Reductions of cellular levels of myo-inositol results in the inhibition of the phosphoinositide cycle. Neurotrophic Factors
Various neurotrophic factors such as BDNF and mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor have been shown to be modulated by various mood stabilizers. History
Lithium was first used in the 19th century as a treatment for gout after scientists discovered that, at least in the laboratory, lithium could dissolve uric acid crystals isolated from the kidneys. The levels of lithium needed to dissolve urate in the body, however, were toxic. Because of prevalent theories linking excess uric acid to a range of disorders, including depressive and manic disorders, Carl Lange in Denmark and William Alexander Hammond in New York City used lithium to treat mania from the 1870s onwards. By the turn of the 20th century, as theory regarding mood disorders evolved and so-called "brain gout" disappeared as a medical entity, the use of lithium in psychiatry was largely abandoned; however, a number of lithium preparations were still produced for the control of renal calculi and uric acid diathesis. As accumulating knowledge indicated a role for excess sodium intake in hypertension and heart disease, lithium salts were prescribed to patients for use as a replacement for dietary table salt (sodium chloride). This practice and the sale of lithium itself were both banned in 1949, following publication of reports detailing side effects and deaths.Also in 1949, the Australian psychiatrist John Cade rediscovered the usefulness of lithium salts in treating mania.
"Exposing lithiums circadian action"
https://web.archive.org/web/20040811012851/http://www.psycheducation.org/depression/meds/moodstabilizers.htm
"Lithium Basics"
CID 11125 — PubChem Compound Summary (Lithium Carbonate)
N05AN01 (WHO)