This book provides a reference guide describing the current status of medication in all major psychiatric and neurological indications, together with comparisons of pharmacological treatment strategies in clinical settings in Europe, USA, Japan and China. In addition, it highlights herbal medicine as used in China and Japan, as well as complementary medicine and nutritional aspects. This novel approach offers international readers a global approach in a single dedicated publication and is also a valuable resource for anyone interested in comparing treatments for psychiatric disorders in three different cultural areas. There are three volumes devoted to Basic Principles and General Aspects, offering a general overview of psychopharmacotherapy (Vol. 1); Classes, Drugs and Special Aspects covering the role of psychotropic drugs in the field of psychiatry and neurology (Vol. 2) and Applied Psychopharmacotherapy focusing on applied psychopharmacotherapy (Vol. 3). These books are invaluable to psychiatrists, neurologists, neuroscientists, medical practitioners and clinical psychologists.
With its focus on drugs so recently introduced that they have yet to be found in any other textbooks or general references, the information and insight found here makes this a genuinely unique handbook and reference. Following the successful approach of the previous volumes in the series, inventors and primary developers of successful drugs from both industry and academia tell the story of the drug's discovery and describe the sometimes twisted route from the first drug candidate molecule to the final marketed drug. The 11 case studies selected describe recent drugs ranging across many therapeutic fields and provide a representative cross-section of present-day drug developments. Backed by plenty of data and chemical information, the insight and experience of today's top drug creators makes this one of the most useful training manuals that a junior medicinal chemist may hope to find. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry has endorsed and sponsored this project because of its high educational merit.
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders and it is caused by a loss of dopamine (DA) producing neurons in the basal ganglia in the brain. The PD patient suffers from motor symptoms such as tremor, bradykinesia and rigidity and treatment with levodopa (LD), the precursor of DA, has positive effects on these symptoms. Several factors affect the availability of orally given LD. Gastric emptying (GE) is one factor and it has been shown to be delayed in PD patients resulting in impaired levodopa uptake. Different enzymes metabolize LD on its way from the gut to the brain resulting in less LD available in the brain and more side effects from the metabolites. By adding dopa decarboxylase inhibitors (carbidopa or benserazide) or COMT-inhibitors (e.g. entacapone) the bioavailability of LD increases significantly and more LD can pass the blood-brain-barrier and be converted to DA in the brain. It has been considered of importance to avoid high levodopa peaks in the brain because this seems to induce changes in postsynaptic dopaminergic neurons causing disabling motor complications in PD patients. More continuously given LD, e.g. duodenal or intravenous (IV) infusions, has been shown to improve these motor complications. Deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN DBS) has also been proven to improve motor complications and to make it possible to reduce the LD dosage in PD patients. In this doctoral thesis the main purpose is to study the pharmacokinetics of LD in patients with PD and motor complications; in blood and subcutaneous tissue and study the effect of GE and PD stage on LD uptake and the effect of continuously given LD (CDS) on LD uptake and GE; in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) when adding the peripheral enzyme inhibitors entacapone and carbidopa to LD infusion IV; in brain during STN DBSand during oral or IV LD treatment. To conclude, LD uptake is more favorable in PD patients with less severe disease and GE is delayed in PD patients. No obvious relation between LD uptake and GE or between GE and PD stage is seen and CDS decreases the LD levels. Entacapone increases the maximal concentration of LD in blood and CSF. This is more evident with additional carbidopa and important to consider in avoiding high LD peaks in brain during PD treatment. LD in brain increases during both oral and IV LD treatment and the DA levels follows LD well indicating that PD patients still have capacity to metabolize LD to DA despite probable pronounced nigral degeneration. STN DBS seems to increase putaminal DA levels and together with IV LD treatment also increases LD in brain possibly explaining why it is possible to decrease LD medication after STN DBS surgery. Parkinsons sjukdom (PS) är en av de vanligaste s.k. neurodegenerativasjukdomarna och orsakas av förlust av dopamin(DA)producerande nervceller i hjärnan. Detta orsakar motoriska symptom såsom skakningar, stelhet och förlångsammade rörelser. Levodopa (LD) är ett ämne, som kan omvandlas till DA i hjärnan och ge symptomlindring och det är oftast förstahandsval vid behandling av patienter med PS. Flera faktorer påverkar tillgängligheten av LD, bl.a. den hastighet som magsäcken tömmer sig med och denna verkar förlångsammad hos personer med PS vilket ger sämre tillgänglighet av LD i blodet och därmed i hjärnan. LD bryts även ner i hög grad av olika enzym ute i kroppen vilket leder till mindre mängd LD som hamnar i hjärnan och till fler nedbrytningsprodukter som orsakar biverkningar. Tillägg av enzymhämmare leder till ökad mängd LD som kan nå hjärnan och omvandlas till DA. Det anses viktigt att undvika höga toppar av LD i hjärnan då dessa verkar bidra till utvecklandet av besvärliga motoriska komplikationer hos patienter med PS. Om LD ges mer kontinuerligt, exempelvis som en kontinuerlig infusion in i tarmen eller i blodet, så minskar dessa motoriska komplikationer. Inopererande av stimulatorer i vissa delar av hjärnan (DBS) har också visat sig minska dessa motoriska komplikationer och även resultera i att man kan minska LD-dosen. Huvudsyftet med den här avhandlingen är att studera LD hos patienter med PS; i blod och fettvävnad då LD ges i tablettform och se om det finns något samband med LD-upptag och hastigheten på magsäckstömningen (MT) och om kontinuerligt given LD påverkar LD-upptaget eller MT; i blod och i ryggmärgsvätska då enzymhämmarna entakapon och karbidopa tillsätts LD; i hjärna vid behandling med DBS och då LD ges både som tablett och som infusion i blodet. Sammanfattningsvis kan vi se att LD-upptaget är mer gynnsamt hos patienter med PS i tidigare skede av sjukdomens komplikationsfas. MT är förlångsammad hos patienter med PS och det är inget tydligt samband mellan LD-upptag och MT eller mellan MT och sjukdomsgrad. Kontinuerligt given LD minskar LDnivåerna. Enzymhämmaren entakapon ökar den maximala koncentrationen av LD i blod och ryggmärgsvätska och effekten är mer tydlig vid tillägg av karbidopa vilket är viktigt att ta i beaktande vid behandling av PS för att undvika höga toppar av LD i hjärnan. LD ökar i hjärnan då man behandlar med LD i tablettform och som infusion i blodet och DA-nivåerna i hjärnan följer LD väl vilket visar på att patienter med PS fortfarande kan omvandla LD till DA trots trolig uttalad brist av de DA-producerande nervcellerna i hjärnan. DBS verkar öka DA i vissa områden i hjärnan och tillsammans med LD-infusion i blodet verkar det även öka LD i hjärnan och det kan förklara varför man kan sänka LDdosen efter DBS-operation.
This book emphasizes treatment options for Parkinson's disease, providing the necessary clinical and scientific basis for the foundations of solid therapeutics.
Highly Commended, BMA Medical Book Awards 2014 This volume has long prevailed as one of the leading resources on Parkinson's disease (PD). Fully updated with practical and engaging chapters on pathology, neurochemistry, etiology, and breakthrough research, this source spans every essential topic related to the identification, assessment, and treatment of PD. Reflecting the many advances that have taken place in the management of PD, this volume promotes a multidisciplinary approach to care and supplies new sections on the latest pharmacologic, surgical, and rehabilitative therapies, as well as essential diagnostic, imaging, and nonmotor management strategies. New to this edition: • Early identification of premotor symptoms • Potential disease modification agents • Physical and occupational therapy
Volume 95 of International Review of Neurobiology focuses on Catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibition, and its clinical application in relation to Parkinson's disease. Chapters cover COMT gene and proteins, L-dopa treatment in Parkinson's disease, the latest research on COMT inhibitors and their clinical applications, as well as future prospects for their use. - Up-to-date summary of biochemistry and pharmacology of COMT and its inhibitors - Preclinical models in COMT inhibitor devlopment - Transgenic COMT mice – latest information summarized - Chemistry of COMT inhibitors and their design with molecular modelling - COMT gene and its regulation and relation to dopamine related diseases - Role of cofactor SAM regulation in relation to homocysteine - Nonclinical and clinical safety of COMT inhibitors summarized - Future prospects of COMT inhibitors in Parkinson's disease
This e-book will review special features of the cerebral circulation and how they contribute to the physiology of the brain. It describes structural and functional properties of the cerebral circulation that are unique to the brain, an organ with high metabolic demands and the need for tight water and ion homeostasis. Autoregulation is pronounced in the brain, with myogenic, metabolic and neurogenic mechanisms contributing to maintain relatively constant blood flow during both increases and decreases in pressure. In addition, unlike peripheral organs where the majority of vascular resistance resides in small arteries and arterioles, large extracranial and intracranial arteries contribute significantly to vascular resistance in the brain. The prominent role of large arteries in cerebrovascular resistance helps maintain blood flow and protect downstream vessels during changes in perfusion pressure. The cerebral endothelium is also unique in that its barrier properties are in some way more like epithelium than endothelium in the periphery. The cerebral endothelium, known as the blood-brain barrier, has specialized tight junctions that do not allow ions to pass freely and has very low hydraulic conductivity and transcellular transport. This special configuration modifies Starling's forces in the brain microcirculation such that ions retained in the vascular lumen oppose water movement due to hydrostatic pressure. Tight water regulation is necessary in the brain because it has limited capacity for expansion within the skull. Increased intracranial pressure due to vasogenic edema can cause severe neurologic complications and death.
