Cell Death and Diseases of the Nervous System (Contemporary Neuroscience)

Written by pioneers in the field, Cell Death and Diseases of the Nervous System captures all the important classic and new research on neuronal injury and cell death and the application of these results to the treatment of a wide range of neurological and neuropsychiatric illness. The outcome is a unique integration of cellular and molecular insights, clinical knowledge, and therapeutic experience. As the chapters move back and forth from the basic to the clinical level, exciting possibilities emerge for finding therapeutic approaches to neurological illness based on a new understanding of fundamental processes. Extensive cross-referencing allows easy navigation between chapters and different points of view. Cell Death and Diseases of the Nervous System provides a concise summary of current neurological knowledge from the perspective of the basic disease mechanisms involved in neuronal injury and death. In an era of increasing specialization, this book offers an authoritative integration and unique cross-fertilization for all those seeking to better understand and treat neurological illness. Front Matter....Pages i-xxi Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Apoptosis Versus Necrosis....Pages 3-28 Asynchronous Death as a Characteristic Feature of Apoptosis....Pages 29-43 Free Radicals and Mitochondria Dysfunction in Excitotoxicity and Neurodegenerative Disease....Pages 45-68 Calcium and Cell Death....Pages 69-90 Proteases....Pages 91-101 The Cell Cycle and Neuronal Cell Death....Pages 103-119 Front Matter....Pages 121-121 Neuronal Cell Death in C. elegans ....Pages 123-144 Cellular Interactions that Regulate Programmed Cell Death in the Developing Vertebrate Nervous System....Pages 145-179 Axotomy-Induced Motor Neuron Death....Pages 181-196 Excitotoxic Cell Death....Pages 197-219 Neurotoxins and Neuronal Death....Pages 221-245 Front Matter....Pages 247-247 DNA Repair and Neurological Diseases....Pages 249-274 Cell Death and the Mitochondrial Encephalomyopathies....Pages 275-293 Viral Encephalitis....Pages 295-323 Mechanisms of Cell Injury in Prion Diseases....Pages 325-342 Blood Flow, Energy Failure, and Vulnerability to Stroke....Pages 343-359 Epilepsy and Cell Death....Pages 361-378 Trauma to the Nervous System....Pages 379-399 Approaches to the Study of Diseases Involving Oligodendroglial Death....Pages 401-427 Motor Neuron Disease....Pages 429-443 Front Matter....Pages 247-247 Cerebellar Degenerations....Pages 445-458 Parkinson’s Disease....Pages 459-475 Huntington’s Disease and DRPLA: Two Glutamine Repeat Diseases....Pages 477-496 Cortical Destruction and Cell Death in Alzheimer’s Disease....Pages 497-510 HIV-1 Infection of the CNS....Pages 511-519 Neurotoxicity of Drugs of Abuse....Pages 521-526 Schizophrenia....Pages 527-541 Front Matter....Pages 543-543 Trophic Factors as Therapeutic Agents for Diseases Characterized by Neuronal Death....Pages 545-591 Early Experiences with Trophic Factors as Drugs for Neurological Disease: Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Ciliary Neurotrophic Factor for ALS....Pages 593-607 Approaches in Treating Nerve Cell Death with Calcium Chelators....Pages 609-631 Antiglutamate Therapies for Neurodegenerative Disease....Pages 633-647 Antioxidants and the Treatment of Neurological Disease....Pages 649-666 Back Matter....Pages 667-683 It is an honor to be asked to write a foreword for this timely book, which assembles contributions from authorities working in the area of pathological nervous system cell death, and has been expertly edited by Vassilis Koliatsos and Rajiv Ratan. That the inap­ propriate demise of brain or spinal cord cells is at the root of many neurological diseases has been appreciated since the early days of microscopic neuropathology, but it has only been in the last decade or so that pervasive therapeutic nihilism has lifted. In the journey of medical progress, we have reached the shores of a marvelous new land. Three major scientific thrusts in particular have converged to produce the press of ideas covered here. First, burgeoning information about the fundamental nature of central nervous system cell--(;ell signaling, both the fast signaling mediated by conventional neu­ rotransmitters and the usually slower signaling mediated by neuromodulators and growth factors. A central theme emerging in recent years has been the duality of these signaling mechanisms, which serve the nervous system in health, but which can become the very mediators of neuronal or glial cell degeneration in disease settings. Glutamate-mediated neurotransmission and excitotoxicity have been the defining and best-studied examples, but many other examples have also emerged. Second, delineation of the molecular under­ pinnings of programmed cell death, and an appreciation of their awesome power.