Current Neuropharmacology - Volume 7, Issue 3, 2009

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Eighty years ago Drury & Szent-Gyorgyi described the actions of adenosine, AMP (adenylic acid) and ATP (pyrophosphoric or diphosphoric ester of adenylic acid) on the mammalian cardiovascular system, skeletal muscle, intestinal and urinary systems. Since then considerable insight has been gleaned on the means by which these compounds act, not least of which in the distinction between the two broad classes of their respec Read More

The ‘omnipresence’ of adenosine in all nervous system cells (neurons and glia) together with the intensive release of adenosine following insults, makes adenosine as a sort of ‘maestro’ of synapses leading to the homeostatic coordination of brain function. Besides direct actions of adenosine on the neurosecretory mechanisms, where adenosine operates to tune neurotransmitter release, receptor-receptor interactions as well Read More

The adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR) is in the center of a neuromodulatory network affecting a wide range of neuropsychiatric functions by interacting with and integrating several neurotransmitter systems, especially dopaminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmission. These interactions and integrations occur at multiple levels, including (1) direct receptor- receptor cross-talk at the cell membrane, (2) intracell Read More

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder of the central nervous system manifested by cognitive and memory deterioration, a variety of neuropsychiatric symptoms, behavioral disturbances, and progressive impairment of daily life activities. Current pharmacotherapies are restricted to symptomatic interventions but do not prevent progressive neuronal degeneration. Therefore, new therapeutic strategies ar Read More

Stroke is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Despite intensive research into the development of treatments that lessen the severity of cerebrovascular injury, no major therapies exist. Though the potential use of adenosine as a neuroprotective agent in the context of stroke has long been realized, there are currently no adenosine-based therapies for the treatment of cerebral ischemia and reperfusion. Read More

Adenosine is a ubiquitous signaling molecule, with widespread activity across all organ systems. There is evidence that adenosine regulation is a significant factor in traumatic brain injury (TBI) onset, recovery, and outcome, and a growing body of experimental work examining the therapeutic potential of adenosine neuromodulation in the treatment of TBI. In the central nervous system (CNS), adenosine (dys)regulation has bee Read More

Over the last several decades the idea that adenosine (Ado) plays a role in sleep control was postulated due in large part to pharmacological studies that showed the ability of Ado agonists to induce sleep and Ado antagonists to decrease sleep. A second wave of research involving in vitro cellular analytic approaches and subsequently, the use of neurochemical tools such as microdialysis, identified a population of cells withi Read More

Adenosine is a signalling molecule that modulates cellular activity in the central nervous system and peripheral organs via four G protein-coupled receptors designated A1, A2A, A2B, and A3. This review surveys the literature on the role of adenosine in auditory function, particularly cochlear function and its protection from oxidative stress. The specific tissue distribution of adenosine receptors in the mammalian cochlea implic Read More

For many years the neuromodulator adenosine has been recognized as an endogenous anticonvulsant molecule and termed a “retaliatory metabolite.” As the core molecule of ATP, adenosine forms a unique link between cell energy and neuronal excitability. In parallel, a ketogenic (high-fat, low-carbohydrate) diet is a metabolic therapy that influences neuronal activity significantly, and ketogenic diets have been use Read More