The drug Zolpidem is marketed under the brand name Ambien and it is approved for the treatment of insomnia. In animal trials, the drug showed success in terms of stroke recovery.
It is thought the drug enhances nerve-cell signaling activity in the brain. This occurred even when the dose was too low to exert a sedative effect. The improved nerve signalling is via boosting levels of neurotransmitters. The focus was on a neurotransmitter called GABA.
By dividing mice into a test group (given Zolpidem) and a control group, beneficial effects in terms of stroke recovery were seen after three days of the drug being administered.
Evidence was based on anatomical, physiological and behavioral experiments on mice. To measures were used. The first was assessing the speed with which the mice removed a patch of adhesive tape from one of their paws. The second was a test to assess the ability if the mice to walk across a horizontal rotating beam.
The behavioural changes were supported by changes with the structural differences between synaptic and extrasynaptic GABA receptors. The chnages were detected using specialized visual scanners.
Interviewed by Bioscience Technology, the lead researcher Gary Steinberg, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair of neurosurgery, cautioned about the results. Although promising, he noted that the data needs to be confirmed by other laboratories and that further data, including eventual human trials, would be required.
If the drug was ever proven to work with humans and it was administered promptly, this could help clear blockages to the brain from the blood supply. At present no pharmaceutical compound has been shown to be capable of improving recovery and much rests on physical therapy.
The study was conducted at the Stanford University School of Medicine. The findings are published in the journal Brain. The paper is titled “Enhanced phasic GABA inhibition during the repair phase of stroke: a novel therapeutic target.”
