The aim of this survey paper is to draw attention to the antiviral effects of the antidepressants.
Recent experience with CoV-2 infection and difficulties in prevention and therapy of COVID-19
point out the lack of specific antiviral drugs, leading to the use of repurposed drugs. A number
of drugs, registered for various disorders for decades including antidepressants were considered
in the prevention and treatment of COVID. Preclinical studies verified the antiviral effects of
some antidepressants, first of all fluoxetine and fluvoxamine. These drugs inhibit the entry of
viruses into the cell, arrest their intracellular pathway, and block their replication if used in the
dose of usual human therapy, according to most of the studies. However, there are only a few
in vivo studies available on the antiviral effects of antidepressants. According to observation of
French clinicians in the course of the pandemia in COVID-19 therapy, epidemiological studies
of the morbidity and mortality of patients on antidepressants, the association of SSRI use
and reduced intubation and mortality confirm the results of in vitro trials in clinical practice.
However, antidepressants are not yet registered for infectious diseases, their beneficial effects
can be exploited in case of comorbidity or post-COVID syndrome.

(Neuropsychopharmacol Hung 2021; 23(2): 240–248)

Keywords: antidepressants, antiviral, COVID

This is an outline of a period in the history of “madness.” It begins in the mid-19th century
with the separation of the diagnostic concept of “psychosis” from the all-embracing diagnostic
concept of “neurosis”, and the discovery of “psychic refl ex” that was to become known as
“conditional refl ex.” It continues with the development of the language of psychiatry, in
“psychopathology” and “psychiatric nosology:” during the late-19th and early 20th century; the
forgetting of the “language’ by the late 1980s, and the revival of the language in the introduction
of “structural psychopathology” and assessment instruments as the Diagnostic Criteria of
Research (DCR) and Composite Diagnostic Evaluations (CODE), subsequently. The need for
“nosological homotyping” is considered for the generation of pharmacologically homogenous
psychiatric populations for neuropsychopharmacological research and the possibility of using
“structural psychopathology” for linking mental pathology with conditional refl ex variables is
raised. The outline concludes with the assertion that in the light of developments, time has
come to replace the term “psychiatry” with the term “neuronology.”

(Neuropsychopharmacol Hung 2021; 23(2): 249-265)

Keywords: words: psychiatry, neuronology, neurosis, psychosis, nosology, classifi cation,
Leonhard

Both worldwide and in Hungary, telemedicine and telepsychiatric guidelines and legal
regulations have come into force in connection with the outbreak of the COVID-19
epidemic, which are aimed at both the current situation and the future. Due to the need
for social distance and isolation during the epidemic, there was a need for the use of
telemedicinal solutions in psychiatric care as well. This consisted primarily of telephone
and videophone visits from the home of psychiatric patients. By now, we seem to be
facing protracted waves of epidemics, which could also mean a prolongation of the
quarantine state, so changes in psychiatric patient care are even more necessary and
will be expected, so telemedicine/telepsychiatry is expected to gain even more ground.
The rapid development and introduction of the practical application of telepsychiatric
applications, which appeared many years ago (mainly in the United States), can be
expected. In the United States, for example, the frequency of telepsychiatric visits is
predicted to be 47% for the near future, and the American Psychiatric Association is
constantly publishing new and newer guidelines for telepsychiatry related to the COVID-19
epidemic. The recommendation of the Psychiatry and Psychotherapy section of the
Professional Health College of EMMI in connection with the COVID-19 care system has
also been published in Hungary. According to the latter, the use of telepsychiatry and
e-prescription was also recommended, which is also included in the rules of procedure
issued by the Child Psychiatry Section.

(Neuropsychopharmacol Hung 2021; 23(2): 266-271)

Keywords: COVID-19, telepsychiatry, telemedicine, regulations

Dopamine D3 receptors belong to the dopamine D2-like receptor family, which also includes
D2 and D4 receptors. These receptors have limited anatomical distribution and are mainly
expressed in brain regions and pathways that typically mediate the actions of antipsychotic
drugs and medication used against Parkinson’s disease (PD). The development of cariprazine,
the fi rst D2/D3 partial agonist with prominent affinity and preferential activity at D3 receptors
over other dopamine receptor subtypes was a landmark that provided new insights into
the neurochemical and physiological functions of D3 receptors. Preclinical studies and
clinical trials provided evidence for the clinical advantages of cariprazine in the treatment of
schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Cariprazine became the first antipsychotic drug approved
for the treatment of manic, mixed and depressive episodes in bipolar I disorder. Antagonism
of D3 receptors may play a role in ameliorating symptoms of levodopa-induced dyskinesia
and psychosis in PD patients treated with levodopa/carbidopa. Accordingly, D3 receptors
constitute attractive targets for developing novel drugs for the improved treatment of different
psychiatric and neurological disorders.

(Neuropsychopharmacol Hung 2021; 23(2): 272–280)

Keywords: antipsychotic drugs, bipolar disorder, cariprazine, dopamine D3 receptors,
Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia