Posted by jd on August 20, 1999, at 0:26:17
In reply to mirapex as treatment for depression, posted by marjorie on August 19, 1999, at 17:13:19
Hi,
You might also be interested in the following articles on mirapex (pramipexole), which I pulled from the PubMed internet database.
Best,
JD
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Int Clin Psychopharmacol 1997 Jul;12 Suppl 3:S7-14The mesolimbic dopamine system as a target for rapid antidepressant action.
Willner P
Department of Psychology, University of Wales, Swansea, UK.Chronic treatment with antidepressant drugs produces a variety of changes in dopaminergic neurotransmission, most notably a sensitization of behavioural responses to agonists acting at dopamine D2/D3 receptors within the nucleus accumbens. Evidence from animal models of depression (the forced swim test and the chronic mild stress procedure) indicates that these effects are crucial for the therapeutic effect of antidepressants in these models. Antidepressant-like effects in animal models are also seen with drugs that act directly on the dopaminergic system. Because of its prolonged time-course, the chronic mild stress procedure can be used to examine onset latencies. Some dopamine-active drugs (e.g. the catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibitor tolcapone; D2/D3 agonists administered intermittently) are active in this procedure but have a time-course comparable to that of conventional antidepressants. Other dopamine-active drugs may have a more rapid onset; the evidence to date suggests this possibility for the D2/D3 agonist pramipexole and the preferential presynaptic antagonist amisulpride. In clinical studies, rapid-onset latencies have been claimed for the D2/D3 agonist roxindole, the preferential presynaptic antagonist sulpiride and the relatively selective dopamine-uptake inhibitor amineptine. The mechanisms that might give rise to a rapid onset of dopamine-mediated antidepressant effects are discussed.
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J Neurol Sci 1999 Feb 1;163(1):25-31
Pramipexole--a new dopamine agonist for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Bennett JP Jr, Piercey MF
Neurology and Psychiatric Research, University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville 22908, USA. jpb8u@virginia.eduAlthough L-DOPA is the current 'gold standard' for treatment of Parkinson's disease, its effectiveness fades rapidly and its use results in serious motor fluctuations (on-off, wearing off, freezing, involuntary movements) for most patients with Parkinson's disease. Pramipexole is an aminothiazole dopamine agonist with selective actions at dopamine receptors belonging to the D2 subfamily, where it possesses full activity similar to dopamine itself. Pramipexole's preferential affinity for the D3 receptor subtype could contribute to efficacy in the treatment of both the motor and psychiatric symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Both in vitro and in vivo studies in animals suggest that pramipexole possesses numerous neuroprotective properties, including dopamine autoreceptor agonist properties, antioxidant properties, ability to block the mitochondrial permeability transition pore and the ability to stimulate the release of trophic factors. Clinical studies have demonstrated that pramipexole has excellent pharmacokinetic properties and that it is an effective monotherapy in treating early Parkinson's disease and an effective adjunctive therapy with L-DOPA in treating late Parkinson's disease. In addition, pramipexole has demonstrated efficacy in a clinical trial for the treatment of major depression. In the early disease studies, pramipexole was able to retard the need for L-DOPA treatment for several years. Thus, a new 'L-DOPA-sparing' paradigm for treating Parkinson's disease may now be possible, whereby patients are initially treated with pramipexole and L-DOPA is added only as necessary.
> Hi,
> I have received advice from a psychiatrist that I should
> perhaps try Mirapex for my depression. I have been on
> many, many different medications and combinations but
> nothing has work (although Nardil did help some). The
> advice was a dopamine agonist. But my HMO will not
> authorize the medication unless I can find case reports
> supporting this use of Mirapex. Does anyone know of such
> reports or where I might find them. The Psychiatrist
> I'm working with asked me to find the studies on the internet
> if I could - but I'm not having any luck. Please help
> if you know anything.
poster:jd
thread:10374
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/19990814/msgs/10405.html