Funder: The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK)
Project Manager: Prof. Dr. Canan Uluoğlu
Other Researchers:
Research Assistant Dr. Muhammed Cihan Güvel
Research Assistant Dr. Utku Aykan
Project in detail:
In the modern world, people complain about not getting enough sleep. On the other hand, many individuals are intertwined with the obligations that they will have to work for long periods and maintain their concentration. It is a necessity to provide resistance against sleep deprivation in fields such as military, medicine, nursing, piloting, long-distance driving, where watch and night work are obligatory conditions. It is necessary to take approaches to minimize inevitable insomnia caused by such professions and the cognitive deterioration that results from it. However, it is noteworthy that there are not enough effective and safe drugs used in this field all over the world. In this context, it is known that studies on drugs that support neurological functions and increase alertness have been going on for many years. In fact, studies in this direction receive a large amount of funding from research and development agencies within the armies in order to increase military performance.
For this purpose, we want to study two new agents that we predict have effects that support neurological functions and increase wakefulness in the animal insomnia model. These agents are Nicotinic alpha-7 receptor positive allosteric modulator AVL-3288 and AMPA receptor positive allosteric modulator CX516. The enhancing and supporting effects of these agents on mental functions have been shown in many studies and even phase studies have been started in a few indications such as schizophrenia. However, we do not have a study on the effects of these drugs on sleep disorders or cognitive deterioration due to sleep deprivation. In our study, the cognitive and behavioral effects of these agents will be compared with the effects of Modafinil and Caffeine, which are known to reverse insomnia-induced cognitive dysfunction and have different mechanisms of action.
Universities and disciplines of researchers: