Acetyl-L-carnitine and alpha-lipoic acid: possible neurotherapeutic agents for mood disorders?

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Acetyl-L-Carnitine and Alpha-Lipoic Acid - Possible Treatments for Mood

Disorders

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Reference: " Acetyl-L-carnitine and alpha-lipoic acid: possible

neurotherapeutic agents for mood disorders? " Soczynska JK, Kennedy SH,

et al, Expert Opin Investig Drugs, 2008; 17(6): 827-43. (Address:

S. McIntyre, Associate Professor University Health Network, Mood

Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, Departments of Psychiatry and

Pharmacology, 399 Bathurst Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5T 2S8. E-mail:

roger.mcintyre@... ).

Summary: In an article reviewing studies of English-language articles

published between January 1966 and March 2007 and available on PubMed,

both L-carnitine and alpha-lipoic acid were found to offer

neurotherapeutic effects. The mechanisms by which those effects were

found varied, and included: antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and

metabolic regulation. Acetyl-L-carnitine was found to exhibit

anti-depressant effects in elderly subjects. The authors conclude,

" L-carnitine and alpha-lipoic acid are pleiotropic agents capable of

offering neuroprotective and possibly cognitive-enhancing effects for

neuropsychiatric disorders in which cognitive deficits are an integral

feature. " Additional research into these effects is warranted.

--

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