Noopept (N-phenylacetyl-L-prolylglycine ethyl ester) is a synthetic peptide manufactured in Russia by JSC LEKKO Pharmaceuticals. Chemically, noopept is a hydrophilic proline with a dipeptide structure consisting of a phenylacetyl subunit bound to a small peptide chain of proline and glycine. Although it isn’t technically classified as a “racetam” (due to its lacking of a 2-oxo-pyrrolidine …
Curcumin is considered a diarylheptanoid, or secondary metabolite derived from the plant turmeric (a member of the ginger family). As a diarylheptanoid, curcumin is chemically composed of two aryl groups (aromatic rings) interlinked with a chain of 7 carbon atoms. It was initially discovered by scientists Vogel and Pelletier in 1842 when they extracted and …
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), depression is projected to become the number one global disease burden by 2030. Present-day statistics suggest that depression affects over 350 million people worldwide. Among those who are depressed, seeking professional psychiatric treatment is often helpful. An estimated 66% of all individuals who seek treatment are able to …
Most pharmacological-based treatments for depression aim to increase levels of various neurotransmitters, particularly serotonin (5-HT). It is thought that approximately 2 out of 3 individuals that seek treatment with standard antidepressants such as SSRIs and SNRIs are able to attain therapeutic relief. For a certain percentage of these individuals, the benefits of using pharmaceutical interventions …
Invega (Paliperidone) is an atypical antipsychotic approved in 2006 for the treatment of schizophrenia. Several years later in 2009, a longer-acting format of the medication called “Invega Sustenna” was also approved. Invega Sustenna is an injectable form of the drug that is administered every 4 weeks and is thought to be advantageous it mitigates risk …
Fanapt (Iloperidone) is an atypical antipsychotic that was approved by the FDA on May 6, 2009 for the treatment of schizophrenia. The drug is thought to have been synthesized in the 1990s, during which its rights were sold from Hoechst Marion Roussel Inc. to Titan Pharmaceuticals, and eventually to Vanda Pharmaceuticals. It functions as an …
Despite the fact that pharmaceutical companies continue to promote the concept of “chemical imbalances” as the root cause of depression, this is a vast oversimplification of an infinitely more complex condition. While a chemical imbalance may be one of the primary contributing factors to a person’s depression, what causes the chemicals (neurotransmitters) to become imbalanced …