Neuropharmacology of Sleep

2021 ◽  
pp. 1195-1198
Author(s):  
Pablo R. Castillo

Sleep disorders often respond to both pharmacologic agents and nonpharmacologic therapies. This chapter reviews the pharmacology of and indications for specific sleep agents. Most of the agents approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for insomnia, with the exception of antidepressants and ramelteon, modulate the function of the γ‎-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-A receptor complex. The ventrolateral preoptic nucleus (VLPO) has a critical role in sleep initiation and maintenance. GABA is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter of the VLPO. Medications used for sleep promotion include benzodiazepines, chronobiotics, sedating antidepressants, histamine blockers, and γ‎-hydroxybutyric acid.

Author(s):  
Jean H. Baker

Building America: The Life of Benjamin Henry Latrobe is a biography of America’s first professionally trained architect and engineer. Born in 1764, Latrobe was raised in Moravian communities in England and Germany. His parents expected him to follow his father and brother into the ministry, but he rebelled against the church. Moved to London, he studied architecture and engineering. In 1795 he emigrated to the United States and became part of the period’s Transatlantic Exchange. Latrobe soon was famous for his neoclassical architecture, designing important buildings, including the US Capitol and Baltimore Basilica as well as private homes. Carpenters and millwrights who built structures more cheaply and less permanently than Latrobe challenged his efforts to establish architecture as a profession. Rarely during his twenty-five years in the United States was he financially secure, and when he was, he speculated on risky ventures that lost money. He declared bankruptcy in 1817 and moved to New Orleans, the sixth American city that he lived in, hoping to recoup his finances by installing a municipal water system. He died there of yellow fever in 1820. The themes that emerge in this biography are the critical role Latrobe played in the culture of the early republic through his buildings and his genius in neoclassical design. Like the nation’s political founders, Latrobe was committed to creating an exceptional nation, expressed in his case by buildings and internal improvements. Additionally, given the extensive primary sources available for this biography, an examination of his life reveals early American attitudes toward class, family, and religion.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 145
Author(s):  
Othman Al Musaimi ◽  
Danah Al Shaer ◽  
Fernando Albericio ◽  
Beatriz de la Torre

2020 has been an extremely difficult and challenging year as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and one in which most efforts have been channeled into tackling the global health crisis. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 53 new drug entities, six of which fall in the peptides and oligonucleotides (TIDES) category. The number of authorizations for these kinds of drugs has been similar to that of previous years, thereby reflecting the consolidation of the TIDES market. Here, the TIDES approved in 2020 are analyzed in terms of chemical structure, medical target, mode of action, and adverse effects.


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