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Updated: Jun 12, 2026

MALDI Imaging Mass Spectrometry of Neuropeptides in Parkinson's Disease
Published on: February 14, 2012
Zonisamide: a new drug for Parkinson's disease
1Department of Neurology, National Center Hospital, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Kodaira, Tokyo, Japan. mihom@ncnp.go.jp
Abstract:
Zonisamide, a benzisoxazole derivative, is an antiepileptic drug with a long half-life. Three nationwide, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies carried out in Japan prompted the approval of zonisamide as an antiparkinsonian agent in early 2009. The addition of zonisamide at 25-50 mg/day to currently used antiparkinsonian drugs significantly improved cardinal symptoms in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. The effects were maintained over more than 1 year even in patients with advanced disease. Zonisamide has multiple modes of action, and its effects on Parkinson's disease include activation of dopamine synthesis, inhibition of monoamine oxidase, inhibition of T-type calcium channels and inhibition of an indirect pathway in the basal ganglia through the δ opioid receptor. Furthermore, zonisamide exhibits neuroprotective effects in animal models of Parkinson's disease. It strongly inhibits quinoprotein formation and markedly increases glutathione S-transferase levels in the striatum by enhancing the astroglial cysteine transport system and/or astroglial proliferation via S100beta production and secretion.
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