Lithium is a ‘gold standard’ drug for treating bipolar
disorder, however not everyone responds in the same way. New research published
in BioMed Central’s open access journal Biology of Mood & Anxiety Disorders
finds that this is true at the levels of gene activation, especially in the
activation or repression of genes which alter the level the apoptosis
(programmed cell death). Most notably BCL2, known to be important for the
therapeutic effects of lithium, did not increase in non-responders. This can be
tested in the blood of patients within four weeks of treatment.