Thanks for that zanpar321.

This is a fascinating thread.

One thing which I have been pondering is that thiamine is essential for two enzymes, the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex and 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase, which play key roles in glucose metabolism, leading to production of, in effect, metabolically useful energy (ATP).

Under normal conditions glucose is the only energy source for the brain and it need to continually replenish its ATP (neuro-transmission is energetically expensive).

Naively I would have thought that if thiamine levels in the brain were abnormally low then ATP replenishment would be impaired, leading to systemic neurological effects, rather than effects which are confined to people with PD.

Does anybody know anything about this?

I haven't tried this yet and probably won't. I guess I'm more focused on the uptake method, which is where the B1 deficiency is likely caused so I'm working on benfotiamine for the moment along with some B tabs that you take under your tongue, and directly into the blood. That way I avoid intestinal uptake problems ..

I may give it try later and will definitely remember it ..

Thiamine seems to be good, Benfotiamine maybe better. but I wonder if Sulbutiamine might be best. See link below: Thanks Anagirl! I'm enjoying this crowd research! I'm no doctor but I suggest that before this one is tried, one should check with your doctor. It seems to be a drug available by prescription anyway.

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2210/8/10

Benfotiamine that is practically insoluble in water, organic solvents or oil was solubilized in 200 mM hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin and the mice received a single oral administration of 100 mg/kg. Though thiamine levels rapidly increased in blood and liver to reach a maximum after one or two hours, no significant increase was observed in the brain.

Conclusion

Our results show that, though benfotiamine strongly increases thiamine levels in blood and liver, it has no significant effect in the brain. This would explain why beneficial effects of benfotiamine have only been observed in peripheral tissues, while sulbutiamine, a lipid-soluble thiamine disulfide derivative, that increases thiamine derivatives in the brain as well as in cultured cells, acts as a central nervous system drug.

Maybe this is why the studies we've posted and discussed involved IM injections? Has anyone talked with a researcher or doc about whether/how much thiamine gets into the brain with an IM injection?

Whether oral or IM or benfotiamine-- it still has to cross the BBB to get into the brain.

Pharmacokinetics of high-dose oral thiamine hydrochloride in healthy subjects

"Our study demonstrates that high blood levels of thiamine can be achieved rapidly with oral thiamine hydrochloride. Thiamine is absorbed by both an active and nonsaturable passive process."

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6904/12/4

That is a very well done, useful and interesting study! This sure seems to suggest that oral intake of thiamine can result in reaching clinically useful quantities similar to IV or IM if large enough amounts are taken. At a dose of 1500mg it looks like blood levels reach maximum at about 4 hours. Taking Benfotiamine should be even better. Thanks for finding this study!

This study seems to show that oral intake of thiamine can approach blood concentrations similar to IM uptake. Apparently oral intake approached 78% of IM intake in 5.6 days.

http://link.springer.com/article/10....0278489#page-2