Dopamine Recovery
Currently, the choice of drugs for the treatment of Parkinson's disease is limited, the goal of therapy is to maintain dopamine levels in the brain and slow the progression of the disease. The destruction of dopamine nerve cells in Parkinson's disease is likely due to oxidative stress and a decrease in the level of glutathione, a chemical produced in the brain to protect against oxidation.
N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) is a natural antioxidant currently used to protect the liver from paracetamol overdose. Several studies have shown that intravenous administration of NAC increases the level of glutathione in the brain, but it was not known whether dopamine levels increase and whether the function of neurons is restored.
Earlier it became known that NAC can enhance the effects of dopamine in patients with Parkinson's disease. A group of researchers from Thomas Jefferson University tracked dopamine reuptake through brain scans. A study was conducted with 42 patients with Parkinson's disease receiving standard treatment. They were divided into two groups: the participants of the first group received NAC (orally and intravenously) for three months in addition to the main treatment, the second group was a control group, the patients received only standard treatment. Patients from the experimental group received NAC at a dosage of 50 mg/kg intravenously once a week and 500 mg orally twice a day on the remaining days.
The results were evaluated clinically using the Unified Parkinson's Disease Assessment Scale (UPDRS), which reflects various symptoms, including cognitive and motor functions. The patients also underwent a brain scan with visualization (DaTscan SPECT, scintigraphy after intravenous administration of a drug containing a radioactive isotope of iodine), which measures the amount of dopamine transporter in the basal ganglia, since this area suffers from Parkinson's disease more than others. Thus, the researchers determined the degree of neuronal recovery. Patients were examined at the very beginning and after three months of taking NAC or standard therapy.
Patients receiving NAC showed an improvement in dopamine transporter binding by 4-9%, as well as an improvement on the UPDRS scale by about 14% compared to the control group.
The researchers intend to continue working in this direction and hope that they will be able to identify new opportunities for the treatment of patients with Parkinson's disease.
Article by D. A. Monti et al. N‐Acetyl Cysteine Is Associated With Dopaminergic Improvement in Parkinson's Disease published in the journal Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics.
Aminat Adzhieva, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru according to Eurekalert: Antioxidant precursor molecule could improve Parkinson's.