Merck, C6880-1G, D-Cycloserine

General description
Chemical structure: amino acid derivatives
Application
D-Cycloserine (DCS) has been used:
to study its effect on partner preference in Prairie Voles
to study its effect on grooming behaviour of rats
to determine its minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) on 48 multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) isolates using the broth microdilution method
to study its effect on mouse model of autism, using behavioural assays

Biochem/physiol Actions
Mode of Action: Inhibits cell wall biosynthesis (D-Ala peptide bond formation). Also prevents conversion of D-Ala to L-Ala. Bacteriostatic.
Partial agonist at the glycine modulatory site of NMDA glutamatergic receptors; antibiotic against Gram-negative bacteria.
Mode of Resistance: D-Ala transport interference.
D-cycloserine (DCS) was initially known as a tuberculostatic agent. It acts as a glutamatergic partial N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) agonist. It binds at the glycine-binding site of the NMDA receptor and enable the opening of the NMDA channel. DCS has a an ability to improve various forms of learning and memory hence, this drug might be effective for improving social memory and cognition. DCS can be used as a potential therapeutic for psychiatric disorders such as phobias, social anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder.