Clinical Advances of Recent Discoveries about the Interaction between Circadian and Serotoninergic Systems

Abstract

The circadian rhythm and the serotonergic system have anatomical connections and convergent functional association influencing the functioning of the central nervous system. Serotonin is present in several areas of the brain that regulate the circadian rhythm and deregulations in the levels of dopamine have been associated with neurological disorders such as autism, depression, and anxiety. New discoveries have been made about the association of serotonin and circadian rhythm. Thus, the objective of the study was to address the clinical advances on the interaction of these two systems. For this, a bibliographic review in databases Scielo, PubMed, Lilacs and Cochrane was carried out, in which 40 full articles were used. Through genetic, physiological and clinical evidence, the 5-HT and circadian systems of the brain are connected to each other and converge to regulate affective behaviors and pathologies. Rates ever-increasing related to use of selective inhibitors of serotonin reuptake and other drug classes of serotonergic influences are observed, as well as an increasing prevalence of circadian disorders, especially linked to sleep problems.