What is new in the treatment of ALS?
Since Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) tremendously started occupying social media because of the Ice Bucket Challenges, Expert Opinion has analyzed future therapeutic options for approaching and treating this neurodegenerative disease.
Free radicals are prominently present during the pathogenesis of ALS, because of the damaging of neurons and the oxidative stress that they cause. Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery recently published a paper about the discovery and development of new potential antioxidant agents for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Such substances should neutralize free radicals to prevent oxidative stress. The authors discuss the restrictions of the antioxidants that are being researched at the moment and are looking forward to further research that is necessary for the development of safe and effective substances for the future.
Expert Opinion on Investigational Drugs has reviewed developments in treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis via intracerebroventricular or intrathecal delivery. A restriction of the current therapy development is the difficulty to send medicines straight towards the brains. This paper investigates the feasibility to provide the brain ventricles or subarachnoid space directly with medicines to get around the blood-brain barrier.
The specialist journal has also studied recently planned, current and recently concluded experimental trials in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, including the evolution of stem cell studies. Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy also discusses new therapy options for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , where genetic influences of the disease are taken into consideration.
Finally, emerging drug targets in ALS are being discussed in a free publication of a review in Expert Opinion on Orphan Drugs. The authors advise to combine structure-specific drug design with illness-relevant phenotypic screening to identify new targets.
Translation : Annemie
Source : Informa Healthcare
