1,720,998 research outputs found

    Caerulein treatment of Parkinson's disease.

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    In view of evidence linking cholecystokinin-containing neurons with both dopamine system function and Parkinson's disease pathophysiology, the therapeutic effects of the cholecystokinin analog, caerulein, were evaluated in 10 parkinsonian patients stabilized on L-Dopa therapy. Despite substantially elevated plasma caerulein levels immediately following intramuscular injection of this peptide, no consistent change in neurologic status could be discerned. These negative results may be due to the relatively small amounts of caerulein entering the CNS at dose levels that do not induce gastrointestinal toxicity

    Muscarinic agonist therapy of Alzheimer's disease. A clinical trial of RS-86.

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    Cholinergic projections to the cerebral cortex from certain basal forebrain nuclei degenerate in Alzheimer's disease. Nevertheless, attempts to alleviate this disorder through the administration of drugs that increase the availability of acetylcholine to postsynaptic receptor sites have generally yielded disappointing results. In an attempt to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of cholinomimetics that act independently of the presynaptic cholinergic terminals, a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of the muscarinic agonist RS-86 (2-ethyl-8 methyl-2,8 diazospiro [4.5]-decane-1,3-dione hydrobromide) was undertaken. Eight patients with Alzheimer's disease with mild to moderately advanced dementia received RS-86 orally at maximum individually tolerated dose levels for eight days. Although some verbal and visuospatial tests showed slight alterations, no consistent overall change in cognitive performance could be discerned. These results lend further support to the view that short-term administration of cholinomimetic monotherapies may fail in the symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer's dementia
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