Featured
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Correspondence |
Social-media influence on teen mental health goes beyond just cause and effect
- Michael A. Spikes
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Correspondence |
Interpersonal therapy can be an effective tool against the devastating effects of loneliness
- Myrna M. Weissman
- & Jennifer J. Mootz
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Correspondence |
Use fines from EU social-media act to fund research on adolescent mental health
- Christian Montag
- & Benjamin Becker
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Book Review |
The great rewiring: is social media really behind an epidemic of teenage mental illness?
The evidence is equivocal on whether screen time is to blame for rising levels of teen depression and anxiety — and rising hysteria could distract us from tackling the real causes.
- Candice L. Odgers
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Article
| Open Access
Circulating myeloid-derived MMP8 in stress susceptibility and depression
Serum MMP8 is increased in stress-susceptible mice following chronic stress and leads to brain structure and behavioural changes in mice.
- Flurin Cathomas
- , Hsiao-Yun Lin
- & Scott J. Russo
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World View |
Only 0.5% of neuroscience studies look at women’s health. Here’s how to change that
A new initiative challenges the severe neglect of women’s brain health from puberty through to pregnancy and menopause.
- Emily G. Jacobs
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Article
| Open Access
Sustained antidepressant effect of ketamine through NMDAR trapping in the LHb
The discrepancy between the short half-life of ketamine and its long-lasting effects is due to ketamine being trapped in NMDA receptors, and its release depends on neural activity in the lateral habenula.
- Shuangshuang Ma
- , Min Chen
- & Hailan Hu
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Outlook |
Mental health: The invisible effects of neglected tropical diseases
The psychological burden of disability and stigma has been overlooked, to the detriment of those affected and their carers.
- Simon Makin
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Article
| Open Access
Cingulate dynamics track depression recovery with deep brain stimulation
This study demonstrates how activity in the cingulate cortex tracks depression recovery, providing symptom relief using deep brain stimulation.
- Sankaraleengam Alagapan
- , Ki Sueng Choi
- & Christopher J. Rozell
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News |
Australia to prescribe MDMA and psilocybin for PTSD and depression in world first
Decision to make the previously illicit drugs available is dogged by suggestions that it was rushed.
- Rich Haridy
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Outlook |
Social-media use isn’t always a problem for children
Maartje Boer explains how using social media can be good for young people, and how to spot the warning signs of problematic use.
- Niki Wilson
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Outlook |
How to help children traumatized by war
Widespread violence takes a serious toll on children’s mental health. But there are ways to alleviate the suffering.
- Fadi Maalouf
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Outlook |
Psychedelic medicine faces the acid test
Mind-bending drugs are entering the therapeutic arena
- Herb Brody
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Outlook |
Taking the tripping out of psychedelic medicine
Drugs under development offer the mental-health benefits of psilocybin and similar substances without inducing strong hallucinatory effects.
- Elie Dolgin
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Outlook |
Psychedelic microdosing hits a rough patch in clinical trials
Recent results cast doubt on claims that small amounts of these drugs can benefit mental health.
- Benjamin Plackett
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Outlook |
Research round-up: psychedelic medicine
Predicting bad trips, treating depression without hallucinations, and other highlights from studies of psychedelics.
- Michael Eisenstein
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Outlook |
The psychedelic escape from depression
Clinical trials suggest that psilocybin — the active ingredient in magic mushrooms — can provide durable remission from an increasingly common mental health condition.
- Michael Eisenstein
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Outlook |
A journey into the causes and effects of depression
A raft of insights provide hope for improved treatments.
- Herb Brody
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Outlook |
Wiring up the brain to beat depression
Despite its chequered past, deep-brain electrical stimulation is finally showing some signs of success.
- Liam Drew
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Outlook |
Can resetting the body clock help with depression?
Disrupted sleep patterns affect mental health, and researchers now hope that repairing circadian rhythms could ease symptoms.
- Sarah DeWeerdt
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Outlook |
The vicious cycle of depression and obesity
Is it time for obesity to be treated as a mental-health concern?
- Benjamin Plackett
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Outlook |
Psychedelic drugs take on depression
Mind-altering drugs might provide relief for those who don’t respond to conventional therapies — but does the hype outweigh the hope?
- Cassandra Willyard
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Outlook |
Research round-up: depression
How artificial intelligence detects lowered mood, why depression is linked to heart-disease risk, and other highlights.
- Elizabeth Svoboda
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Outlook |
Brain-cell growth keeps mood disorders at bay
Neurogenesis can halt depressive symptoms or prevent them from emerging. Harnessing this phenomenon could open up treatment options.
- Elizabeth Svoboda
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Outlook |
Why depression in women is so misunderstood
Menopausal depression takes a huge toll, but is underfunded and under-researched — that needs to change.
- Jayashri Kulkarni
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News & Views |
A short burst of reward curbs the addictiveness of ketamine
An analysis of ketamine and cocaine use in mice reveals that the drugs trigger release of the neurotransmitter dopamine through different mechanisms, and indicates that the risk of addiction to ketamine is low.
- Rianne Campbell
- & Mary Kay Lobo
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News & Views |
Helpline data used to monitor population distress in a pandemic
The initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic saw an increase in calls to mental-health helplines in 19 countries. Helpline-call data can be used to monitor distress at a population level in near-real time.
- Cindy H. Liu
- & Alexander C. Tsai
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News |
Millions of helpline calls reveal how COVID affected mental health
Data from almost 20 countries suggest that many callers were anxious and lonely rather than experiencing abuse or suicidal impulses.
- Heidi Ledford
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News |
COVID’s mental-health toll: how scientists are tracking a surge in depression
Researchers are using huge data sets to link changes in mental health to coronavirus-response measures.
- Alison Abbott
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News Feature |
How ecstasy and psilocybin are shaking up psychiatry
Regulators will soon grapple with how to safely administer powerful psychedelics for treating depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
- Paul Tullis
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Career News |
‘The problem is greater than it’s ever been’: US universities urged to invest in mental-health resources
National Academies report finds that graduate students are at risk in mental-health ‘crisis’ on campuses nationwide.
- Chris Woolston
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Article |
Antidepressant actions of ketamine engage cell-specific translation via eIF4E
The antidepressant-like effects of ketamine in mice depend on the expression of specific eIF4E-binding proteins in excitatory and inhibitory neurons.
- Argel Aguilar-Valles
- , Danilo De Gregorio
- & Nahum Sonenberg
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Outlook |
Food allergies: the psychological toll
Bullying, anxiety and depression can have a huge impact on the lives of people with allergies and their families.
- Roxanne Khamsi
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News & Views Forum |
Scrutinizing the effects of digital technology on mental health
Does time spent using digital technology and social media have an adverse effect on mental health, especially that of adolescents? Here, two scientists discuss the question, and how digital devices might be used to improve well-being.
- Jonathan Haidt
- & Nick Allen
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Career News |
A better future for graduate-student mental health
A consortium of US universities aims to examine how best to help a vulnerable population that is affected by anxiety and depression.
- Chris Woolston
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News |
Depression researchers rethink popular mouse swim tests
Animal-rights group’s campaign to end forced-swim tests comes amid debate over whether method is overused.
- Sara Reardon
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Editorial |
Being a PhD student shouldn’t be bad for your health
The first international meeting on postgraduate mental health opens this week, but much more is needed to solve academia’s crisis.
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Career News |
Mental health in academia is topic of the week at a sold-out UK meeting
In conjunction with Britain’s Mental Health Awareness Week, a first-of-its-kind conference seeks to boost conversation around threats to student wellness.
- Chris Woolston
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Editorial |
Links between gut microbes and depression strengthened
The once-wild idea that intestinal bacteria influence mental health has transformed into a major research pursuit.
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Letter |
Reward behaviour is regulated by the strength of hippocampus–nucleus accumbens synapses
Dopamine-independent induction of long-term potentiation at hippocampal synapses onto the nucleus accumbens modulates reward-related behaviour.
- Tara A. LeGates
- , Mark D. Kvarta
- & Scott M. Thompson
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Career Column |
How to handle the one-size-fits-all PhD
Young researchers can use various strategies to help them to cope with the pressures and demands of doctoral programmes.
- Lena Constantin
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News Feature |
Happy with a 20% chance of sadness
Researchers are developing wristbands and apps to predict moods — but the technology has pitfalls as well as promise.
- Matt Kaplan
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Editorial |
What to do to improve postgraduate mental health
Greater awareness must be matched with steps such as better training for supervisors.
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Nature Podcast |
AI neuroscience, liquid crystals, and depression in academia
Join Shamini Bundell and Adam Levy as they break down the latest in scientific research.
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Comment |
I’d whisper to my student self: you are not alone
Twenty years on, Dave Reay speaks out about the depression that almost sunk his PhD, and the lifelines that saved him.
- Dave Reay
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Career Feature |
How to handle the dark days of depression
Mental illness can be devastating — but there are ways to fight it, say four researchers who have known those bleak times.
- Emily Sohn
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Career Feature |
Feeling overwhelmed by academia? You are not alone
Five researchers share their stories and advice on how to maintain good mental health in the hyper-competitive environment of science.
- Chris Woolston
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Comment |
Smartphones are bad for some teens, not all
Young people who are already struggling offline might experience greater negative effects of life online, writes Candice Odgers.
- Candice Odgers
