Levocarnitine acetyl treatment promotes iris reinnervation following 6-hydroxydopamine-induced noradrenergic denervation in rats

: The effect of levocarnitine acetyl on neurite regeneration was evaluated following administration of 6-hydroxydopamine which caused a selective degeneration of peripheral catecholaminergic neurites in the irides of newborn and young rats. Levocarnitine acetyl 20 mg/kg body weight was administered either subcutaneously to newborn rats for 20 days or dissolved in drinking water to young rats for 90 days. Treatment with levocarnitine acetyl promoted neurite outgrowth following axotomy in both groups, thus demonstrating a stimulatory role of the substance in nerve regeneration of the peripheral nervous system. The results further confirm that levocarnitine acetyl is endowed with therapeutical efficacy in peripheral neuropathies.