(PHILADELPHIA) – N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a naturally occurring molecule that replenishes one of the body’s antioxidants and now shows potential benefit as part of a standard course of treatment for patients with Parkinson's disease, according to a study published in the journal, Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics. The study found improvements in dopamine levels, the primary neurotransmitter that is specifically decreased in Parkinson’s disease, as well as improvements in clinical evaluations of the patients’ mental and physical abilities. The study was performed by the Department of Integrative Medicine and Nutritional Sciences, as well as the Departments of Neurology and Radiology, at Thomas Jefferson University.
Current treatments for Parkinson's disease are generally limited to temporarily replacing dopamine in the brain along with medications designed to slow the progression of the disease. The destruction of dopamine nerve cells in Parkinson’s disease appears to result in large part due to oxidative stress which lowers levels of glutathione, a chemical produced by the brain to counteract oxidative stress. NAC is an oral supplement, and also comes in an intravenous form that is used to protect the liver in acetaminophen overdose. Several initial studies have shown that NAC administration increases glutathione levels in the brain, but it has not been tested whether such an effect would augment dopamine levels as neurons recover function. The current study tested this by tracking dopamine re-uptake via brain scans.