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British Journal of Pharmacology May 2019Sleep deprivation compromises learning and memory in both humans and animals, and can be reversed by administration of modafinil, a drug promoting wakefulness....
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Sleep deprivation compromises learning and memory in both humans and animals, and can be reversed by administration of modafinil, a drug promoting wakefulness. Dysfunctional autophagy increases activation of apoptotic cascades, ultimately leading to increased neuronal death, which can be alleviated by autophagy inhibitors. This study aimed to investigate the alleviative effect and mechanism of modafinil on the excessive autophagy occurring in the hippocampus of mice with deficiency of learning and memory induced by sleep deprivation.
EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH
The Morris water maze was used to assess the effects of modafinil on male C57BL/6Slac mice after 48-hr sleep deprivation. The HT-22 hippocampal neuronal cell line was also used. Nissl staining, transmission electron microscope, immunofluorescence, Western blot, transient transfection, and autophagy inducer were used to study the effect and mechanism of modafinil on hippocampal neurons with excessive autophagy and apoptosis.
KEY RESULTS
Modafinil improved learning and memory in sleep-deprived mice, associated with the inhibition of excessive autophage and apoptosis and an enhanced activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR/P70S6K signalling pathway in hippocampal neurons. These effects of modafinil were abolished by rapamycin. In addition, modafinil suppressed the aberrant autophagy and apoptosis induced by rapamycin and reactivated PI3K/Akt/mTOR/P70S6K signals in HT-22 cells.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
These results suggested that modafinil alleviated impaired learning and memory of sleep-deprived mice potentially by suppressing excessive autophagy and apoptosis of hippocampal neurons. This novel mechanism may add to our knowledge of modafinil in the clinical treatment of impaired memory caused by sleep loss.
Topics: Animals; Apoptosis; Autophagy; Central Nervous System Stimulants; Hippocampus; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Modafinil; Neurons; Protective Agents; Sleep Deprivation
PubMed: 30767208
DOI: 10.1111/bph.14626 -
Brain Sciences Nov 2022cocaine craving is a core feature of cocaine use disorder and remains a critical challenge for abstinence and relapse prevention. This review summarizes the anti-craving... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
cocaine craving is a core feature of cocaine use disorder and remains a critical challenge for abstinence and relapse prevention. This review summarizes the anti-craving efficacy of pharmacotherapies tested for cocaine use disorder, in the context of randomized-controlled clinical trials.
OBJECTIVES
we assessed the databases of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, Google Scholar, and PsycINFO, without date restrictions up to August 2022, to identify relevant studies.
STUDY ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA, PARTICIPANTS, AND INTERVENTIONS
we included double-blinded randomized-controlled trials investigating pharmacotherapies for cocaine craving and/or cocaine use disorder whose outcomes included cocaine craving.
STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHODS
Two authors screened studies' titles and abstracts for inclusion, and both read all the included studies. We systematically gathered information on the following aspects of each study: title; author(s); year of publication; sample size; mean age; sample characteristics; study set-ting; whether participants were treatment-seeking; study design; craving measures; study interventions; drop-out rates; and other relevant outcomes.
RESULTS
Overall, we appraised 130 clinical trials, including 8137 participants. We further considered the drugs from the studies that scored equal to or greater than six points in the quality assessment. There was a correlation between craving and cocaine use outcomes (self-reports, timeline follow-back or urinary benzoylecgonine) in the vast majority of studies. In the short-term treatment, acute phenylalanine-tyrosine depletion, clonidine, fenfluramine, meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (m-CPP) and mecamylamine presented promising effects. In the long term, amphetamine, biperiden, carbamazepine, lisdexamfetamine, lorcaserin, methamphetamine, mirtazapine, pioglitazone, progesterone, guanfacine, levodopa, nefazodone presented promising anti-craving effects. Unfortunately, the highly tested medications were not successful in most of the trials, as follows: propranolol in the short term; amantadine, aripiprazole, bromocriptine, citicoline, ketamine, modafinil, olanzapine, topiramate in the long term. The remaining 52 medications had no positive anti-craving outcomes.
LIMITATIONS
Our review was limited by high heterogeneity of craving assessments across the studies and by a great range of pharmacotherapies. Further, the majority of the studies considered abstinence and retention in treatment as the main outcomes, whereas craving was a secondary outcome and some of the studies evaluated patients with cocaine use disorder with comorbidities such as opioid or alcohol use disorder, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity. Lastly, most of the studies also included non-pharmacological treatments, such as counseling or psychotherapy.
CONCLUSIONS
There is a direct association between craving and cocaine use, underscoring craving as an important treatment target for promoting abstinence among persons with cocaine use disorder. Clonidine, fenfluramine and m-CPP showed to be promising medications for cocaine craving in the short-term treatment, and amphetamine, biperiden, carbamazepine, lisdexamfetamine, lorcaserin, methamphetamine, mirtazapine, pioglitazone, progesterone, guanfacine, levodopa, nefazodone in the long-term treatment.
PubMed: 36421870
DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12111546 -
Science Advances Jun 2023The efficacy of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancers in everyday complex tasks remains to be established. Using the knapsack optimization problem as a stylized...
The efficacy of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancers in everyday complex tasks remains to be established. Using the knapsack optimization problem as a stylized representation of difficulty in tasks encountered in daily life, we discover that methylphenidate, dextroamphetamine, and modafinil cause knapsack value attained in the task to diminish significantly compared to placebo, even if the chance of finding the optimal solution (~50%) is not reduced significantly. Effort (decision time and number of steps taken to find a solution) increases significantly, but productivity (quality of effort) decreases significantly. At the same time, productivity differences across participants decrease, even reverse, to the extent that above-average performers end up below average and vice versa. The latter can be attributed to increased randomness of solution strategies. Our findings suggest that "smart drugs" increase motivation, but a reduction in quality of effort, crucial to solve complex problems, annuls this effect.
Topics: Humans; Cognition; Methylphenidate; Modafinil; Motivation; Central Nervous System Stimulants
PubMed: 37315143
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.add4165 -
Current Opinion in Chemical Biology Oct 2023In the review, current status of sulfoxides on the pharmaceutical market is discussed. In the first part of the article, natural sulfoxides will be described with a... (Review)
Review
In the review, current status of sulfoxides on the pharmaceutical market is discussed. In the first part of the article, natural sulfoxides will be described with a special focus on sulforaphane and amanitin, a mushroom toxin which has been developed as payload in antibody drug conjugates in the possible cancer treatment. Controversies associated with the medical use of dimethylsulfoxide are briefly described in the next section. In the part devoted to PPIs, the benefits of using pure enantiomers (chiral switch) are discussed. An interesting approach, repositioning of drugs is exemplified by new possible applications of modafinil and sulindac. The review is concluded by presentation of cenicriviroc and adezmapimod, both with the status of promising drug candidates.
Topics: Sulfoxides; Dimethyl Sulfoxide; Stereoisomerism
PubMed: 37307682
DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2023.102340 -
Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine :... Sep 2021This guideline establishes clinical practice recommendations for the treatment of central disorders of hypersomnolence in adults and children.
INTRODUCTION
This guideline establishes clinical practice recommendations for the treatment of central disorders of hypersomnolence in adults and children.
METHODS
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine commissioned a task force of experts in sleep medicine to develop recommendations and assign strengths to each recommendation, based on a systematic review of the literature and an assessment of the evidence using the GRADE process. The task force provided a summary of the relevant literature and the quality of evidence, the balance of benefits and harms, patient values and preferences, and resource use considerations that support the recommendations. The AASM Board of Directors approved the final recommendations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The following recommendations are intended to guide clinicians in choosing a specific treatment for central disorders of hypersomnolence in adults and children. Each recommendation statement is assigned a strength ("strong" or "conditional"). A "strong" recommendation (ie, "We recommend…") is one that clinicians should follow under most circumstances. A "conditional" recommendation (ie, "We suggest…") is one that requires that the clinician use clinical knowledge and experience and strongly consider the individual patient's values and preferences to determine the best course of action. Under each disorder, strong recommendations are listed in alphabetical order followed by the conditional recommendations in alphabetical order. The section on adult patients with hypersomnia because of medical conditions is categorized based on the clinical and pathological subtypes identified in ICSD-3. The interventions in all the recommendation statements were compared to no treatment.
1
We recommend that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (STRONG).
2
We recommend that clinicians use pitolisant for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (STRONG).
3
We recommend that clinicians use sodium oxybate for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (STRONG).
4
We recommend that clinicians use solriamfetol for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (STRONG).
5
We suggest that clinicians use armodafinil for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
6
We suggest that clinicians use dextroamphetamine for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
7
We suggest that clinicians use methylphenidate for the treatment of narcolepsy in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
8
We recommend that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. (STRONG).
9
We suggest that clinicians use clarithromycin for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
10
We suggest that clinicians use methylphenidate for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
11
We suggest that clinicians use pitolisant for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
12
We suggest that clinicians use sodium oxybate for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
13
We suggest that clinicians use lithium for the treatment of Kleine-Levin syndrome in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
14
We suggest that clinicians use armodafinil for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to dementia with Lewy bodies in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
15
We suggest that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to Parkinson's disease in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
16
We suggest that clinicians use sodium oxybate for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to Parkinson's disease in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
17
We suggest that clinicians use armodafinil for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to traumatic brain injury in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
18
We suggest that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to traumatic brain injury in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
19
We suggest that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to myotonic dystrophy in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
20
We suggest that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of hypersomnia secondary to multiple sclerosis in adults. (CONDITIONAL).
21
We suggest that clinicians use modafinil for the treatment of narcolepsy in pediatric patients. (CONDITIONAL).
22
We suggest that clinicians use sodium oxybate for the treatment of narcolepsy in pediatric patients. (CONDITIONAL).
CITATION
Maski K, Trotti LM, Kotagal S, et al. Treatment of central disorders of hypersomnolence: an American Academy of Sleep Medicine clinical practice guideline. . 2021;17(9):1881-1893.
Topics: Adult; Child; Disorders of Excessive Somnolence; Humans; Idiopathic Hypersomnia; Modafinil; Narcolepsy; Sleep; United States
PubMed: 34743789
DOI: 10.5664/jcsm.9328 -
European Journal of Neurology Sep 2021Narcolepsy is an uncommon hypothalamic disorder of presumed autoimmune origin that usually requires lifelong treatment. This paper aims to provide evidence-based...
BACKGROUND AND AIM
Narcolepsy is an uncommon hypothalamic disorder of presumed autoimmune origin that usually requires lifelong treatment. This paper aims to provide evidence-based guidelines for the management of narcolepsy in both adults and children.
METHODS
The European Academy of Neurology (EAN), European Sleep Research Society (ESRS) and European Narcolepsy Network (EU-NN) nominated a task force of 18 narcolepsy specialists. According to the EAN recommendations, 10 relevant clinical questions were formulated in PICO format. Following a systematic review of the literature (performed in Fall 2018 and updated in July 2020) recommendations were developed according to the GRADE approach.
RESULTS
A total of 10,247 references were evaluated, 308 studies were assessed and 155 finally included. The main recommendations can be summarized as follows: (i) excessive daytime sleepiness in adults-scheduled naps, modafinil, pitolisant, sodium oxybate (SXB), solriamfetol (all strong), methylphenidate, amphetamine derivates (both weak); (ii) cataplexy in adults-SXB, venlafaxine, clomipramine (all strong) and pitolisant (weak); (iii) excessive daytime sleepiness in children-scheduled naps, SXB (both strong), modafinil, methylphenidate, pitolisant, amphetamine derivates (all weak); (iv) cataplexy in children-SXB (strong), antidepressants (weak). Treatment choices should be tailored to each patient's symptoms, comorbidities, tolerance and risk of potential drug interactions.
CONCLUSION
The management of narcolepsy involves non-pharmacological and pharmacological approaches with an increasing number of symptomatic treatment options for adults and children that have been studied in some detail.
Topics: Adult; Cataplexy; Child; Humans; Modafinil; Narcolepsy; Sleep; Sodium Oxybate
PubMed: 34173695
DOI: 10.1111/ene.14888 -
Current Neurology and Neuroscience... Mar 2023This paper reviews how sleep is impacted in patients with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), focusing on sleep-related breathing disturbances and excessive daytime sleepiness... (Review)
Review
PURPOSE OF REVIEW
This paper reviews how sleep is impacted in patients with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), focusing on sleep-related breathing disturbances and excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS).
RECENT FINDINGS
Hypothalamic dysfunction may underlie several aspects of the PWS phenotype. Central sleep apnea (CSA) can persist beyond infancy. Nocturnal hypoventilation is common and may occur without central or obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Adenotonsillectomy, a mainstay of OSA treatment, may cause velopharyngeal insufficiency. Growth hormone (GH) is considered safe, but close surveillance for OSA remains important. Cardiac autonomic dysfunction occurs during slow wave sleep and may increase the risk of cardiovascular events. EDS and narcolepsy are also common. Modafinil and pitolisant are treatment options currently being studied. Sleep disorders are prevalent in individuals with PWS. Sleep-related breathing disorders present as CSA in infancy and later in life as OSA and hypoventilation. GH therapy has improved the clinical outcomes of patients with PWS, but close surveillance and treatment for OSA is recommended. EDS can persist even after sleep-related breathing disorders are treated, and some individuals may even develop narcolepsy. Early recognition and treatment of sleep-related disorders may prevent morbidity and result in improved survival of patients with PWS.
Topics: Humans; Prader-Willi Syndrome; Hypoventilation; Polysomnography; Sleep; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive; Disorders of Excessive Somnolence; Narcolepsy
PubMed: 36790642
DOI: 10.1007/s11910-023-01254-6