“Can Sleeping Pills Help Treat Alzheimer’s? Study Shows Promising Results on Proteins”

The scientists called in volunteers for a study to study the effect of sleeping pills on Alzheimer’s disease (AD)-associated proteins in the cerebrospinal fluid. In the experiment, they used suvorexant tablets. These drugs have shown results in the fight against substances that lead to the formation of plaques in the brain. But, according to scientists, more large-scale and comprehensive studies are needed.

Staff at the University of Washington School of Medicine divided 38 people into three groups and watched them sleep for two nights. The first group did not take any medication. The second was prescribed suvorexant (10 mg), which helps with insomnia. This remedy blocks orexin, a molecule in the body that keeps us awake. The third group took an increased dose of the drug (20 mg).

Poor sleep can affect the development of a neurodegenerative disease. If a patient has Alzheimer’s disease, then his sleep is disturbed long before the onset of symptoms of cognitive decline. This is due to the accumulation of tau protein and beta amyloid.

During the experiment, people took a small amount of cerebrospinal fluid every two hours. In the third group, the level of hyperphosphorylated tau protein decreased by 10-15%, amyloid – by 10-20%. Other study participants who received a lower dose of the drug did not have a significant decrease in any of the proteins.

So far, scientists are of the opinion that it is too early to draw conclusions about the strong effect of sleeping pills on people who have Alzheimer’s disease. “This is still a proof of concept,” wrote the researchers, whose results were published in Annals of Neurology.