Galantamine-memantine combination superior to donepezil-memantine combination in Alzheimer’s disease: critical dissection with an emphasis on kynurenic acid and mismatch negativity

BACKGROUND: The donepezil-memantine combination is a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)–approved medication to treat Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Galantamine is superior to donepezil because it is a positive allosteric modulator of the alpha-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR). Although galantamine and memantine are both FDA approved for the treatment of AD, the combination is still underutilized in clinical practice. AIM: The objective of this review was to critically examine the mechanisms by which the galantamine-memantine combination may be superior to the donepezil-memantine combination in AD by targeting the cholinergic-nicotinic and glutamatergic systems concurrently. METHOD: PubMed and Google Scholar were searched using the keywords Alzheimer’s disease, cholinergic, glutamatergic, α7nAChR, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, donepezil, galantamine, memantine, clinical trials, and biomarkers. RESULTS: AD is associated with several biomarkers such as kynurenine pathway (KP) metabolites, mismatch negativity (MMN), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and oxidative stress. In several preclinical studies, cognitive impairments significantly improved with the galantamine-memantine combination compared to either medication alone. Synergistic benefits were also seen with the combination. In a randomized controlled trial (RCT) in prodrome AD, cognition significantly improved with the galantamine-memantine combination compared to galantamine alone; cognition declined after galantamine was discontinued. However, in an RCT in AD, cognition did not significantly improve with the galantamine-memantine combination compared to galantamine alone. In a retrospective study in AD, the galantamine-memantine combination significantly improved cognition compared to the donepezil-memantine combination. Galantamine and memantine via the α7nACh and NMDA receptors can counteract the effects of kynurenic acid and enhance MMN and BDNF. CONCLUSION: Future studies with the galantamine-memantine combination with KP metabolites, MMN, and BDNF as biomarkers are warranted. Positive RCTs in AD may lead to FDA approval of the combination, resulting in greater utilization in clinical practice. In the meantime, clinicians may continue to use the galantamine-memantine combination to treat patients with AD.