Question

Cade (1949) performed an experiment to examine whether injecting urea into guinea pigs will make them manic. Which of the following was the result of the experiment?

a. The lithium urate solution injected into guinea pigs calmed them instead of making them manic.
b. The control injections of lithium alone produced an excitatory effect on the control group of guinea pigs.
c. The lithium urate solution injected into guinea pigs made them manic.
d. The control injections of urea alone were effective for calming the control group of guinea pigs

Answer 1

The correct result of Cade's experiment is that lithium urate calmed guinea pigs, leading to the use of lithium in bipolar disorder treatment. Drugs targeting NMDA receptors, such as CP-101,606, are being researched for neurological disorders but face challenges due to human side effects. The correct answer is option a.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct result of John Cade's (1949) experiment, which was aimed at examining whether injecting urea into guinea pigs would make them manic, is that the lithium urate solution injected into guinea pigs calmed them instead of making them manic. This discovery was accidental and led to the use of lithium salts in the treatment of bipolar disorder. In the broader context of preventing excitotoxicity, one experimental approach is to prevent glutamate release or binding to ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs), such as NMDA receptors, in neurological disorders like Parkinson's disease. Drugs such as CP-101,606 (Traxoprodil), targeted to the NR2B subunit of the NMDA receptor, have shown promise in treating symptoms in animal models, though their side effects in humans are a challenge for clinical use.