Resveratrol and Depression

Clinical studies of resveratrol in depression have yet to be conducted to prove its effectiveness of anti-depression in real life. This chapter describes absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination of resveratrol. Even though accumulating studies have pointed low bioavailability of resveratrol, a study by Juan and colleagues demonstrated that there were still detectable levels of resveratrol and its metabolites in various tissues by high-performance liquid chromatography method. There is a need for future clinical studies to determine whether resveratrol may be beneficial in depression. Traditionally, the first-line therapeutic antidepressants are tricyclic antidepressants, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin, and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors and monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. Numerous studies have indicated that the long-term increased activity of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is associated with psychiatric disorders, particularly in major depression. Within the last decade, a growing number of literature in both humans and preclinical animal models proposed the oxidative stress hypothesis of depressive disorder.