Introduction Protein kinases are key regulators of cell processes. Protein kinases are defined as enzymes that transfer a phosphate group onto an acceptor amino acid in a substrate protein. This process is called phosphorylation and can be reversed by phosphatases,…
Oxidative stress plays a critical role in cerebral ischemic injury and occurs when there is an overproduction of free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) beyond the ability of a biologic system to neutralize their adverse effects. ROS include oxygen…
Introduction A long-standing goal of stroke research has been to elucidate the mechanisms responsible for the high vulnerability of brain tissue to hypoxic-ischemic insults. Understanding these mechanisms will aid the development of specific countermeasures that could be employed in the…
Introduction The mitochondrion keeps a continuous workflow for oxidation of energy substances that are obtained from the blood to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP) for cellular functions. Neural cells consume this energy derived from the ATP hydrolysis for maintaining ionic gradients…
Acknowledgments The neurovascular unit concept was developed by the entire research community, not just any one single scientist. The author apologizes to many colleagues who could not be included as coauthors and whose work could not be cited, due to…
Acknowledgments This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health to P.T.R. (R01 NS084941) and to T.P.D. (R01 NS42652 and R01 DA11271). Introduction The blood–brain barrier (BBB) is an essential physical and biochemical barrier that separates the…
Introduction Cerebrovascular diseases cause tissue damage to both gray and white matter, which contribute about half of the CNS volume and differ in structure and cellular composition. White matter exclusively contains axons and their glial cell partners including fibrous astrocytes,…
Introduction Brain ischemia refers to a neurological condition that brain blood flow is insufficient to meet metabolic demand. There are two kinds of brain ischemia: (1) focal ischemia in which ischemia is confined to a specific region of the brain…
Introduction “Thus, when Heaven is about to confer a great office on any man, it first exercises his mind with suffering … it exposes his body to hunger … it stimulates his mind, hardens his nature, and supplies his incompetencies.”…
Introduction The effective delivery of pharmaceutical agents into the central nervous system (CNS) still represents a significant challenge to modern drug delivery. Much of this can be attributed to the presence of the blood–brain barrier (BBB), which consists of a…