An Australian-led study has confirmed a lack of serotonin was a common factor with babies who die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
“The breakthrough offers a “much clearer direction” in the search for a cure for the mysterious syndrome, which still claims one in 2,000 apparently healthy children. Researcher Dr Jhodie Duncan, of the Melbourne-based Florey Neuroscience Institutes, studied cases of infant deaths from confirmed SIDS and other causes. The SIDS babies were found to have lower levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter which regulates the body’s basic life-sustaining functions. “Things like heart rate, blood pressure, sleep cycles, respiration, serotonin plays a very important role in all these things that you need to stay alive,” Dr Duncan said. “Our study has proven that in infants dying of SIDS there is lower TPH2 (a related enzyme) levels and reduced serotonin production.” Earlier research had indicated serotonin production may play a role in SIDS deaths though scientists were yet to determine whether it was more, less or the same as unaffected children. – AAP”
More on this story here.
