Cognitive enhancers research

The evidence cited here is only a very small sample of the vast quantity of research into putative cognitive enhancers. However, many of these compounds that have demonstrated positive effects are believed to influence cerebral metabolism, whether through increased blood flow, glucose metabolism or other indirect routes, as outlined above. Furthermore, these metabolic effects are hypothesised to be at least partly responsible for the cognitive improvements documented. Indeed, many of the putative cognitive enhancers currently available claim modes of influence (Table 14.1) that would fall in line with a metabolic model of cognitive enhancement. 

In recent years, various means for achieving cognitive enhancement have been investigated. Although these approaches have been entitled novel due to the contemporary nature of the research, they often represent activities that have been employed for thousands of years. In other words, although comprehensive scientific investigation is only very recent, their practice and belief has formed part of collective human wisdom for considerably longer. 

Innovation in the area of cognitive enhancers in general and in Alzheimer s disease in particular is one of the most active research areas in psychopharmacology. Although this is a most exciting topic, it may not be of interest to every reader, and especially not to the beginner or to the generalist. These readers may wish to skip to the end of the chapter and to the summary. 

Palliative treatment of Alzheimer s disease, the most common cause of dementia, has be the primary focus of research in cognitive enhancement. However, despite these efforts, effective pharmacological interventions remain elusive. The most fruitful pharmacological strategy pursued in AD research to date has focused on the relief of cognitive and memory deficits that are attributed to cholinergic dysfunction. 

Merck researchers have recently disclosed a series of 3-phenyltriazolopyridazines with excellent selectivity for the a,-containing GABA isoform (186) (Table 14.5). Selectivity for the a, subunit was maintained within the series when the A-ring was saturated or had alternative ring fusion. The inverse agonist L-792782 (47) was selected from this series and evaluated for cognition enhancement, discussed below. 

Confirmation that drug effects were mediated via CBi receptor activation was obtained through co-administration of the selective receptor antagonist rimonabant, which reversed deficits induced by A THC (Lichtman and Martin 1997 Mishima et al. 2001). Rimonabant alone had no effect when delays between entries 1-4 and 5-8 were short (Lichtman 2000 Lichtman and Martin 1997 Mishima et al. 2001), but there was a memory enhancement for delays of several hours (Lichtman 2000). This result suggests that blockade of CBi receptors may aid the development of short-term memory, and receptor antagonists may become important as cognitive enhancers not only for future animal research but also with respect to treatment of cognitive impairment in humans. 

The rst trial involved 20 students who were given daily oral capsules containing either 50 pL each of essential oil and sun ower oil (1-3 capsules) or 100 pL of sun ower oil as placebo. Students therefore received 0, 50, 100, or 150 pL of essential oil. The Cognitive Drug Research (CDR)-computerized assessment battery was used predose and up to 6 h posttreatment. Performance was found to be enhanced at 1 and 2.5 h for both immediate and delayed memory recall. A similar second test using 25 and 50 pL of essential oil found that improved memory performance was maintained from 1 to 4 h posttreatment for the 50 pL dose only. Overall, the 25 and 150 pL doses had no signi cant effect (Tildesley et al., 2003). 

A number of psychosocial treatments for alcohol and other substance use disorders exist and are widely used. In this chapter, we discuss six of these psychotherapies as they are applied to alcohol, cocaine, and opioid dependence brief interventions, motivational enhancement therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, behavioral treatments (including contingency management and community reinforcement approaches), behavioral marital therapy, and 12-step facilitation. We also describe studies that examined the efficacy of a medication in combination with one or more of the six psychotherapies. In the second section of the chapter, we highlight research that directly studied the interaction between psychosocial and pharmacological treatments. 

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a self-help organization for people whose common goal is recovery from alcoholism, and it is the most widely accessed resource for individuals with alcohol problems (McCrady and Miller 1993). The philosophy is based on the concept of alcoholism as a chronic disease that cannot be cured, but one that can be halted by means of complete abstinence. AA has described 12 principles or steps to guide those in recovery. Twelve-step facilitation, a manual-based psychotherapy to promote AA participation (Nowinski et al. 1992), was equally efficacious, compared with cognitive-behavioral and motivational enhancement therapies, in a large study of treatments for alcohol dependence (Project Match Research Group, 1997). 

The Center for Cognitive Liberty Ethics (CCLE) is a nonprofit research and policy center devoted to protecting freedom of thought. Our mission is to develop and implement social policies that preserve and enhance freedom of thought into the 21st century. 

Tharion MS, Shukitt-Hale B, Coffey B, Desai M, Strowman SR, Tulley R, Lieberman HR. The use of caffeine to enhance cognitive performance, reaction time, vigiliance, rifle marksmanship, and mood states in sleep-deprived Navy SEAL (BUD/S) Trainees. USARIEM Technical Report No. ADA331982. Natick, MA U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine 1997. 

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