Improving slow wave sleep and glymphatic flow in dementia

改善痴呆症的慢波睡眠和类淋巴液流动

• 批准号: 10071407
• 金额: $ 253.76万
• 依托单位: ASTRONAUTX LIMITED
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Collaborative R&D
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=10071407
• 关键词: Improving; slow; wave; sleep; glymphatic

AstronauTx is a biotechnology company focussed on developing new drugs for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. These diseases carry a huge burden to patients, caregivers and society as a whole. With an aging population, this societal cost will double in the next 10 years. Current therapies for these diseases are mostly symptomatic and their effects are modest and short-lived. The first disease-modifying drug infusions for Alzheimer's disease have recently been approved in the US. The treatments are modestly effective, require extensive monitoring and have potentially harmful side-effects. Furthermore, they tackle only one of the proteins disrupted in the disease. There is a huge opportunity for more effective drugs that address both the symptoms of neurodegenerative diseases and their progression.One of the major breakthroughs in understanding the biology of neurodegenerative diseases over the last decade has been the discovery of a clearance mechanism for toxic protein build-up in the brain. This process is called glymphatic flow, and it happens during a particular part of the sleep cycle. Slow wave sleep is the deep, restorative sleep during which the brain processes memories and clears accumulated waste. Disrupted sleep is a risk factor for development of neurodegenerative diseases and a symptom of the diseases themselves. Loss of slow wave sleep leads to memory problems and psychological difficulties. It also disrupts the glymphatic clearance needed to wash toxic waste products out of the brain, making the disease worse. A drug which improves slow wave sleep should both improve symptoms and slow disease progression. Unfortunately, none of the sleeping drugs available now have any effect on slow wave sleep - they make people fall asleep faster but do not affect the important processes that occur during the slow wave sleep phase of a good night's sleep.AstronauTx have identified a new mechanism which uniquely and significantly increases slow wave sleep. Innovate UK funding will be used over the next 18 months to create the best drug candidate and assess whether its ability to improve slow wave sleep translates into improved glymphatic flow and slowed neurodegeneration as predicted. This will be done in partnership with the very best scientists in the UK. This new and innovative approach to neurodegeneration is built on cutting-edge science and AstronauTx leads the way. Together with Innovate UK funding, we could deliver an entirely new drug class to benefit millions of patients.

宇航科技是一家生物技术公司，专注于开发治疗阿尔茨海默病和帕金森氏症等神经退行性疾病的新药。这些疾病给患者、照顾者和整个社会带来了巨大的负担。随着人口老龄化，这一社会成本将在未来10年翻一番。目前对这些疾病的治疗大多是有症状的，其效果不大，而且是短暂的。首批治疗阿尔茨海默病的药物注射最近在美国获得批准。这些治疗方法效果不大，需要广泛监测，并有潜在的有害副作用。此外，他们只处理了一种在疾病中被破坏的蛋白质。有巨大的机会开发更有效的药物来治疗神经退行性疾病的症状和进展。在过去十年中，在了解神经退行性疾病生物学方面的主要突破之一是发现了有毒蛋白质在大脑中积聚的清除机制。这个过程被称为淋巴流动，它发生在睡眠周期的特定部分。慢波睡眠是一种深度、恢复性的睡眠，在此期间，大脑处理记忆并清除积累的废物。睡眠障碍是神经退行性疾病发展的危险因素，也是疾病本身的症状。慢波睡眠的丧失会导致记忆问题和心理问题。它还扰乱了将有毒废物从大脑中清除出去所需的淋巴清除，使疾病变得更糟。一种改善慢波睡眠的药物应该既能改善症状，又能减缓疾病的进展。不幸的是，现在可用的安眠药都不会对慢波睡眠产生任何影响--它们能让人更快入睡，但不会影响晚上良好睡眠的慢波睡眠阶段的重要过程。宇航员Tx已经发现了一种独特的、显著增加慢波睡眠的新机制。Innovate UK的资金将在未来18个月内用于创造最佳候选药物，并评估其改善慢波睡眠的能力是否如预期的那样转化为改善淋巴流动和减缓神经退化。这项研究将与英国最优秀的科学家合作完成。这种治疗神经退化的新的创新方法建立在尖端科学的基础上，而宇航技术公司走在了前列。与Innovate UK Funding一起，我们可以提供一种全新的药物类别，使数百万患者受益。