Depression, as many of us know, is more than just a sad or melancholy mood. It’s more than just having “the blues.” Sometimes it can be a very debilitating condition that can prevent people from having productive lives – and in some cases can be a root cause of suicide and/or fatal drug overdoses.

Depression is often considered an imbalance of certain chemicals in the brain, and is treated through various therapies and anti-depressant drugs. However, the very serious level of depression – the living-in-an-abyss type of depression that was behind the recent death of actor and comedian Robin Williams (also known as Major Depressive Disorder, or MDD) – has been very difficult to treat effectively. There has been a trade-off with some therapies – there are some strong anti-depressants in the market, but most have side effects that can be dangerous in their own right – perhaps more so than the depression itself. VistaGen Therapeutics, Inc. (OTCQB: VSTA) is looking to fill this very important mental-health gap with its own potential new antidepressant therapy known as AV-101.

VistaGen’s AV-101 has gone through the initial Phase 1 clinical development focused on human safety and the company is now working toward a significant Phase 2 clinical trial of AV-101 in collaboration with the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH previously awarded the company nearly $9 million for its preclinical and Phase 1 development programs, and the company expects the NIH to sponsor and conduct the impending Phase 2 efficacy study. VistaGen believes AV-101 is a potential new generation antidepressant with a novel mechanism of action to address MDD more rapidly and with fewer and less-severe side effects than other depression therapies currently being used.

With a successful Phase 2 trial which is expected to be completed by the end of 2015, there could be some significant momentum for VistaGen Therapeutics in the mental-health sector, with AV-101 as a novel potential therapy for MDD and other similar mood disorders that affect millions of Americans. Robin Williams’ sad and tragic death has brought MDD more prominently into the forefront, and it will be therapies like AV-101 that will be watched more readily as mental-health professionals look to encourage more diagnoses of depression and other mood disorders so they can be treated early and aggressively. This is an environment for VistaGen Therapeutics to be in the spotlight.

For more information, visit www.vistagen.com

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