Preclinical studies have shown that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) treatment, when applied to the developing brain, is associated with long-term changes in the adult serotonergic system. Using pharmacological MRI (phMRI), we here investigated whether SSRIs can also induce such age-dependent changes in the human serotonergic system. We found that the phMRI response to citalopram was decreased in the amygdala only in adult female subjects who had been first exposed to SSRIs early in life, whereas a blunted response was found in subjects first exposed at a later age.
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