Nail-biting stuff? The effect of N-acetyl cysteine on nail-biting Berk, Michael, Jeavons, Sue, Dean, Olivia M., Dodd, Seetol, Moss, Kirsteen, Gama, Clarissa S. and Malhi, Gin S. 2009, Nail-biting stuff? The effect of N-acetyl cysteine on nail-biting, CNS spectrums, vol. 14, no. 7, pp. 357-360. Attached Files Name Description MIMEType Size Downloads dean-nailbiting-2009.pdf Published version application/pdf 371.30KB 1340 Title Nail-biting stuff? The effect of N-acetyl cysteine on nail-biting Author(s) Berk, Michael orcid.org/0000-0002-5554-6946 Jeavons, Sue Dean, Olivia M. orcid.org/0000-0002-2776-3935 Dodd, Seetol orcid.org/0000-0002-7918-4636 Moss, Kirsteen Gama, Clarissa S. Malhi, Gin S. Journal name CNS spectrums Volume number 14 Issue number 7 Start page 357 End page 360 Total pages 4 Publisher MBL Communications Place of publication New York, N.Y. Publication date 2009-07 ISSN 1092-8529 Keyword(s) nail biting Summary N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is a widely available nutraceutical with a variety of actions. As a precursor of cysteine and glutathione, it has antioxidant properties that may impact on mood and contribute to an effect on impulsivity and obsessive behaviour. Via its additional effect on glutamate via the cystine-glutamate exchange system, NAC has been shown to mediate impulsivity in preclinical models of addiction, reduce craving, and cue extinction. Further, by boosting glutathione, NAC acts as a potent antioxidant and has been shown in two positive, large-scale randomized placebo-controlled trials to affect negative symptoms in schizophrenia and depression in bipolar disorder. We describe three cases in which its actions specifically on nail-biting and associated anxiety may offer a potential treatment. The spontaneous findings are reported as part of an ongoing treatment trial examining the utility of NAC in bipolar disorder. Its actions, if robustly replicated, also point to potential treatment targets in glutathione or glutamate pathways in the brain. Notes Every reasonable effort has been made to ensure that permission has been obtained for items included in Deakin Research Online. If you believe that your rights have been infringed by this repository, please contact drosupport@deakin.edu.au Language eng Field of Research 119999 Medical and Health Sciences not elsewhere classified Socio Economic Objective 970111 Expanding Knowledge in the Medical and Health Sciences HERDC Research category C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal Copyright notice ©2009, MBL Communications Free to Read? Yes Persistent URL http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30035461 Document type: Journal Article Collections: Faculty of Health School of Medicine Open Access Collection Related Links Link Description Connect to published version (restricted access) Go to link with your DU access privileges     Link to Related Work Nail-biting stuff? The effect of N-acetyl cysteine on nail-biting (deposited 18-05-2022) MBL Communications Publisher (deposited 12-06-2012)   Unless expressly stated otherwise, the copyright for items in DRO is owned by the author, with all rights reserved. Every reasonable effort has been made to ensure that permission has been obtained for items included in DRO. If you believe that your rights have been infringed by this repository, please contact drosupport@deakin.edu.au. Versions Version Filter Type Tue, 21 Jun 2011, 14:38:43 EST Thu, 06 Oct 2011, 07:53:24 EST Thu, 06 Oct 2011, 08:00:58 EST Thu, 06 Oct 2011, 08:09:08 EST Tue, 11 Oct 2011, 11:09:43 EST Thu, 02 Feb 2012, 15:02:41 EST Thu, 22 Mar 2012, 09:55:09 EST Tue, 12 Jun 2012, 13:18:11 EST Tue, 05 Feb 2013, 13:01:01 EST Thu, 11 Dec 2014, 17:09:05 EST Tue, 05 Dec 2017, 10:51:19 EST Fri, 07 Sep 2018, 15:27:53 EST Filtered Full Citation counts:   Cited 37 times in TR Web of Science Cited 52 times in Scopus Search Google Scholar Access Statistics: 1415 Abstract Views, 1340 File Downloads  -  Detailed Statistics Created: Tue, 21 Jun 2011, 14:38:43 EST