NEUROPEPTIDE S, ANXIETY AND SLEEP-WAKE
CYCLES
Y. L. Xu and his colleagues reported in Neuron the characterization of a novel modulator involved in anxiety and sleep disorders (Neuropeptide S: a neuropeptide promoting arousal and anxiolitic-like effects. Neuron 43, 487-497, 2004).
NPS was discovered as the ligand of an orphan G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR)- a cloned GPCR with an unknown endogenous ligand.
In this research Xu and his co-workers examined the pharmacological profiles of NPS and its cognate receptor NPSR.
Research results support the hypothesis that NPS might be part of a system that modulates sleep-wake cycles and anxiety.