The Biogerontology Research Foundation (BGRF), a UK-based charity committed to the support of aging research to address the challenges of a rapidly aging population and to reduce the impact of disease on future generations, announces the publication of research into personalizing nootropic drugs using in silico prediction methods. The research, published online on Febuary 6, 2015 in an open-access article in Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, uses gene expression data to evaluate activated or suppressed signaling pathways in tissues or neurons of the cognitively enhanced brain. The title of the article is. “Screening and Personalizing Nootropic Drugs and Cognitive Modulator Regimens in Silico.” [BioQuick Editor's Note: Nootropics, also referred to as smart drugs, memory enhancers, neuro enhancers, cognitive enhancers, and intelligence enhancers, are drugs, supplements, nutraceuticals, and functional foods that improve one or more aspects of mental function, such as working memory, motivation, and attention. The word nootropic was coined in 1972 by the Romanian Dr. Corneliu E. Giurgea,and is derived from the Greek words for "mind," and for "to bend" or "to turn."]. The scientists report that an algorithm maps expression data onto signaling pathways. The collective pathways, and their activation, form what is called a "signaling pathway cloud," a biological fingerprint of cognitive enhancement (or any other condition of interest). Drugs can then be screened and ranked based on their ability to minimize, mimic, or exaggerate pathway activation or suppression within that cloud.Login Or Register To Read Full Story