POMC and major depressive disorder: The hypothalamus secretes corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) causing the production of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) by the pituitary gland, which stimulates corticosteroid synthesis in the cortex of the adrenal gland [60].The neuroinflammation hypothesis in the pathogenesis of depression assumes that, under psychosocial stressors, proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines are released, which mediate an inflammatory state in the CNS.