Patients with Parkinson disease are frequently treated with levodopa (L-dopa), but L-dopa delays gastric emptying, which lessens its absorption. In fasted rats, Wang et al. have shown that intravenous ghrelin can counteract the inhibition of gastric emptying by L-dopa and increase plasma levels of L-dopa and dopamine. In addition, ghrelin did not modify the induction of Fos in the brain by L-dopa.
ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER
Wang, L. et al. Ghrelin prevents levodopa-induced inhibition of gastric emptying and increases circulating levodopa in fasted rats. Neurogastroenterol. Motil. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2982.2012.01904.x
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Role for ghrelin in preventing levodopa-induced inhibition of gastric emptying in patients with Parkinson disease?. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 9, 245 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrgastro.2012.72
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrgastro.2012.72