A boom is under way in developing drugs for treating schizophrenia. Several new pharmaceuticals are now available or in trials, and research is continuing on even better compounds that will target particular symptoms while avoiding side effects. This approach is one of many recent advances in research on pharmacological treatments for mental illness. As sales of psychoactive drugs soar, opportunities abound for scientists who want to be involved in the creation of yet more of these compounds, which are becoming increasingly complex, effective, and safe.
p Olanzapine, one of four new antischizophrenia drugs, received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval late last year; it is now marketed as Zyprexa by Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co. The other three compounds-quetiapine, sertindole, and ziprasidone-are under FDA review. Each of the four drugs differs somewhat in the effect it has on the brain and subsequently on the drug's ability to address the symptoms ...
