated Grief and Depression: Relevance, Etiological Mechanisms, and Implications

23. Understanding the Neurobiology of Depression through Structural Neuroimaging

24. A Neural Circuit-Based Model for Depression Anchored in a Synthesis of Insights from Functional Neuroimaging

25. Could Depression Be Preventable? Evidence and Perspectives

26. Treating Depression in the Era of Precision Medicine: Challenges and Perspectives

27. Neurobiological Aspects of Functional Recovery in Major Depressive Disorder

28. Diet and Depression: From Epidemiology to Novel Therapeutics

29. Physical Activity and Exercise as a Treatment of Depression: Evidence and Neurobiological Mechanism

30. Antidepressants and Suicidality—Controversies and Possible Mechanisms

31. Altered GABAergic Function, Cortical Microcircuitry, and Information Processing in Depression

32. Implications of Pharmacogenomics in Depression Pathophysiology and Treatment

33. Novel Neuromodulatory Approaches for Depression: Neurobiological Mechanisms

34. Electroconvulsive Therapy for Depression: Neurobiological Mechanisms

35. Putative Mechanism of Action for Vagus Nerve Stimulation as Therapeutic for Depression

36. Deep Brain Stimulation: Mechanisms Underpinning Antidepressant Effects

37. Novel Therapeutic Targets for Major Depressive Disorder

38. The Search for Rapid Acting Antidepressants: Research Synthesis and Perspectives

39. Neurobiology of Child and Adolescent Depression

40. Neurobiology of Depression in Women

41. Biological Basis of Late-Life Depression

42. Advances in Early Age Depression

43. What Makes Ketamine a Better Antidepressant?

44. Neurobiology of Suicide in Depression

45. Neurobiology of Depression as a Risk Factor for Alzheimer's Disease

46. Neurobiology of Treatment-Resistant Depression

47. Understanding the Mechanism of Action of Psychedelics as Therapy for Depression

48. Neurobiology of Bipolar Depression

49. Computational Models in Depression

50. Neurobiology of Psychotherapy for Depression

Product details

  • Edition: 2
  • Latest edition
  • Published: October 15, 2026
  • Language: English

About the editors

JQ

Joao L. de Quevedo

João L. de Quevedo, MD, Ph.D., obtained his Medical Degree and completed residency training in Psychiatry, a fellowship in Psychopharmacology, and a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences (Biochemistry), all from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil. He is the John S. Dunn Distinguished Professor at the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth Houston). He also serves as Professor, Vice-Chair for Faculty Development and Outreach, Executive Director of the Center for Interventional Psychiatry, Chief of the Division of Interventional Psychiatry, Director of the Treatment-Resistant Depression Program, and Program Director of the Interventional Psychiatry Fellowship. Dr. Joao L. de Quevedo is an Associate Editor for Molecular Psychiatry, a Springer Nature journal.

Research profiles:

ResearcherID: E-5491-2013

Scopus Author ID: 56971689500

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3114-6611

Affiliations and expertise
Professor of Psychiatry at the McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, TX, USA

MJ

Mario Juruena

Prof. Mario F. Juruena, is Professor of Affective Disorders and Translational Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, within the Centre for Affective Disorders, Department of Psychological Medicine. He is also a Consultant Psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) and the National Affective Disorders Service. He currently leads the Maudsley Advanced Treatment Service (MATS) for Difficult-to-Treat Depression and Bipolar Disorders and the Maudsley ECT Service.

Prof. Juruena graduated in Medicine from the Pontifical Catholic University of Southern Brazil. He completed his psychiatry training at Saint Peter Hospital and the Public Health School and received an MPhil in Psychobiology from the Federal University of Sao Paulo. He subsequently completed an MSc in Affective Neuroscience at Maastricht University in the Netherlands and received training in cognitive psychotherapy by the Beck Institute -Philadelphia, USA.

Prof. Juruena completed his PhD at King’s College London, University of London, focusing on treatment-resistant depression, prediction of response to treatment, and stress hormones. He has published more than 250 original research articles, reviews and book chapters, and has edited six books. His research focuses mainly on the neurobiology, diagnosis, pathophysiology and treatment of affective disorders, particularly depression and bipolar disorder, and their relationship with stress.

Prof. Juruena has received several major awards, including the British Association for Psychopharmacology Senior Clinical Psychopharmacology Award and the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Robert W. Kerwin Psychopharmacology Prize for the best article published in the British Journal of Psychiatry. He has also been awarded a Newton Research Fellowship by the Royal Society and the Academy of Medical Sciences. More recently, the MATS was recognised by the Royal College of Psychiatrists as the best research and quality improvement team in the UK.

Affiliations and expertise
Professor of Affective Disorders and Translational Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, Consultant Psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM)

CZ

Carlos A. Zarate

Dr. Zarate completed his residency training in psychiatry at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center/Brockton VAMC division. He later completed a fellowship in Clinical Psychopharmacology at McLean Hospital of the Consolidated Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and remained on staff at McLean Hospital as the Director of the Bipolar and Psychotic Disorders Outpatient Services. From 1998 to 2000 Dr. Zarate was the Chief of the Bipolar and Psychotic Disorders Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. In 2001, he joined the Mood and Anxiety Disorders Program at NIMH. His achievements and awards include the Ethel-DuPont Warren Award and Livingston Awards, Consolidated Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Outstanding Psychiatrist Research Award, Massachusetts Psychiatric Association; Program for Minority Research Training in Psychiatry, APA; the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression Young Investigator Award; National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression Independent Investigator Award; the National Institutes of Health Director’s Award Scientific/Medical, the 2011 Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Award for Bipolar Mood Disorder Research, the 2013 National Institute of Health Director’s Award—Scientific/Medical Achievement and Mogens Schou Research Award: Bipolar Disorder and the Simon-Bolivar Award American Psychiatric Association; 2015 Ruth L. Kirschtein Mentoring Award NIH and the Astute Clinician Lecture Award, NIH; the 2019 ACNP Dolores Shockley Minority Mentoring Award; and in 2019 was promoted to NIH Distinguished Investigator, NIMH, NIH. Dr. Zarate is a fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology and member of the Society of Biological Psychiatry and the Society for Neuroscience. Dr. Zarate’s research focuses on the pathophysiology and development of novel therapeutics for treatment-resistant mood disorders as well as the study of biomarkers and neural correlates of treatment response.
Affiliations and expertise
National Institute of Health