Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Progress in Neurotherapeutics and Neuropsychopharmacology 2008
- Triflusal versus Aspirin for the Prevention of Stroke
- The Argatroban and tPA Stroke Study
- Use of Selegiline as Monotherapy and in Combination with Levodopa in the Management of Parkinson's Disease: Perspectives from the MONOCOMB Study
- Ropinirole 24-h Prolonged Release in Advanced Parkinson Disease: Review of a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study (EASE PD-Adjunct Study)
- Insulin Resistance Alzheimer's Disease: Pathophysiology and Treatment
- Targeting Amyloid with Tramiprosate in Patients with Mild-to-Moderate Alzheimer Disease
- Intranasal Zolmitriptan Is Effective and Well Tolerated in Acute Cluster Headache: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Double-Blind Crossover Study
- Optimal Dosing of Immunomodulating Drugs: A Dose-Comparison Study of GA in RRMS
- Tetrathiomolybdate versus Trientine in the Initial Treatment of Neurologic Wilson's Disease
- Randomized Clinical Trials of Pregabalin for Neuropathic Pain: Methods, Results, and Implications
- Effect of Methylphenidate in Patients with Acute Traumatic Brain Injury; a Randomized Clinical Trial
- Improvement in Speeded Cognitive Processing After Anti-epileptic Drug Withdrawal–A Controlled Study in Mono-therapy Patients
- A Randomized-Controlled Trial of Bilateral rTMS for Treatment-Resistant Depression
- Serotonin Related Genes Affect Antidepressant Treatment in Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder
- Night Eating Syndrome and Results from the First Placebo-Controlled Trial of Treatment, with the SSRI Medication, Sertraline: Implications for Clinical Practice
- Modafinil: A Candidate for Pharmacotherapy of Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia
- New Approaches to Treatment of Schizophrenia by Enhancing N-methyl-D-aspartate Neurotransmission
- Subject Index
- Author Index
New Approaches to Treatment of Schizophrenia by Enhancing N-methyl-D-aspartate Neurotransmission
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 May 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Progress in Neurotherapeutics and Neuropsychopharmacology 2008
- Triflusal versus Aspirin for the Prevention of Stroke
- The Argatroban and tPA Stroke Study
- Use of Selegiline as Monotherapy and in Combination with Levodopa in the Management of Parkinson's Disease: Perspectives from the MONOCOMB Study
- Ropinirole 24-h Prolonged Release in Advanced Parkinson Disease: Review of a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study (EASE PD-Adjunct Study)
- Insulin Resistance Alzheimer's Disease: Pathophysiology and Treatment
- Targeting Amyloid with Tramiprosate in Patients with Mild-to-Moderate Alzheimer Disease
- Intranasal Zolmitriptan Is Effective and Well Tolerated in Acute Cluster Headache: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Double-Blind Crossover Study
- Optimal Dosing of Immunomodulating Drugs: A Dose-Comparison Study of GA in RRMS
- Tetrathiomolybdate versus Trientine in the Initial Treatment of Neurologic Wilson's Disease
- Randomized Clinical Trials of Pregabalin for Neuropathic Pain: Methods, Results, and Implications
- Effect of Methylphenidate in Patients with Acute Traumatic Brain Injury; a Randomized Clinical Trial
- Improvement in Speeded Cognitive Processing After Anti-epileptic Drug Withdrawal–A Controlled Study in Mono-therapy Patients
- A Randomized-Controlled Trial of Bilateral rTMS for Treatment-Resistant Depression
- Serotonin Related Genes Affect Antidepressant Treatment in Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder
- Night Eating Syndrome and Results from the First Placebo-Controlled Trial of Treatment, with the SSRI Medication, Sertraline: Implications for Clinical Practice
- Modafinil: A Candidate for Pharmacotherapy of Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia
- New Approaches to Treatment of Schizophrenia by Enhancing N-methyl-D-aspartate Neurotransmission
- Subject Index
- Author Index
Summary
ABSTRACT
Background: There is a great need to develop new antipsychotic agents. In addition to dopaminergic neurotransmission, glutamatergic neurotransmission has been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. The most compelling link between glutamatergic N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) neurotransmission and schizophrenia concerns the mechanism of action of the psychotomimetic drug phencyclidine and the dissociative anesthetic, ketamine; both are NMDA antagonists. The psychosis induced by the NMDA antagonists causes not only positive symptoms similar to the action of dopaminergic enhancers but also negative symptoms and cognitive deficits typical of schizophrenia in normal volunteers and worsening of the psychotic symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. Accordingly, enhancing NMDA neurotransmission should benefit the symptoms of schizophrenia. Methods: Most clinical trials were done by the addition of the NMDA-enhancing agents, glycine, D-serine, D-alanine, D-cycloserine and sarcosine to the stable regimens of antipsychotics in double-blind, placebo-controlled designs. Results: When taken together, the trials of NMDA-enhancing agents in patients with chronic schizophrenia receiving stable dose of antipsychotics, the NMDA-enhancing agents were effective in the domains of negative symptoms, cognition, depression, positive symptoms and general psychopathology. The agents also significantly improved extrapyramidal symptoms. No significant side-effects or safety concerns emerged. Interpretation: In addition to testing more lead compounds, dose-finding and long-term trials are required to determine the optimal dose and functional improvement capacity of NMDA receptor agonist. The agents may also be applied to prevention and the treatment for prodromal phases of the illness.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Progress in Neurotherapeutics and Neuropsychopharmacology , pp. 275 - 290Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008
- 2
- Cited by