Department of Adult Psychiatry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland.
Department of Psychiatry, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Pharmacopsychiatry. 2018 Sep;51(5):194-199. doi: 10.1055/s-0043-124436. Epub 2017 Dec 21.
Evidence for a neuroprotective effect of lithium has accumulated over the last 2 decades, and this phenomenon has been regarded as an important mechanism of lithium action in mood disorders. It has been reflected by an increase in cerebral gray matter volume in lithium-treated subjects and by the favorable influence of lithium on cognitive functions. A neuroprotective effect of lithium also makes this ion a possible candidate for use as a therapeutic drug in neurology, especially in neurodegenerative disorders. In this paper, neurochemical mechanisms of neuroprotective action of lithium will be characterized. A possible association between the effect of lithium on brain structures reflected in neuroimaging studies, as well as on cognitive functions, and its neuroprotective action, will be considered. Data from experimental, epidemiological, and clinical studies have also pointed to an antidementia effect of lithium, bringing about some promise of using lithium in the treatment of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. The results of attempts of employing lithium in other neurodegenerative disorders will also be discussed.
在过去的 20 年中，锂的神经保护作用的证据不断积累，这一现象被认为是锂在情绪障碍中作用的重要机制。这体现在锂治疗后大脑灰质体积的增加，以及锂对认知功能的有利影响上。锂的神经保护作用也使这种离子成为神经科治疗药物的一个潜在候选药物，特别是在神经退行性疾病中。本文将对锂的神经保护作用的神经化学机制进行描述。将考虑锂对神经影像学研究中反映的脑结构以及认知功能的影响与其神经保护作用之间的可能关联。来自实验、流行病学和临床研究的数据也表明锂具有抗痴呆作用，这为使用锂治疗轻度认知障碍和阿尔茨海默病带来了一些希望。还将讨论在其他神经退行性疾病中使用锂的尝试结果。
