A serotonin releasing agent (SRA) is a type of drug that induces the release of serotonin into the neuronal synaptic cleft. A selective serotonin releasing agent (SSRA) is an SRA with less significant or no efficacy in producing neurotransmitter efflux at other types of monoamine neurons.[1]
SSRAs have been used clinically as appetite suppressants, and they have also been proposed as novel antidepressants and anxiolytics with the potential for a faster onset of action and superior efficacy relative to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).[2]
A closely related type of drug is a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI).