Project Summary

Joseph Levine, M.D. (Independent Investigator 2004) of Ben Gurion University, will treat schizophrenia patients with creatine, a nitrogenous organic acid found in the muscle tissue that supplies energy for muscle contraction. Creatine plays a pivotal role in brain energy homeostasis, is widely used in sports performance, and has been tried in the treatment of neurological, neuromuscular and atherosclerotic disease with a paucity of side effects. Prior research suggests the possibility of using oral creatine supplementation to modify brain high-energy phosphate metabolism in subjects with brain disorders, including schizophrenia and major depression. Dr. Levine will treat 40 patients with creatine for 3 months and will assess negative and positive symptoms of schizophrenia, clinical global impressions, side-effects and cognitive functioning. The results may provide a possibility of developing new treatments for schizophrenia focusing on metabolic hypoactive brain areas including frontal regions.

Program Area: SCHIZOPHRENIA/PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS\Schizophrenia

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