title: Actovegin®: a biological drug for more than 5 decades.
abstract: Actovegin(®) is a biological drug manufactured from a natural source: it is a calf blood hemodialysate. Its therapeutic benefits stem from a variety of pharmacodynamic actions that can be summarized to a common goal, i.e. the enhancement of cellular metabolism; this results from an insulin-like activity mediated by Inositol-phospho-oligosaccharides. Actovegin(®) results in beneficial effects in several pathophysiological clinical settings including malfunction of the blood circulation and trophic disturbances in the brain, impairment of peripheral blood circulation and associated diseases, dermal transplants and acute and chronic wounds. Here, we give an overview of the pharmacodynamic actions of calf-blood hemidialysate and its beneficial effects in a variety of clinical settings.
authors.affiliation: Center for Physiology and Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Buchmayer
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pleiner
authors.forename: Martin W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Elmlinger
authors.forename: Gereon
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lauer
authors.forename: Gerfried
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nell
authors.forename: Harald H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Sitte
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001688:Biological Products / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D015507:Drugs, Investigational / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000187:drug effects; D006418:Heme / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D006801:Humans; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000097:blood; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000187:drug effects; D011837:Radiation-Protective Agents / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D001688:Biological Products; D001786:Blood Glucose; D015507:Drugs, Investigational; D011837:Radiation-Protective Agents; D006418:Heme; C015646:Actovegin