Accumulating evidence has shown that sleep disturbance is a common symptom in Alzheimer's disease (AD), which is regarded as a modifiable risk factor for AD. Orexin is a key modulator of the sleep-wake cycle and has been found to be dysregulated in AD patients. The increased orexin in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is associated with decreased sleep efficiency and REM sleep, as well as cognitive impairment in AD patients. The orexin system has profuse projections to brain regions that are implicated in arousal and cognition and has been found to participate in the progression of AD pathology. Conversely the orexin receptor antagonists are able to consolidate sleep and reduce AD pathology. Therefore, improved understanding of the mechanisms linking orexin system, sleep disturbance and AD could make orexin receptor antagonists a promising target for the prevention or treatment of AD.

越来越多的证据表明，睡眠障碍是阿尔茨海默病 (AD) 的常见症状，被认为是 AD 的一个可改变的危险因素。Orexin 是睡眠-觉醒周期的关键调节剂，已被发现在 AD 患者中失调。脑脊液 (CSF) 中增加的食欲素与 AD 患者的睡眠效率和 REM 睡眠以及认知障碍有关。食欲素系统对与唤醒和认知有关的大脑区域有大量投射，并且已被发现参与 AD 病理学的进展。相反，食欲素受体拮抗剂能够巩固睡眠并减少 AD 病理。因此，提高了对连接食欲素系统的机制的理解，