Impairment of Serotonergic Transmission by L-DOPA - Mechanisms and Implications
"The interaction between L-DOPA and 5-HT transmission is especially relevant in those Parkinson's disease (PD) patients that suffer dyskinesia, comorbid anxiety or depression, since the efficacy of antidepressants or 5-HT compounds may be affected."
Frontiers | Impairment of Serotonergic Transmission by the Antiparkinsonian Drug L-DOPA: Mechanisms and Clinical Implications | Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience |
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Thanks for your input billbobby21.
When you say "Carbidopa also decreases the effectiveness of L-dopa as it depletes Vitamin B6 which is a co-factor in the conversion of L-dopa to Dopamine.", you seem to be focusing on the tree and ignoring the forest. Carbidopa can not cross the blood brain barrier (BBB). Thus, carbidopa only inhibits the enzymatic action of AADC outside of the brain, which actually INCREASES the effectiveness of L-dopa, enabling much smaller doses of L-dopa to be used. When carbidopa is not used (e.g. Hinz protocol) much larger doses of L-dopa are needed, and these large doses of L-dopa can cause nausea (unless compensated for by the use of (large doses of?) 5-HTP (and other supplements?). The main message I get from the research paper is that the effect of L-dopa on the serotonergic system (in different parts of the brain) is quite complex, and still not fully understood. I also noticed that this research paper makes no reference to the research papers written by Hinz et al. Jeff |
Thanks jeffreyn.
I think that the review is very informative - a good balance between the basic science and its potential (and important) clinical implications. |
By co-incidence, Prof. Frank Church has recently written an interesting post about B vitamins (folate, B6, B12) and carbidopa/levodopa therapy.
The main message seems to be that, if you take c/l, don't overdo the vitamin B6 supplements. B Vitamins (Folate, B6, B12) Reduce Homocysteine Levels Produced by Carbidopa/Levodopa Therapy | Journey with Parkinson's |
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