Depression is a major cause of morbidity and a significant public health problem. This book brings together world leaders in research on depression to discuss both classical and innovative ideas for understanding this devastating disorder. It includes cutting edge research from neurobiology, psychology, genetics, and evolutionary biology.

1. Experiencing depression ; 2. Depression in the medically ill ; 3. Explaining depression: neuroscience is not enough, evolution is essential ; 4. Evolutionary genetics of affective disorders ; 5. Genetic factors in stress and major depression ; 6. Bipolar disorder and unipolar depression: what is the genetic relationship? ; 7. The significance of dysregulated basal glucocorticoid pulsatility in affective disorders ; 8. Early life programming of affective function ; 9. Modeling depression by GR mutant animals? ; 10. Cytokines and depression: experimental evidence and intermediate mechanisms ; 11. Do depression, stress, sleep disruption and inflammation alter hippocampal apoptosis and neurogenesis? ; 12. The role of the medial prefrontal cortex in mediating resistance and vulnerability to the impact of adverse events ; 13. Is it all monoamines? ; 14. The role of affective processing in vulnerability to and resilience against depression ; 15. PTSD and HPA axis: same hormones, different disorders ; 16. Neuroendocrine and immune cross talk in major depression ; 17. Neuropsychiatric effects of IFN-alpha: relevance to depression ; 18. Depression and coronary heart disease ; 19. Does depression induce pain and fatigue? ; 20. Explaining the association between depression and mortality: a life course epidemiology approach ; 21. Depression: unipolar or bipolar, what's the difference (and what does it matter anyway)? ; 22. Can neuroimaging help distinguish bipolar depression from major depressive disorder? ; 23. Pharmacogenetics of antidepressant response ; 24. Can the EEG be used to predict antidepressant response? ; 25. Can we use magnetic/electric fields to help in treatment resistant depression? ; 26. Antiglucocorticoids in the treatment of affective disorders: from pre-clinical to clinical studies ; 27. How can we use current knowledge to improve antidepressant treatments?

Present an interdisciplinary review of depression, from basic science to clinical practice Shows how translational approaches to medicine can help us attain a deeper understanding of this complex illness Includes chapters from an international group of leading researchers and leading clinicians, making the content applicable throughout the world

Present an interdisciplinary review of depression, from basic science to clinical practice Shows how translational approaches to medicine can help us attain a deeper understanding of this complex illness Includes chapters from an international group of leading researchers and leading clinicians, making the content applicable throughout the world