Cholinesterase inhibition in the scopolamine model of dementia

Scopolamine produces a satisfactory model of the attentional and secondary memory deficits seen in Alzheimer's disease (AD) that can be used to screen compounds for potential therapeutic usefulness. Physostigmine, which is known to enhance memory in AD, produced marked and widespread antagonism of the scopolamine-induced impairments, indicating the sensitivity of the model and establishing its relevance for the clinical situation. HP 029, a novel anticholinesterase, also exhibited widespread potency in the model, and in an international trial with patients with AD, it subsequently showed improvement on similar measures, demonstrating the predictive use of the scopolamine model.