CX-516 is an ampakine and

nootropic Nootropics ( or ) (colloquially brain supplements, smart drugs, cognitive enhancers, memory enhancers, or brain boosters) are chemical substances which purportedly improve cognitive functions, such as attention, memory, wakefulness, and self ...

that acts as an

AMPA receptor The α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPA receptor, AMPAR, or quisqualate receptor) is an ionotropic receptor, ionotropic glutamate receptor (iGluR) and predominantly sodium ion channel that mediates fast excitator ...

positive allosteric modulator and had been undergoing

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development (music), the process by which thematic material is reshaped * Photographic development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting * Development hell, when a proje ...

by a collaboration between

Cortex Cortex or cortical may refer to: Biology * Cortex (anatomy), the outermost layer of an organ ** Cerebral cortex, the outer layer of the vertebrate cerebrum, part of which is the ''forebrain'' *** Motor cortex, the regions of the cerebral cortex i ...

Shire Shire () is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries. It is generally synonymous with county (such as Cheshire and Worcestershire). British counties are among the oldes ...

, and

Servier Servier Laboratories (French: Laboratoires Servier, often abbreviated to Servier) is an international Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical company governed by a non-profit foundation, with its headquarters in France (Suresnes). The consolida ...

. It was studied as a potential treatment for

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

under the brand name Ampalex, and was also being examined as a treatment for

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple ...

. CX-516 was the first ampakine compound developed by Cortex and while it showed good ''in vitro'' activity and positive results in animal tests, the human trials proved disappointing due mainly to low potency and short half-life. However, CX-516 is still widely used in animal research into the ampakine drugs and is the standard reference compound that newer, more potent drugs of this class such as farampator and CX-717 are compared to.

References

* {{Ionotropic glutamate receptor modulators Ampakines Stimulants AMPA receptor positive allosteric modulators 1-Piperidinyl compounds Carboxamides Quinoxalines Abandoned drugs

See also

References