Interesting article linking Tourette's to histamine. That just keeps popping up doesn't it? Some select quotes from the article. Emphasis (bold print) mine. Read full article [here]
A New Approach
Last year, Overlook Medical Center became one of nine facilities nationwide — and one of two in New Jersey along with CRI Lifetree in Marlton — to participate in a clinical trial designed to test an experimental drug that has shown promise in treating Tourette’s in a new way.
In contrast to neurological movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease, where patients exhibit a too-low sensitivity to the neurotransmitter dopamine, “some studies suggest that Tourette syndrome reflects a too-high sensitivity to dopamine, causing excessive movement,” Kurlan said. “As a result, antipsychotic medications have been used to reduce dopamine sensitivities or block these receptors to suppress the tics, but the side effects are that they often sedate people, make them feel like zombies, trigger mood swings and promote weight gain.”
The new trial, sponsored by AstraZeneca and conducted under a U.S. Investigational New Drug application, is instead investigating the blockage of histamine in the basal ganglia portion of the brain.
According to Kurlan, “Scientists first became interested in histamine’s role in Tourette syndrome after finding abnormalities in genes involved in histamine production in Tourette’s patients and also after noticing that antihistamines taken by Tourette’s patients to relieve seasonal allergy symptoms often resulted in suppressing their tics to some degree. The trial approaches the disorder from a whole new direction,” he said, “and if this proves to be an effective treatment with fewer side effects, it could be a breakthrough for so many children and adults with Tourettes syndrome.”
As part of the ongoing trial, administration of the investigational drug and all results are blinded to the investigator, sponsor and participants.