QUETIAPINE, AN ATYPICAL ANTIPSYCHOTIC

The discovery of antipsychotic agents in the 1950s revolutionized the treatment of schizophrenia. A large body of evidence supports the dopa mine D-2 receptor antagonist's efficacy in the treatment of psychotic symptoms. However, the advent of newer agents seems to point to a more complex interaction of neurotransmission in the pathophysiology of sc hizophrenia. In fact, a defining characteristic of atypical agents is a higher ratio of serotonin (5HT(2)) receptor blockade to D-2 receptor blockade. Clozapine was the first atypical agent to be introduced; it was followed by risperidone, olanzapine, and now quetiapine, which is a dibenzothiazepine derivative structurally related to clozapine and olanzapine.