Seek and ye shall find... a balanced perspective?

 

A double-blind placebo-controlled study of vitamin E treatment of tardive dyskinesia. HERE

 

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Oxidative Damage and Schizophrenia: An Overview of the Evidence and Its Therapeutic Implications.
Review Article

CNS Drugs. 15(4):287-310, 2001.
Yao, Jeffrey K. 1 2; Reddy, Ravinder D. 2; van Kammen, Daniel P. 3

Abstract:
Free radicals are highly reactive chemical species generated during normal metabolic processes, which in excess can lead to membrane damage. Elaborate antioxidant defence systems exist to protect against oxidative stress.

There is accumulating evidence of altered antioxidant capacity in schizophrenia. Membrane dysfunction can be secondary to free radical-mediated pathology, and may contribute to specific aspects of schizophrenic symptomatology and complications of its treatment. Specifically, free radical-mediated abnormalities may contribute to the development of a number of clinically significant consequences, including prominent negative symptoms, tardive dyskinesia, neurological 'soft' signs and parkinsonian symptoms. Our previous results showing altered membrane dynamics and antioxidant enzyme activities in schizophrenia, and findings from other investigators, are consistent with the notion of free radical-mediated neurotoxicity in schizophrenia. These findings provide a theoretical basis from which the development of novel therapeutic strategies such as fatty acid and antioxidant supplementation can occur in the future.

Copyright 2001 Adis International

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Vitamin B6 as add-on treatment in chronic schizophrenic and schizoaffective patients: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

• Lerner V,
• Miodownik C,
• Kaptsan A,
• Cohen H,
• Loewenthal U,
• Kotler M.

Ministry of Health Mental Health Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er-Sheva, Israel. lernervld@yahoo.com

BACKGROUND: Vitamin B6, or pyridoxine, plays an intrinsic role in the synthesis of certain neurotransmitters that take part in development of psychotic states. Several reports indicate that vitamin B6 may be a factor in a number of psychiatric disorders and related conditions, such as autism, Alzheimer's disease, hyperactivity, learning disability, anxiety disorder, and depression. Moreover, there are anecdotal reports of a reduction in psychotic symptoms after vitamin B6 supplementation of psychopharmacologic treatment of patients suffering from schizophrenia or organic mental disorder. The aim of this study was to examine whether vitamin B6 therapy influences psychotic symptoms in patients suffering from schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. METHOD: The effects of the supplementation of vitamin B6 to antipsychotic treatment on positive and negative symptoms in 15 schizophrenic and schizoaffective patients (DSM-IV criteria) were examined in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study spanning 9 weeks. All patients had stable psychopathology for at least 1 month before entry into the study and were maintained on treatment with their prestudy psychoactive and antiparkinsonian medications throughout the study. All patients were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for schizophrenia on a weekly basis. Patients randomly received placebo or vitamin B6, starting at 100 mg/day in the first week and increasing to 400 mg/day in the fourth week by 100-mg increments each week. RESULTS: PANSS scores revealed no differences between vitamin B6- and placebo-treated patients in amelioration of their mental state. CONCLUSION: Further studies with larger populations and shorter duration of illness are needed to clarify the question of the possible efficacy of vitamin B6 in treatment of psychotic symptoms in schizophrenia

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Vitamin E and Neurodegenerative Disorders Associated with Oxidative Stress

Authors: D. Allan Butterfield ^a;  Alessandra Castegna ^a;  Jennifer Drake ^a;  Giovanni Scapagnini ^b; Vittorio Calabrese ^c

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Affiliations:	a Department of Chemistry, Center of Membrane Sciences, and Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA.
	b Blanchette Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, Rockville, MD 20850, USA.
	c Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Secizone di Biochimica e Biologia Moleculare, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy.

DOI: 10.1080/10284150290028954

Publication Frequency: 6 issues per year

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Published in: Nutritional Neuroscience, Volume 5, Issue 4 2002 , pages 229 - 239

Subjects: Neuroscience; Nutrition;

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Abstract Several neurodegenerative disorders are associated with oxidative stress that is manifested by lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation and other markers. Included in these disorders in which oxidative stress is thought to play an important role in their pathogenesis are Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), tardive dyskinesia, Huntington's disease (HD), and multiple sclerosis. This review presents some of the chemistry of vitamin E as an antioxidant and summarizes studies in which vitamin E has been employed in these disorders and models thereof.

Keywords: Vitamin E; Oxidative Stress; Neurodegenerative Disorders; Protein Oxidation; Lipid Peroxidation