Acetyl-L-carnitine prevents substance P loss in the sciatic nerve and lumbar spinal cord of diabetic animals.
Diabetic neuropathy is a disease of peripheral nerves, characterized by axonal atrophy and degeneration that might be preceded by a marked impairment of axonal transport and by a reduced conduction velocity. Sensory nerves are particularly susceptible to diabetes. In the present report it is shown that experimental diabetes in rats causes a significant reduction of the content of the pain-related neuropeptide substance P in sciatic nerve and lumbar spinal cord. Such a loss of substance P is fully prevented by acetyl-L-carnitine treatment. The neuroprotective pharmacological effect is selective and takes place without significant changes of hyperglycaemia and without modifications of the reduced rate of body growth typical of diabetic animals.
Di Giulio
A M
AM
Department of Medical Pharmacology, University of Milan, Italy.
Gorio
A
A
Bertelli
A
A
Mantegazza
P
P
Ferraris
L
L
Ramacci
M T
MT
D000108:Acetylcarnitine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D003929:Diabetic Neuropathies / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000378:metabolism*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000378:metabolism*; D013373:Substance P / Q000378:metabolism*
D013373:Substance P; D000108:Acetylcarnitine