News Releases & Research Results Depression-related PCSK5 gene, which induces inflammation in the deep brain, discovered in a mouse experiment

The results of the research project conducted by Professor Hidenori Aizawa of the Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Specially Appointed Professor Shigeto Yamawaki of the Brain, Mind and KANSEI Sciences Research Center, Hiroshima University, and others.

• The research group discovered that the "PCSK5*" gene, which functions in the deep brain, induces depression-like behavior in mice, and its activation exacerbates inflammatory reactions in the brain.
  *Abbreviation of "proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 5." PCSK5 functions to cleave and activate other specific proteins, including matrix metalloproteinase (MMP).
• The results of this research project show that the activities of inflammatory cells in the brain underlie the etiology of depression; this discovery should facilitate the development of novel antidepressants targeting the PCSK5 gene.

This research project was conducted with the support of the Strategic Research Program for Brain Sciences by AMED.

The results of this research project were published online in Neuropsychopharmacology, an American scientific journal, on September 17.

Ito H., et al. Activation of proprotein convertase in the mouse habenula causes depressive-like behaviors through remodeling of extracellular matrix. Neuropsychopharmacology
DOI：10.1038/s41386-020-00843-0