Evidence map›Paper›PMID 11126392›Full record

ReviewMolecular psychiatry2000

Acetyl-L-carnitine physical-chemical, metabolic, and therapeutic properties: relevance for its mode of action in Alzheimer's disease and geriatric depression.

J W Pettegrew, J Levine, R J McClure

Abstract readReview
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Molecular psychiatry, 2000. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 106 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
106citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
2.8field-weighted citation impact, top 8% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

106 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 308 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. L-acetylcarnitine for treating fragile X syndrome.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2015
    Pooled it
  4. Acetyl-L-carnitine for dementia.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2003
    Pooled it
  5. Trial
  6. Acetyl-l-carnitine deficiency in patients with major depressive disorder.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2018
    Trial
  7. Trial
  8. Trial
  9. Trial
  10. Trial
  11. Trial
  12. Trial
  13. Review
  14. Review
  15. [Gender differences in acylcarnitine metabolism among patients with depression disorder].Zhong nan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Central South University. Medical sciences · 2025
    Article
  16. Acetylcarnitine in cerebrospinal fluid and blood as a protective factor for neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders: a mendelian randomization study.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025
    Article
  17. Article
  18. Molecular Characteristics of Spontaneous Remission in Major Depressive Disorder: Changes in Serum Acetylcarnitine and Glycerophosphcholine Levels.Clinical psychopharmacology and neuroscience : the official scientific journal of the Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2025
    Article
  19. Impact Induces Phagocytic Defect in Reactive Microglia.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025
    Article
  20. Article

46 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

J W PettegrewDepartment of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. pettegre+@pitt.edu
J Levine
R J McClure
University of Pittsburgh · USBen-Gurion University of the Negev · IL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Acetyl-L-carnitine (ALCAR) contains carnitine and acetyl moieties, both of which have neurobiological properties. Carnitine is important in the beta-oxidation of fatty acids and the acetyl moiety can be used to maintain acetyl-CoA levels. Other reported neurobiological effects of ALCAR include modulation of: (1) brain energy and phospholipid metabolism; (2) cellular macromolecules, including neurotrophic factors and neurohormones; (3) synaptic morphology; and (4) synaptic transmission of multiple neurotransmitters. Potential molecular mechanisms of ALCAR activity include: (1) acetylation of -NH2 and -OH functional groups in amino acids and N terminal amino acids in peptides and proteins resulting in modification of their structure, dynamics, function and turnover; and (2) acting as a molecular chaperone to larger molecules resulting in a change in the structure, molecular dynamics, and function of the larger molecule. ALCAR is reported in double-blind controlled studies to have beneficial effects in major depressive disorders and Alzheimer's disease (AD), both of which are highly prevalent in the geriatric population.

Indexed as

AcetylcarnitineAgedAlzheimer DiseaseAnimalsBrainDepressionEnergy MetabolismHumansAcetylcarnitine

Identifiers

PMID11126392
OpenAlexW2134866080

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.