Antabuse

Disulfiram (Antabuse), an acetaldehyde dehydrogenase and dopamine-beta hydroxylase inhibitor, has shown promise in preclinical and clinical studies as a pharmacotherapy for cocaine addiction. However, the extent to which disulfiram may alter the abuse-related behavioral effects of related psychostimulants, such as methamphetamine, is unknown. Here, the therapeutic potential of disulfiram was evaluated by examining its impact on the reinforcing and discriminative stimulus effects of d-methamphetamine in adult rhesus monkeys (N = 4 per group)...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Sixteen disulfides derived from disulfiram (Antabuse™) were evaluated as antibacterial agents. Derivatives with hydrocarbon chains of seven and eight carbons in length exhibited antibacterial activity against Gram-positive Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Enterococcus, Bacillus, and Listeria spp. A comparison of the cytotoxicity and microsomal stability with disulfiram further revealed that the eight carbon chain analog was of lower toxicity to human hepatocytes and has a longer metabolic half-life. In the final analysis, this investigation concluded that the S-octylthio derivative is a more effective growth inhibitor of Gram-positive bacteria than disulfiram and exhibits more favorable cytotoxic and metabolic parameters over disulfiram...

The interaction between disulfiram (Antabus® ) and silica was studied experimentally by adsorption from apolar solvent onto highly porous silica material (Santa Barbara amorphous material-3) with large surface area. The adsorption isotherm was fitted to the Langmuir model by accounting 2 different affinities contributing to the overall behavior, which were attributed to 2 different types of silanol groups (i.e., geminal and vicinal) present on amorphous silica surfaces. This assumption was supported by theoretical calculations...

Cancer incidence is rising and this global challenge is further exacerbated by tumour resistance to available medicines. A promising approach to meet the need for improved cancer treatment is drug repurposing. Here we highlight the potential for repurposing disulfiram (also known by the trade name Antabuse), an old alcohol-aversion drug that has been shown to be effective against diverse cancer types in preclinical studies. Our nationwide epidemiological study reveals that patients who continuously used disulfiram have a lower risk of death from cancer compared to those who stopped using the drug at their diagnosis...

BACKGROUND: Considerable evidence demonstrates the importance of dithiocarbamates especially disulfiram as anticancer drugs. However there are no systematic reviews outlining how their metal-binding ability is related to their anticancer activity. This review aims to summarize chemical features and metal-binding activity of disulfiram and its metabolite DEDTC, and discuss different mechanisms of action of disulfiram and their contributions to the drug's anticancer activity. METHODS: We undertook a disulfiram-related search on bibliographic databases of peerreviewed research literature, including many historic papers and in vitro, in vivo, preclinical and clinical studies...

Maintenance of genome integrity requires the functional interplay between Fanconi anemia (FA) and homologous recombination (HR) repair pathways. Endogenous acetaldehyde, a product of cellular metabolism, is a potent source of DNA damage, particularly toxic to cells and mice lacking the FA protein FANCD2. Here, we investigate whether HR-compromised cells are sensitive to acetaldehyde, similarly to FANCD2-deficient cells. We demonstrate that inactivation of HR factors BRCA1, BRCA2, or RAD51 hypersensitizes cells to acetaldehyde treatment, in spite of the FA pathway being functional...

We recently described that the anti-apoptotic AMPK-related kinase, SNARK, promotes transforming growth factor (TGF)-β signaling in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells, as a potentially new therapeutic target. Here we explored FDA-approved drugs inhibiting the enzymatic activity of SNARK, using an in vitro luminescence kinase assay system. Interestingly, the long-used anti-alcoholism drug disulfiram (DSF), also known as Antabuse, emerged as the top hit. Enzymatic kinetics analyses revealed that DSF inhibited SNARK kinase activity in a noncompetitive manner to ATP or phosphosubstrates...

In the recent years, a therapeutic potential of disulfiram (Antabuse) complex with copper, as an anticancer drug, was recognized towards several cancer cell lines. The proteasome was suggested as one of the cellular targets for this compound. As the therapeutic use of diethyldithiocarbamate-copper complex (CuET) is expected to increase, it is of great interest to know whether this compound may be the source of drug-drug interactions via the induction of biotransformation enzymes, especially cytochromes P450 (CYPs)...

Most acute and chronic human metal poisonings are due to oral or inhalation exposure. Almost 80% of published animal experiments on chelation in metal poisoning used single or repeated intraperitoneal, intramuscular or intravenous administration of metal and chelator, impeding extrapolation to clinical settings. Intramuscular administration of dimercaptopropanol (BAL) has until now been used in acute arsenic, lead, and mercury poisonings, but repeated BAL administration increased the brain uptake of As, Pb and Hg in experimental animals...

BACKGROUND: The latest French good practice recommendations (GPRs) for the screening, prevention, and treatment of alcohol misuse were recently published in partnership with the European Federation of Addiction Societies (EUFAS). This article aims to synthesize the GPRs focused on the pharmacotherapy of alcohol dependence. METHODS: A four-member European steering committee defined the questions that were addressed to an 18-member multiprofessional working group (WG)...

Estrogen Receptor-β (ER-β), a tumor-suppressor in prostate cancer, is epigenetically repressed by hypermethylation of its promoter. DNA-methyltransferases (DNMTs), which catalyze the transfer of methyl-groups to CpG islands of gene promoters, are overactive in cancers and can be inhibited by DNMT-inhibitors to re-express the tumor suppressors. The FDA-approved nucleoside DNMT-inhibitors like 5-Azacytidine and 5-Aza-deoxycytidine carry notable concerns due to their off-target toxicity, therefore non-nucleoside DNMT inhibitors are desirable for prolonged epigenetic therapy...

INTRODUCTION: Cinnamon contains cumarin, which may be toxic to the liver. EU-regulations standardardize the amount of cinnamon in pastry including cinnamon rolls. The aim of the study was to investigate if cinnamon intake from pastry was associated with toxic or alcoholic hepatitis. RESULTS: We registered 58 patients with toxic hepatitis, 38 (66%) women and 20 (34%) men with a median age of 51 (range: 32-80) and 53 (range: 18-78) years, respectively. A total of 22 patients had primarily cholestasis and 36 had hepatitis biochemically...

BACKGROUND: It is common practice to warn against intake of alcohol (ethanol) when taking metronidazole because of the risk of an effect similar to disulfiram (Antabuse). In this article we investigate whether such a warning has any real basis. KNOWLEDGE BASE: The article is based on a review of relevant literature retrieved through a search in PubMed. A search was also made in the WHO's database on adverse effects. RESULTS: No in-vitro studies, animal models, reports of adverse effects or clinical studies provide any convincing evidence of a disulfiram-like interaction between ethanol and metronidazole...

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No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

A community program for effective control of alcoholism utilizing obligatory administration of disulfiram (Antabuse) is described. The results over a three-and-one-half-year study period are a reduced rate of rehospitalization, shorter duration of hospitalization in the event of readmission, and reduced morbidity.

Pancreatic cancer cell lines with mutated ras underwent an alternative form of cell death (aponecrosis) when treated concomitantly with clinically achievable concentrations of arsenic trioxide, ascorbic acid, and disulfiram (Antabuse; AAA). AAA's major effects are mediated through generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and more than 50% decline in intracellular ATP. N-acetyl cysteine and a superoxide dismutase mimetic prevented aponecrosis and restored intracellular ATP levels. DIDS (4,4'-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2, 2' disulfonic acid), the pan- Voltage-Dependent Anion Channel (VDAC), -1, 2, 3 inhibitor and short hairpin RNA (shRNA) to VDAC-1 blocked cell death and ROS accumulation...

BACKGROUND: Resistance of cancer cells to chemotherapeutic agents is a major cause of treatment failure in patients with cancer. The drug resistance of tumor cells can be significantly modified by specific features of tumor microenvironment, such as oxygen depletion (hypoxia), glucose/energy deprivation and acidosis. METHODS: The effects of acidic tumor-like microenvironment on cytotoxicity of antabuse (disulfiram, DSF)/Cu(2+) complexes to MCF-7 breast carcinoma and HT-29 colon carcinoma cells were studied...