Depression, Exercise And Brain Exercise

§ September 1st, 2008 § Filed under antidepressants, brain research, depression, neuroscience, plasticity § 2 Comments

Dentate Gyrus

Brain activity and neural response in the region of the brain known as the dentate gyrus has been tied to the symptoms and experience of depression. The dentate gyrus is also one of the few areas of the brain thought to be able to generate significant numbers of new brain cells in a process known as neurogenesis. This has led to research into the process of depression and the ways that we can combat persistent depression.

ScienceDaily reports on new research that Antidepressants Need New Nerve Cells To Be Effective. The study by researchers from UT Southwestern Medical Center showed that the effectiveness of anti-depressants in mice depended upon the growth of new nerves in the part of the brain called the dentate gyrus.

The next question of course becomes how to stimulate new nerve cell generation.

Dr. Luis Parada. (Credit: Image courtesy of UT Southwestern Medical Center)

There are two: aerobic exercise and working-memory activation.

The dentate gyrus plays a key role in memory formation. Research has shown that stimulation of working-memory activates the dentate gyrus.

(Research subjects in working-memory training and users of Mind Sparke Brain Fitness Pro report greater levels of satisfaction and well-being; an intriguing link and another great reason to be brain-training.)