Re: ala without dmsa

I certainly am not supporting or opposing this view on ALA - I just thought it was interesting. I just found the following article on Glycine. Sounds like it can - like ALA - increase metal release from tissures but has to be taken with DMSA.

"L-glycine
L-glycine is a direct assisting agent for increasing post-provocative urinary metals.14 In contrast to the effects of the antioxidants mentioned above, acute administration of L-glycine can markedly increase the urinary spill of toxic metals when used in conjunction with Ca-EDTA, DMSA, and DMPS. As a naturally occurring amino acid, L-glycine, unlike the synthetic agents, readily crosses cell membranes (two-way street). Having a relatively weak but functionally significant affinity for metals such as mercury, aluminum, nickel, lead, and antimony, L-glycine can facilitate the movement of metals from within cells to the extracellular compartment where the pharmaceutical agents are restricted. With higher affinities for the glycine-mobilized intracellular metals, the circulating metal-binding agents preferentially snatch the metals like alpha dogs and carry them to the kidneys for irreversible excretion in urine. L-glycine is particularly useful for enhancing EDTA-induced removal of aluminum.14 Unpublished observations at DDI indicate that L-glycine also increases the excretion of lead, mercury, and antimony when used orally in conjunction with DMSA and DMPS. Practitioners who have used the assisting agent are ecstatic with the increased yields. It was previously recommended15 that oral L-glycine be administered both the day before a provocation (80 mg/kg in divided doses) and in the morning on the day of an EDTA challenge (40 mg/kg about two hours before IV administration of EDTA). A more conservative protocol is recommended for safety sake when L-glycine is used in conjunction with DMSA or DMPS – binding agents that have essentially no affinity for aluminum. Since L-glycine so effectively mobilizes aluminum, and the dithiol compounds do not subsequently bind aluminum, the EDTA-associated L-glycine protocol could result in unintended redistribution of aluminum to more vulnerable cells such as neurons (bad ping-pong effect). Hence, when utilizing L-glycine as a potent assisting agent with DMSA or DMPS, it seems prudent to reduce the L-glycine dose to 40 mg/kg (orally) about two hours prior to administration of the dithiol agent of choice.

The L-glycine boost may be especially helpful for obtaining higher metal spills for "sensitive" patients for whom one might anticipate problems with the most productive DMSA challenge of 30 mg/kg, oral bolus not to exceed 2 gm.16 In such cases, doctors have gotten impressive results using just a single dose of 10 mg/kg DMSA combined with the latter protocol for L-glycine, followed by a six-hour urine collection. Otherwise, the low-dose DMSA challenge is significantly less productive and may be of limited clinical value.17

Due to the capacity of L-glycine to mobilize and potentially cause redistribution of metals, especially aluminum, it is emphasized that the assisting agent should not be used alone. Glycine also has the potential to increase assimilation of dietary metals and is contraindicated for patients with hyperammonemia, abnormally elevated plasma glycine, and/or serine, and those suspected of or diagnosed with schizophrenia or other psychoses.15 The use of L-glycine as an assisting agent for provocations appears to be quite safe when used as described. However, as tempting as it is after one sees such improved provocation results, the safety of long-term use of L-glycine supplementation as a component of a sustained metal detoxification protocol has not been established. Potential concerns include excessive production of oxalic acids and exacerbation of disorders of methionine metabolism, e.g., methylation defects.15"

RO

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