Narcolepsy is caused by the loss of orexin-containing neurons in the hypothalamus, and a novel nonstimulant wakefulness-promoting drug, Provigil, alleviates excessive day-time sleepiness associated with the disorder.
The level of arousal is controlled by an intricate interplay between distinct wakefulness – and sleep-promoting nuclei situated in the hypothalamus and brainstem and the interconnections between the nuclei and the neurotransmitters involved have been mapped.
A growing number of students and academics are using “smart drugs” bought over the internet to improve their performance in exams, a senior drug adviser has warned.
Barbara Sahakian, professor of clinical neuropsychology at the University of Cambridge, said British students are buying prescription drugs such as modafinil and Ritalin from suppliers as far afield as India.
One in 10 Cambridge undergraduates has used cognitive-enhancing drugs – while another third said they would use them if they had access to them, a recent survey showed.
Provigil, like many drugs that we take for MS symptoms, seems to have a “we’re not sure how it works, but it does” factor. It is widely assumed that the drug works on one of the neurotransmitters (dopamine) in affecting fatigue.
Most of us know very well that these neurotransmitter chemicals live between our axons or nerve endings. They are the substance through which nerve firings occur. We also know that some of our damaged axons do not fire strongly enough to pass signals to the next due to demyelination.
