Neurotoxins
Document Type
Book Contribution
Publication Date
1-1-2009
Description
A selective neurotoxin takes many forms: as an antibody to a neurotrophin, as an alkylator, as an excitotoxin, as a blocker of requisite neuronal excitation during ontogenetic development, as a generator of oxidative stress, as an inhibitor of vital intraneuronal processes, and as an agent adversely affecting a host of multiple sites in neurons. Neurotoxins have been invaluable for elucidating cellular mechanisms attending or preventing neuronal necrosis and apoptosis, and for modeling and thereby discerning mechanisms invoked in neurological and psychiatric disorders. Neuroprotectants, endogenous and exogenous, are being explored as potentially useful agents to ward off diseases. Finally, hypothesized as posing a risk to humans as environmental constituents, neurotoxins are now being remodeled as adjuncts for therapeutic intervention in a variety of human medical disorders.
Citation Information
Kostrzewa, R. M.. 2009. Neurotoxins. Encyclopedia of Neuroscience. 1035-1041. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-008045046-9.00519-2 ISBN: 9780080450469