Oral choline decreases brain purine levels in lithium‐treated subjects with rapid‐cycling bipolar disorder: a double‐blind trial using proton and lithium magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Abstract

The current study reports that oral choline supplementation resulted in a significant decrease in brain purine levels over a 12-week treatment period in lithium-treated patients with DSM-IV bipolar disorder, rapid-cycling type, which may be related to the anti-manic effects of adjuvant choline. This result is consistent with mitochondrial dysfunction in bipolar disorder inadequately meeting the demand for increased ATP production as exogenous oral choline administration increases membrane phospholipid synthesis.