oa Editorial

With this first issue of the year, Central Nervous System Agents in Medicinal Chemistry continues with its objective of bringing together the different perspectives of scientists with diverse backgrounds in chemistry, biology and pharmacology with the common goal of fostering the development of medicinal chemistry. With a careful selection of subjects and up to date reviews, Central Nervous System Agents in Medicinal Chemistry intends to remain as the reference journal in the area of medicinal chemistry reviews and to keep its upfront position with growing scope and impact in current science. The study of the central nervous system has represented a continuous challenge in science. Nowadays, the great efforts carried out by a generation of brilliant scientists have enabled to discover the main mechanisms involved in neurotransmission, making their pharmacological regulation possible in a number of cases. However, a lot of challenges remain; in particular, therapies which face neurodegenerative diseases, molecular mechanisms involved in neurogenesis, and the interaction between nervous and immune system. In this context, this issue reviews the state-of-art of established and novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of some of the neurodegenerative diseases with the highest prevalence. It also describes the current situation and therapeutic applications of neuronal regeneration and neurogenesis as well as the relationship between immune and nervous systems. This issue contains seven reviews contributed by leading experts in the field. Drs. R. Ehling, T. Berger and M. Reindl review the current situation of novel therapeutic approaches based on targeting multiple sclerosis disease pathway at different points whereas Dr. P. Taupin discusses how oxidative stress affects to the pathology of Alzheimer disease. More focused on the role of proteoglycans, Dr. N. Maeda examines the role of the structural variations of chondroitin sulphate in the central nervous system. Drs. T.F. Dijkmans, L.W.A. van Hooijdonk, C.P. Fitzsimons and E. Vreugdenhil review the current knowledge on the role of the doublecortin gene family in disorders of the central nervous system. Moving on to the interaction between nervous and immune system, Drs. J.R. Rivers and J.C. Ashton discuss the applications of CB2 agonists in different neurological conditions with a focus on microglia. Progressing on this line, Drs. R. Pacheco, E. Riquelme and A.M. Kalergis review the emerging role of neurotransmitters as regulators of several immune cell responses, with special attention to dendritic and T cells. Finally, Drs. R. Bartzatt, S.L.G. Cirillo and J.D. Cirillo offer a current perspective on the application of sulphonamide-based antibiotics for the treatment of MRSA and MSSA infections of the central nervous system.