====== Acamprosate ======

//Acamprosate// ( C<sub>5</sub>H<sub>11</sub>NO<sub>4</sub>S ) also known by the brand name //Campral//™, is a widely used drug used for treating alcohol dependence. It's now an over-the-counter medicine in many regions.

It's thought to stabilize chemical signalling in the brain that would otherwise be disrupted by alcohol withdrawal. Possibly by blocking glutaminergic N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (while gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptors are activated).

But the precise mechanism of action is currently unknown.

>__The mechanism of action of acamprosate in maintenance of alcohol abstinence is not completely understood__. Chronic alcohol exposure is hypothesized to alter the normal balance between neuronal excitation and inhibition. //In vitro// and //in vivo// studies in animals have provided evidence to suggest acamprosate may interact with glutamate and GABA neurotransmitter systems centrally, and has led to the hypothesis that acamprosate restores this balance. It seems to inhibit NMDA receptors while activating GABA receptors.
>
>Further info [[https://go.drugbank.com/drugs/DB00659|DrugBank]]

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Also see [[content:medicine:drugs:alcohol]]