Cognitive enhancers stimulants

A link between smokers and a lower incidence of AD has been noted and this is thought to be associated with increased nicotine intake. Nicotine (27) is reported to have cognition-enhancing effects and these may be due to nicotinic receptor stimulation. It may also protect against AD by... 

Skillful practice of psychopharmacology requires a broad knowledge of psychiatry, pharmacology, and medicine. In this chapter, we present general principles relevant to the safe and effective use of psychotropic medications. In subsequent chapters, we discuss the major classes of psychotropic medications—antidepressants, anxiolytics, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, stimulants, and cognitive enhancers—and the disorders for which they are prescribed. The reader should be aware that this nomenclature is somewhat artificial for example, many antidepressant medications are also used to treat anxiety disorders. Generic names are used throughout this book. The appendix provides a fist of trade (brand) names. 

In this chapter, we have looked at two topics in cognitive enhancement attention and memory. We have first reviewed the role of dopamine and norepinephrine/ noradrenaline in the neuropharmacology of attention, and then the syndrome of attention deficit disorder as a common problem associated with a disorder of attention. We then discussed the use of stimulants for improving attention, primarily in attention deficit disorder, and reviewed the pharmacological mechanisms of action of methylphenidate, d and 1 amphetamine, pemoline, and secondary therapies such as clonidine and guanfacine. 

Another theory for the action of stimulant diugs in ADHD involves effects on nonstiiatal monoamine systems. Frontal cortical dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin are clearly important in cognitive functioning and impulse control. These neurotransmitters directly modulate reward-related behaviors associated with the striatal dopamine system. Moreover, the amygdala may be pharmacologically influenced leading to enhanced... 

Drugs that act on the H3 receptor are being developed for the treatment of obesity, sleep disturbances, epilepsy and cognitive disorders. The ability of histamine to promote arousal, suppress appetite, elevate seizure threshold and stimulate cognitive processes implies that compounds able to enhance the release of neuronal histamine should mimic these effects. Several H3 antagonists currently in development demonstrate such activity and show promise as effective and novel therapeutic agents [40, 84-86]. Because H3 agonists suppress the release of... 

---