This study just published in PLOS One: N-Acetyl Cysteine May Support Dopamine Neurons in Parkinson's Disease: Preliminary Clinical and Cell Line Data, here: journals.plos.org/plosone/a...
They gave PD patients 50mg/kg NAC via IV once weekly, plus, 600mg capsules 2x day, for 3 months. This was a preliminary study with a dozen patients each in the control and treatment groups. Over the course of the study the UPDRS score in the treatment group dropped by 3 points. For the control group it rose 2 points (lower is better). The effect in the treatment group was statistically significant, as were improvements as measured by DAT scan.
Since most of us are not in a position to get IV NAC weekly it is not clear how much of an effect can be obtained from just oral NAC, however, it certainly can't hurt.
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park_bear
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It is cheap enough to put it into your daily program. I have been taking it for years and look how well I am doing. (sorry, what were we talking about again? ) just kidding or am I?
Repeated-Dose Oral N-acetylcysteine for the Treatment of Parkinson's Disease
This study has been completed.
"Subjects will be provided 6000 mg/day of N-acetylcysteine (capsule) to be divided into 2 equal daily doses and taken orally for approximately 28 days"
Commentary (from me): I am glad to see a clinical trial for NAC and PD has been completed. Though I wonder why the researchers did not modulate a series of doses to see if NAC was effective at lower doses. In investigating NAC I have found studies in which NAC was effective at the lower dose of the study, for example:
N-acetylcysteine reduces disease activity by blocking mammalian target of rapamycin in T cells from systemic lupus erythematosus patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.
RESULTS:
"NAC up to 2.4 gm/day was tolerated by all patients, while 33% of those receiving 4.8 gm/day had reversible nausea. Placebo or NAC 1.2 gm/day did not influence disease activity."
[N-Acetylcysteine: low and high doses in the treatment of chronic obstructive lung diseases in Chernobyl accident liquidators].
AIM:
"To study clinical effectiveness and antioxidant activity of N-acetylcisteine (NAC) in daily doses 600, 1200, 1800 and 2400 mg in Chernobyl wreckers suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD)."
RESULTS:
"Cough intensity diminished insignificantly. Expectoration improved significantly only after intake of 1200 mg/day NAC. In higher doses expectoration difficulties appeared again."
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