Lorenzo's oil
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- This article is about Lorenzo's oil as a treatment for adrenoleukodystrophy. For the movie of the same name, see Lorenzo's Oil (movie).
Lorenzo's oil is a 4:1 mixture of oleic and erucic acid used in the preventative treatment of adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD). This mixture of short chain fatty acids reduces the levels of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFA) known to cause ALD. It does so by competitively inhibiting the enzyme that forms VLCFAs.
While useful for delaying or, in some cases, eliminating the onset of ALD symptoms, Lorenzo's oil has not been clinically proven to be an effective countermeasure against the progression of ALD. It does however prevent the onset from ALD in boys who have no symptoms by half.
References
- Treatment of X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy with Lorenzo's oil (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=10449544)
- Lorenzo's oil, a program in the series "Medical Mysteries" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3907559.stm)