The protein quality control mechanism in the endoplasmic reticulum is referred to as the unfolded protein response (UPR), and its failure may be involved in the onset of some psychiatric disorders. We showed that induction of the sigma-1 receptor plays a role in the UPR, and suggested the possibility that this mechanism is impaired in disorders such as schizophrenia. We also demonstrated that fluvoxamine induces expression of the sigma-1 receptor. Therefore, it has the potential to be developed as a drug which exerts an anti-ER-stress effect, i. e., protein quality control effect.
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