Summary
Recent experiments provide evidence that the NMDA-antagonist MK-801 has a locomotor-stimulating effect in monoamine-depleted rodents. These findings are based upon a hypothetical pathway-circuit including the basal ganglia as a model reflecting hypo- and hyperkinetic movement disorders. We have treated 5 patients suffering from Parkinson's disease with the antiepileptic drug “lamotrigine” which does not appear to be an NMDA-antagonist but acts functionally as a glutamate antagonist by inhibition of presynaptic glutamate release.
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Zipp, F., Baas, H. & Fischer, P.A. Lamotrigine-antiparkinsonian activity by blockade of glutamate release?. J Neural Transm Gen Sect 5, 67–75 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02260916
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02260916