Effects of modafinil on immunity, neuroinflammation and development of experimenta...
| Grant number: | 15/18803-8 |
| Support type: | Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor |
| Effective date (Start): | February 08, 2016 |
| Effective date (End): | February 07, 2017 |
| Field of knowledge: | Biological Sciences - Pharmacology |
| Principal Investigator: | João Palermo Neto |
| Grantee: | Adriano Zager |
| Supervisor abroad: | Birgitte Rahbek Kornum |
| Home Institution: | Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil |
| Local de pesquisa : | Glostrup Research Institute, Denmark |
| Associated to the scholarship: | 13/18921-5 - Effects of modafinil on immunity, neuroinflammation and development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in mice, BP.PD |
Abstract Type 1 narcolepsy is a sleep disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, cataplexy and hypocretin deficiency. Several lines of evidence indicate that type 1 narcolepsy is an autoimmune disorder that could be triggered by multiple genetic (HLA DQB1*06:02) and environmental factors (previous infections and vaccines). Although no clear immune mechanism has been established for the specific destruction of hypocretin neurons, T cells seems to be crucial to development of autoimmunity. Modafinil is a psychostimulant drug that has been used as wake-promoter to treat narcolepsy for many years. Recent in vivo and in vitro findings suggest that modafinil has anti-inflammatory effects and decreases T helper-mediated immunity. However, to this date, no studies were performed to associate the improvement of symptoms after modafinil treatment with T cell function of patients with type 1 narcolepsy. The aim of the present study is to investigate circulating CD4+ and CD8+ subsets and their secreted cytokines in type 1 narcoleptic patients, before and after pharmacological treatment with modafinil. (AU) | |