Melanoma, ALS, Parkinson's, Riluzole and Glutamate

Study Shows Riluzole Shrinks Tumors Without Toxic Side Effects
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oma-growth

Riluzole early phase 1 trial recruiting now
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Riluzole $10 a pill
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Lou Gehrig's Disease forum
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2007 - Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 1 and Glutamate Signaling in Human
Melanoma
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Riluzole Wiki
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A common feature to both ALS and melanoma cells is excess glutamate.
Grm1 -- responsible for melanoma in laboratory mice. Its normal functions
are in the brain, where it is associated with learning and memory; but when
this gene is expressed or turned on in certain skin cells, it leads to the
development of melanoma. In a melanoma cell, the glutamate enters a
pernicious loop where it binds to the malfunctioning cell surface protein.
The protein operates as a receptor, stimulating the cell to produce more
glutamate that, in turn, binds to the receptor, stimulating more production.
This cellular "overfeeding" results in the growth and expansion of the
melanoma.
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Google Book - Glutamate release inhibitors
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te+release+inhibitors&source=web&ots=D4HxR0rXxs&si g=yj_sF1Aui0o6YZErfV0nYBQf
DlA&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=10&ct=result# PPA38,M1

If skin, neuronal and bone cells have glutamate receptors then could this be
a mechanism whereby damp air aggravates arthritis?
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1997 Google Book - Glutamate in Helath and Disease
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=%22Holt%22+%22Glutamate+in+Health+and+Disease:+Th e+Role+of+Inhibitors%22+&o
ts=2NWII1hMOh&sig=niTvQooFXrqOBvO5T5OxQIGWqEs#PPA8 7,M1

Higher incidence of melanoma in Parkinson's but not due to levodopa
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..PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocS um
.... due to glutamate?

"Our results suggest a decreased incidence of most cancers in patients with
PD. PD patients had a significantly increased risk of malignant melanoma, a
finding consistent with prior studies. "
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"Both ALS and Parkinson's disease mortality were significantly elevated
following melanoma (SMR = 1.6; 95% CI = 1.1-2.2; SMR = 1.5; 1.2-1.8,
respectively). "
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2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocS um

Driving cellular plasticity and survival through the signal transduction
pathways of metabotropic glutamate receptors
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75723

Vitamin B2 inhibits glutamate release from rat cerebrocortical nerve
terminals.
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Glutamate release facilitators:
alpha-lipoic acid
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A&linkpos=2&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubme d
alpha-tocopherol
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A&linkpos=1&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubme d
caffeine
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A&linkpos=1&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubme d
egcg
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A&linkpos=3&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubme d
aspirin
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ginkgo
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2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocS um

On Sep 11, 9:58*pm, "kaptan" <nospam.thanks> wrote:
Thank you for an informative post.

The following letter to the ed. may be of interest to you.
Arbor

Internal Medicine Journal; Volume 34 Issue 6 Page 372-3, June 2004
General Correspondence
High-dose riboflavin for the prevention of migraine: can we afford to
ignore it?
J. S. Davis
PMID: 15228409
Goadsby's excellent overview of the diagnosis and treatment of
migraine includes a comprehensive table of prophylactic agents,
including those for which the *available evidence is poor. 1 The
article fails to mention a prophylactic agent that is safer than,
cheaper than, and probably of similar efficacy to all the others
mentioned-- high-dose riboflavin.
Aberrations in brain energy metabolism have been suggested as
potentially important in the pathogenesis of migraine. 2 The
occurrence of migraine-like headaches in the mitochondrial
encephalopathy, lactic acidosis and strokelike episodes syndrome
(MELAS) has also been noted. 3 Encouraging results from the use of
high-dose riboflavin (a precursor of the flavoenzymes involved in
brain energy production) in the MELAS syndrome led Schoenen and
colleagues to test its use in migraine. They performed two studies,
both of which found a significant effect of high-dose riboflavin (400
mg daily) on the frequency and severity of migraine attacks. The first
was an open-label study of 80 patients, which found an 80% reduction
in the frequency of attacks. 4 The second was a double blind
randomized controlled trial of riboflavin 400 mg daily versus placebo
in 55 migraineurs. 5 This study found a decrease in attack frequency
by at least 50% in 54% of riboflavin-treated patients versus 19% of
those in the placebo group (P = 0.01), a similar degree of reduction
to those found in previously published studies with valproate 6 and
beta-blockers. 7 Notably, the incidence of adverse effects was the
same in the placebo and treatment arms, a stark contrast to most other
available prophylactic agents.
I can personally attest to the safety and efficacy of high-dose
riboflavin in the prophylaxis of migraine, as I have conducted an n =
1 sequential cross-over trial of riboflavin and amitryptiline in
myself! The two treatments were of equal efficacy but riboflavin
showed far superior tolerability.
Admittedly, there is only one published randomized controlled trial of
riboflavin for this indication, and this was a small study. Larger
studies are needed; however, they are unlikely to be performed, as
there is no patent on or pharmaceutical company interest in
riboflavin. Considering its low cost, excellent safety and
tolerability, and probable efficacy, can we afford to ignore
riboflavin as an option in the prophylaxis of migraine?