Racing To Unlock The Secrets Of Serotonin

Schizophrenia is formidable--as are drugs that treat it. They cause an excessive drop in the chemical dopamine, a key to muscle movement, leading to such side effects as tremors and stiffness. But schizophrenics may soon stop getting the bad with the good. Janssen Pharmaceutica Inc., a unit of Johnson & Johnson, is seeking Food & Drug Administration approval of a drug called risperidone that avoids side effects. "It's a superb agent," says Dr. Richard L. Borison, chairman of psychiatry at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta.

Risperidone is also a sign of the huge potential from research into a brain chemical called serotonin. Serotonin acts as a messenger, switching nerve cells on and off, and in so doing provokes subtle changes that modulate mood and behavior. Imbalances of the chemical may cause such psychiatric ills as anxiety, depression, addiction, and schizophrenia. The chemical is implicated, too, in migraine headaches and nausea. Cures for those represent markets worth billions, so big drug houses such as Glaxo, Eli Lilly, Merck, and Marion Merrell Dow are on the case. "Serotonin is one of the most fertile grounds for drug development," says Paul R. Hartig, vice-president for research at Synaptic Pharmaceutical Corp., a drug startup in Paramus, N.J.