Major depression and the basal ganglia

In the last decade, major changes in our understanding of basal ganglia functions have occurred. Traditionally the basal ganglia were considered to be involved only in the modulation of movement. Recent research has suggested that the basal ganglia also take part in complex fronto-subcortical networks that have an important role in cognition, reward, and mood regulation. The authors review recent findings that implicate basal ganglia abnormalities in the pathophysiology of mood disorders and discuss their potential implications for future developments in the pharmacotherapy of depressive disorder.