(May) INOSITOL AND SLOW WAVE SLEEP
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The effects of short-term inhibition of inositol monophosphatase on slow wave sleep in healthy volunteers
IRAS ID
106074
Contact name
Philip Cowen
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Oxford
Research summary
Lithium is a very important treatment for manic depression (bipolar illness) but has a number of problematic side effects. To replace lithium with other better tolerated drugs we need to have a clearer understanding of how lithium works in the human brain. Lithium is known to increase a stage of sleep called slow wave sleep and is believed to do this through inhibiting an enzyme found in the brain called inositol monophosphatase (IMPase). In the present study we aim to see if we can produce the same effect on slow wave sleep using a drug called ebselen that is also known to inhibit IMPase. If ebselen does produce the same effect as lithium on slow wave sleep it will confirm that IMPase is an important target for lithium in humans and lead to the development of selective IMPase inhibitors for the treatment of bipolar illness. In this placebo-controlled study we will therefore measure the effect of a single dose of ebselen on slow wave sleep in the sleep EEG of 15 healthy volunteers. The study will take place in the Oxford University of Psychiatry and is funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
REC name
South Central - Oxford B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/SC/0210
Date of REC Opinion
22 Jul 2013
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion