Lithium carbonate is a white powder that contains the elements lithium, carbon and oxygen. The chemical formula for lithium carbonate is LI2CO3. Throughout the years, many uses have been found for this chemical. Most of the lithium carbonate in the world is used for industrial purposes, but it has important medical uses as well.
Industrial Uses
Industrial manufacturers make extensive use of lithium carbonate. Makers of glass and ceramics add the chemical to their manufacturing process to strengthen their products. Lithium carbonate is a key ingredient in shock-resistant cookware and the glass in tube televisions. About 40 percent of the lithium carbonate in the United States goes into the production of such glass, though that number might fall a little as LCD televisions and computer monitors are increasingly made from other substances. Lithium carbonate also plays a key role in the production of aluminum metal. In that process, the chemical reduces the temperature necessary to extract pure lithium from its ores, thus saving an abundance of energy and money.
Treatment for Bipolar Disorder
In 1949, the Australian physician John Cade found that patients with bipolar disorder who took lithium carbonate experienced less severe symptoms of mania. Studies have revealed the neuroactivity of lithium carbonate: it alters the sodium flux in neurons and muscle cells and changes the intensity of neuronal communication by interfering with the metabolism of neurotransmitters. Although these mechanisms have been elucidated, researchers are not exactly sure why they affect bipolar disorder. Even so, the drug effectively reduces the symptoms of mania, including pressure of speech, flight of ideas, aggressiveness, elation, motor hyperactivity, sleeplessness, gradiosity and poor judgment.
Cancer Therapy
Lithium carbonate has also been indicated as a possible cancer therapy drug. Although it does not directly affect cancer cells, it has been shown to reduce the incidents of infections and leukopenia in patients receiving chemotherapy. Leukopenia is characterized by a reduced number of white blood cells, which--since white blood cells fight off foreign invaders--leads to more infections. A 1980 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine by Dr. G.H. Lyman and colleagues studied 45 patients receiving chemotherapy. Twenty of the patients received lithium carbonate, and 25 patients--the control group--received none. The data revealed that infection-free survival was significantly longer in the patients treated with lithium. Also, the lithium-treated group had significantly higher white blood cell counts throughout the course of their chemotherapy.
