Vitamin D and N-Acetyl cysteine supplementation in treatment resistant depressive disorder patients: a general review.

Vitamin D and N-Acetyl cysteine supplementation in treatment resistant depressive disorder patients: a general review. Curr Pharm Des. 2020 Apr 05;: Authors: di Michele F, Talamo A, Niolu C, Siracusano A Abstract Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is often a lifetime and disabling mental illness as individuals with MDD might not benefit from standard-therapy both pharmacological and psychosocial interventions. Novel therapies are therefore required. It was shown by recent preclinical and clinical studies that a dysfunction of glutamatergic neurotransmission might be involved in the pathophysiology of MDD. Furthermore, neuroimmune alterations could have a significant role in the pathogenesis of MDD. Vitamin D is a neurosteroid hormone essential for several metabolic processes, immune responses, and for regulating neurotrophic- neuroprotective processes, neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity. Recent studies have also shown a Vitamin D deficiency in patients with severe psychiatric disorders, including MDD. Lately clinical studies have shown the neuroprotective action of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) through a modulation of inflammatory pathways and via the modulation of synaptic release of glutamate in corticosubcortical brain regions the cysteine-glutamate antiporter. This paper reviews the therapeutic use of Vitamin D and NAC and among individuals with refractory MDD to the first- line pharmacological interventions, reviewing the clinical...
Source: Current Pharmaceutical Design - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Authors: Tags: Curr Pharm Des Source Type: research