The mood stabilizer valproic acid stimulates GABA neurogenesis from rat forebrain stem cells.

Valproate, an anticonvulsant drug used to treat bipolar disorder, was studied for its ability to promote neurogenesis from embryonic rat cortical or striatal primordial stem cells. Six days of valproate exposure increased by up to fivefold the number and percentage of tubulin beta III-immunopositive neurons, increased neurite outgrowth, and decreased by fivefold the number of astrocytes without changing the number of cells. Valproate also promoted neuronal differentiation in human fetal forebrain stem cell cultures.