Donepezil for dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease

Summary: This study evaluates donepezil, a drug used to treat Alzheimer’s disease, and finds that it offers modest benefits in cognitive function, daily living activities, and overall clinical state for people with mild to severe dementia over 12 to 24 weeks. However, higher doses of donepezil result in more adverse events and withdrawals, with no additional benefits compared to lower doses.

Link: PubMed

Clinical efficacy and safety of donepezil in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease in Chinese patients

Summary: This review analyzes the effectiveness and safety of donepezil, a common Alzheimer’s treatment, specifically in Chinese patients, comparing it to other treatments and noting genetic factors that may influence its efficacy. It finds that donepezil is generally effective and safe for Chinese patients with Alzheimer’s and may affect disease biomarkers, with responses possibly impacted by genetic variations.

Link: PubMed

Efficacy and safety of donepezil, galantamine, and rivastigmine for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Summary: This study reviewed the effectiveness of Alzheimer’s disease medications, specifically the cholinesterase inhibitors donepezil, galantamine, and rivastigmine. The researchers conducted a thorough search of various medical databases to gather evidence on these treatments.

Link: PubMed

Impact of Donepezil and Memantine on Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Alzheimer Disease: Six-month Open-label Study

Summary: A study on 85 individuals with moderate Alzheimer’s disease (AD) found that both donepezil and memantine significantly reduced behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) over 6 months. Both medications were well-tolerated, producing improvements in several symptom areas except euphoria and apathy for memantine.

Link: PubMed

Donepezil in the treatment of ischemic stroke: Review and future perspective

Summary: Ischemic stroke, a leading cause of disability and death, often doesn’t result in good functional outcomes even with endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) treatment, and not all patients qualify for EVT. Adjunct therapies like donepezil, typically used for Alzheimer’s, have shown potential in preclinical studies to protect neurons during ischemic strokes, though only limited clinical research has explored its safety and effectiveness for stroke patients.

Link: PubMed

Cytochrome P450-mediated metabolic interactions between donepezil and tadalafil in human liver microsomes

Summary: This study found that tadalafil can significantly alter the metabolism of donepezil through time-dependent inhibition of the enzyme CYP3A4, increasing donepezil’s half-life and decreasing its metabolite formation. However, donepezil does not significantly affect the metabolism of tadalafil, indicating a one-sided drug-drug interaction between the two medications.

Link: ScienceDirect

Synthesis and evaluation of lipoic acid – donepezil hybrids for Alzheimer’s disease using a straightforward strategy

Summary: This study explores the synthesis and effects of new compounds combining lipoic acid and donepezil to combat Alzheimer’s disease by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase and providing neuroprotection. Results show that compounds 5 and 6 are highly effective, suggesting that O-desmethyldonepezil could be a valuable base for developing these hybrids.

Link: ScienceDirect

The combination of donepezil and cognitive training for improving treatment outcomes for alcohol use disorder: Design of a randomized controlled trial

Summary: This study aims to evaluate if combining the drug donepezil with cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) is better than either treatment alone or a placebo in reducing heavy drinking and improving brain function in people with alcohol use disorder (AUD). The trial will involve 160 participants over 13 weeks, with primary measures being reduced heavy drinking and enhanced cognitive abilities.

Link: ScienceDirect

Donepezil ameliorates gut barrier disruption in doxorubicin-treated rats

Summary: This study investigated whether donepezil can counteract the negative effects of doxorubicin on gut health in rats. The findings showed that while donepezil improved autonomic balance and reduced gut toxicity markers, it did not alter the gut microbiota profile or short-chain fatty acids affected by doxorubicin treatment.

Link: ScienceDirect

Donepezil protects against cyclophosphamide-induced premature ovarian failure in mice: A focus on proinflammatory cytokines and NLRP3/TLR-4/NF-κB interplay

Summary: The study investigated whether donepezil, a medication typically used to treat Alzheimer’s, could protect against premature ovarian failure (POF) caused by the chemotherapy drug cyclophosphamide (CP) in mice. Results showed that donepezil, especially at higher doses, significantly reduced inflammation, oxidative stress, and cell death in ovaries, while increasing protective hormone levels, suggesting it might help protect against CP-induced POF.

Link: ScienceDirect