Focus on CaMKII: a molecular switch in the pathophysiology and treatment of mood and anxiety disorders

Mood and anxiety disorders are common, severe, chronic, and often life-threatening illnesses (Kaufman and Charney, 2000; Manji et al., 2001). There is a growing appreciation that, far from being diseases with purely psychological manifestations, severe mood and anxiety disorders are systemic diseases with deleterious effects on multiple organ systems. Indeed, a World Health Organization study has reported that depression is the leading global cause of years of life lived with a disability and the fourth leading cause of disability-adjusted life-years. Stressful life events have a substantial causal association with these disorders, and there is now compelling evidence that even early life stress constitutes a major risk factor for the subsequent development of depression (Charney and Manji, In Press). The emerging evidence suggests that the combination of genetics, early life stress, and ongoing stress may ultimately determine individual responsiveness to stress and the vulnerability to psychiatric disorders, such as mood and anxiety disorders.