Zolpidem

Category: sleep

Aliases: Ambien, Stilnox

Pharmacological Mechanism

Non-benzodiazepine α1-selective GABA-A PAM (the α1 subunit drives hypnosis; avoiding α2/α3 minimises anxiolytic/myorelaxant effects). Rapid onset + short t½ for sleep-onset indication.

Half-Life (t½)

PO: 2.4h

Dosing Guidelines

• PO: Typical 6.67 mg (Range: 5–10 mg)
• SL: Typical 6.67 mg (Range: 5–10 mg)

Target Organ Systems

• nervous

Pathways It Modulates

• GABA-A receptor signaling (activator) — α1-selective BZD-site (Z-drug)

Chemical Identifiers

• PubChem CID: 5732
• Formula: C19H21N3O
• Molecular weight: 307.4 g/mol
• InChIKey: ZAFYATHCZYHLPB-UHFFFAOYSA-N
• SMILES: CC1=CC=C(C=C1)C2=C(N3C=C(C=CC3=N2)C)CC(=O)N(C)C

References

• PMID 1684924
• PMID 10454469