Research from Catholic University of Korea, Department of Psychiatry provides new data about schizophrenia therapy
2007 JUL 9 -- New research, "Therapeutic possibilities of cysteamine in the treatment of schizophrenia," is the subject of a report. According to recent research published in the journal Medical Hypotheses, "Schizophrenia has complicated pathogeneses that is not able to be explained by any one supposed hypothesis, although alterations in dopamine neurotransmission have been widely accepted as the most plausible mechanism. A transition from traditional typical antipsychotics to contemporary atypical antipsychotics which have significantly improved tolerability and enhanced specific efficacy has been also made based on this dopamine hypothesis." "Cysteamine is a natural product of mammalian cells and found to be useful pharmacological alternative. A number of evidence suggests that cysteamine may control directly or indirectly dopamine neurotransmission in nucleus accumbens and other schizophrenia-related brain regions. Systemic cysteamine injection mitigated the apomorphine-induced stereotypy as well as decreasing motor stimulant effects of amphetamine, which favor cysteamine over animal models of schizophrenia relative to hyperactivity of dopaminergic pathway. In addition, cysteamine showed neuroprotective effects by way of enhancing central and serum brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) that has been proved to be altered in patients with schizophrenia. Antipsychotic drugs exert their effect partly by modifying the synthesis and distribution of BDNF in selected brain region. Cysteamine was effective to reverse a disruption in prepulse inhibition, an endophenotypic marker of schizophrenia. Cysteamine can also stimulate the release of cortical dopamine, which is interesting in that decreased dopaminergic function in the cerebral cortex has been repeatedly demonstrated in patients with schizophrenia and associated with prominent depressive and negative symptoms. Cysteamine can also increase an important antioxidant, glutathione. Finally, cysteamine treatment was found to decrease weight gain, cataleptic behavior, and serum prolactin levels, which are the major beneficial properties of contemporary atypical antipsychotics," wrote C.U. Pae and colleagues, Catholic University of Korea, Department of Psychiatry. The researchers concluded: "Hence, further explorations of therapeutic implication of cysteamine for schizophrenia in preclinical studies should be warranted in future." Pae and colleagues published their study in Medical Hypotheses (Therapeutic possibilities of cysteamine in the treatment of schizophrenia. Medical Hypotheses, 2007;69(1):199-202). For additional information, contact C.U. Pae, The Catholic University of Korea, Dept. of Psychiatry, Kangnam St. Mary' Hospital, College of Medicine, 505 Banpo-Dong, Seocho-Gu, Seoul 137-701, South Korea. The publisher's contact information for the journal Medical Hypotheses is: Churchill Livingstone, Journal Production Dept., Robert Stevenson House, 1-3 Baxters Place, Leith Walk, Edinburgh EH1 3AF, Midlothian, Scotland. Keywords: South Korea, Seoul, Schizophrenia Therapy, Antipsychotic, Cysteamine, Dopamine Hydrochloride, Drugs, Mental Health, Nephropathic Cystinosis Therapy, Pharmaceuticals, Psychiatry, Radiation-Protective Agent, Schizophrenia, Therapy, Treatment. This article was prepared by Biotech Business Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2007, Biotech Business Week via NewsRx.com.
|
