Clozapine

Clozapine: a breakthrough in the treatment of schizophrenia?


Abstract
The atypical antipsychotic drug, clozapine demonstrates marked advantages over conventional antipsychotics in terms of reduced EPS including no tardive dyskinesia after long-term use, no increase in serum prolactin levels, and superior effectiveness in treating the positive, negative and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia in both treatment-resistant and treatment-responsive patients. However, the complex pharmacological profile of clozapine has made it difficult to determine its precise mechanism of action. We conclude that the unique clinical properties of clozapine cannot be attributed to any one particular receptor action and are most likely to be based on its antagonistic affinity for a broad combination of receptors including the 5HT2A, muscarinic M1, adrenergic 1 and dopamine receptors.


Background
Clozapine is a dibenzodiazepine and classed as an atypical antipsychotic drug in view of its ...