Neuroprotective therapeutics for Alzheimer's disease: progress and prospects

• Published in: Trends in pharmacological sciences (Regular ed.) Vol. 32; no. 3; pp. 141 - 147
• Main Author: Palmer, Alan M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01-03-2011
• Subjects: Advanced Basic Science; Aged; Alzheimer Disease - drug therapy; Alzheimer Disease - etiology; Alzheimer Disease - physiopathology; Animals; Drug Design; Humans; Neurofibrillary Tangles - pathology; Neurons - metabolism; Neuroprotective Agents - adverse effects; Neuroprotective Agents - pharmacology; Neuroprotective Agents - therapeutic use; Plaque, Amyloid - pathology
• ISSN: 0165-6147; 1873-3735
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tips.2010.12.007

The number of people with Alzheimer's disease (AD) has never been greater and is set to increase substantially in the decades ahead as the proportion of the population aged 65 years or more rises sharply. There is therefore an urgent need for safe and effective pharmacotherapy to help combat the corresponding and substantial increase in disease burden. Increased understanding of disease aetiology and pathophysiology, particularly in relation to the loss of vulnerable neurons and the formation of plaques and tangles, has increased hope for medications that can slow (or perhaps even halt) the course of the disease. In this article I review the neurobiological basis of AD, current progress towards neuroprotective therapeutics, and prospects for the future.