Pyrithiamine hydrobromide, an inhibitor of thiamine metabolism that acts as a substrate for thiamine pyrophosphate kinase, causes neurologic symptoms similar to wernickke - korsakoff syndrome in animals.

In adult rats, intraperitoneal administration of Pyrithiamine hydrobromide (0.5 mg/kg, twice daily for 14 days) effectively induced thiamine deficiency, leading to behavioral abnormalities (e.g., ataxia, seizures) and neuronal degeneration in the thalamus and hippocampus. This confirms its utility as an anti-thiamine agent for creating neurodegenerative disease models[1].