Aniracetam is a nootropic drug. It behaves as a positive modulator of AMPA-sensitive glutamate receptors. Aniracetam is clinically used in patients with mild to moderate senile dementia of the Alzheimer type. In Japan, the drug was prescribed for eight years to treat emotional disturbances, such as depressed mood and anxiety/agitation, but not memory impairment following cerebral infarction. Aniracetam (Draganon®) has been withdrawn from the Japanese market because of the unexpected failure in the latest placebo-controlled double-blind study. Animal studies demonstrated that aniracetam has clinical potential in personality disorders, anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism, negative symptoms of schizophrenia, and sleep disorders.