Fluoxetine, an antidepressant drug, has shown promise as a therapy in spinal cord injury (SCI), but the mechanism underlying this neuroprotection was unknown. Using a mouse contusion-injury model, Lee et al. show that fluoxetine prevents breakdown of the blood–spinal cord barrier by inhibiting activation of matrix metalloproteinases and maintaining tight-junction integrity. The study highlights fluoxetine as a promising therapy for brain injury and SCI.
ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER
Lee, J. Y. et al. Fluoxetine inhibits matrix metalloproteinase activation and prevents disruption of blood–spinal cord barrier after spinal cord injury. Brain doi:10.1093/brain/aws171
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Fluoxetine shows promise as a neuroprotective therapy following spinal cord injury. Nat Rev Neurol 8, 473 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2012.160
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2012.160
