Glycine and Oral D-Cycloserine in Alcoholic Patients and Healthy Subjects
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2008-02-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Question #1: Will glycine ameliorate cognitive deficits? Hypothesis #1: Based on positive
findings conducted with glycine and milacemide, a glycine prodrug, in schizophrenia and
dementia, we expect that glycine will ameliorate cognitive deficits.
Question #2: Will alcoholic patients show enhanced endocrinal effects to glycine? Hypothesis
#2: Based on the dose-related effects of glycine in healthy subjects, we expect that glycine
will increase the endocrinal response to glycine in alcoholic patients with, supposedly,
dysregulated NMDA receptor function.
Question #3: Will D-cycloserine have ethanol-like effects? Hypothesis #3: If inhibition of
NMDA receptor function is fundamental to the subjective effects of ethanol, then the NMDA
antagonist properties of D-cycloserine should be recognized as ethanol-like (relative to
placebo) in recently detoxified alcoholics and healthy subjects.
Question #4: Will D-cycloserine reverse cognitive benefits of glycine? Hypothesis 4: Based on
the dose related NMDA antagonist activity of D-cycloserine, we expect that D-cycloserine will
compete with the agonist activity of glycine and therefore it will reverse the cognitive
benefits of glycine.
Question #5: Will D-cycloserine inhibit endocrinal effects of glycine? Hypothesis #5: If the
agonist activity of glycine is necessary to determine endocrine response, then the
dose-related NMDA antagonist properties of D-cycloserine should block these effects.