Ipidacrine (NIK-247): A review of multiple mechanisms as an antidementia agent

Abstract

From these results, the potency of ipidacrine in improving scopolamine- induced amnesia cannot be explained only by inhibition of AChE, but also by brain penetration. Nevertheless, ipidacrine, tacrine, and E-2020 were essentially equipotent in improving scopolamine-induced amnesia (33,70,77). Accordingly, it is likely that the multiple ameliorating effects, i.e., inhibition of AChE (33), augmentation of LTP (35), and very weak antagonistic action at the central muscarinic receptors (34), may all contribute to the in vivo activity of ipidacrine as an antiamnesic agent. Finally, the pharmacological profile of ipidacrine shows that it is an orally active reversible AChE inhibitor and an LTP enhancer, suggesting that ipidacrine may be a useful drug for the treatment of patients with Alzheimer's disease.