The Medicinal value of Lithium chloride

Introduction

Lithium chloride (LiCl) is a metal chloride salt with a Li(+) counterion. It has a role as an antimanic drug and a geroprotector. It is an inorganic chloride and a lithium salt. Lithium chloride is soluble in alcohol, acetone, and amyl alcohol. 1 g is soluble in 1.3 ml of cold water and 0.8 ml of boiling water. Lithium citrate is slightly soluble in alcohol and freely soluble in water. Lithium sulfate is soluble in 2.6 parts water and is practically insoluble in alcohol. Lithium chloride is a deliquescent, granular, crystalline powder with a sharp, saline taste[1].

Structure

LiCl is Halite, Rock Salt structured and crystallizes in the cubic Fm̅3m space group. Li¹⁺ is bonded to six equivalent Cl¹⁻ atoms to form an edge and corner-sharing LiCl₆ octahedra mixture. The corner-sharing octahedra are not tilted. All Li-Cl bond lengths are 2.54 Å. Cl¹⁻ is bonded to six equivalent Li¹⁺ atoms to form a mixture of edge and corner-sharing ClLi₆ octahedra. The corner-sharing octahedra are not tilted[2].

Medicinal value

Lithium is the smallest metal cation shown to promote angiogenesis. Treatment of brain endothelial cells with lithium chloride (LiCl) upregulated VEGF secretion through glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) phosphorylation. Lithium ions can also stimulate angiogenesis through another pathway. Human microvascular endothelial cells treated with LiCl showed increased cell proliferation and migration—characteristics of angiogenesis—through the augmentation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling in the Norrin/Frizzled-4 pathway. Lithium can be delivered as soluble salts such as LiCl or on bioactive glasses. Lithium incorporated into bioactive +glass ceramic (Li-BGC) promoted the growth of new blood vessels in vivo by elevating proliferation and migration, as well as the expression of proangiogenic genes.

Lithium chloride, one of the most well-known mood stabilizers with antisuicidal effects, is currently being utilized as an agent for acute mania and as a maintenance treatment in bipolar disorder (BD). Unfortunately, there are few pharmacogenomic studies that address the issue of response to lithium treatment, while previous GWASs, also dealing with lithium treatment response, have added a few genetic factors affecting lithium response, including only limited criteria for the phenotypic characterization of treatment response. According to published candidate-gene studies, several genomic variants in different genes, such as 5-HTT, TPH, DRD1, FYN, INPP1, CREB1, BDNF, GSK3β, ARNTL, TIM, DPB, NR3C1, BCR, XBP1, and CACNG2 genes, have been shown to be associated with lithium treatment response. Moreover, SLC6A4 and ACCN1 gene variants have also been associated with lithium treatment outcomes in patients with BD[3].

A study found that the treatment of lithium chloride (LiCl) helped overcome the transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus infection in porcine. Similarly, the replication and entry of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) in the Vero cells also decrease following the LiCl treatment. LiCl treatment also protects avians from the coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus by suppressing the synthesis of genomic RNA and sub-genomic mRNA without affecting the host translation mechanisms.

Lithium chloride in low doses is a nontoxic substance that is not metabolized. When injected, its concentration is easily measured using a lithium-selective electrode. Lithium dilution cardiac output is calculated from the area under the concentration-time curve when injected from a central line and measured peripherally. Injection through the antecubital vein appears to be as accurate as a central line. Pulse CO LiDCO (LiDCO+) combines pulse contour analysis with lithium dilution calibration.

References

[1] Lithium Chloride | LiCl | CID 433294 - PubChem (nih.gov) https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Lithium-Chloride

[2] mp-22905: LiCl (Cubic, Fm-3m, 225) (materialsproject.org) https://next-gen. materialsproject.org/materials/mp-22905#:~:text=LiCl%20is%20Halite%2C%20Rock%20Salt, and%20corner-sharing%20LiCl₆%20octahedra.

[3] Lithium Chloride - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/lithium-chloride