The Adenosinergic System

Adenosine A2A receptor antagonists have shown great promise in the treatment of Parkinson's Disease and alleviation of symptoms. This book addresses various aspects of this class of drugs from their chemical development to their clinical use. Among the many insightful chapters contained in this book, there are three unique reviews that have not previously been published in any format: (1) a history of istradefylline, the first A2A antagonist approved for treatment of Parkinson's Disease, (2) an overview of neuroimaging studies in human death and disease and (3) a study of urate as a possible biomarker and neuroprotectant.

Micaela Morelli is a Professor of Pharmacology in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Cagliari. She also belongs to the Institute of Neuroscience at the National Research Council of Italy (CNR), the Center of Excellence for Neurobiology of Dependence at the University of Cagliari and is a member of the PhD school in Neuroscience at the University of Cagliari. Professor Morelli served in the Governing Councils of the Italian Neuroscience Society (SINS) and the International Basal Ganglia Society (IBAGS). Since 2005, she has been the Italian representative in the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO), and since 2010 she has been a member of the IBRO WERC/PERC Governing Council. Her main subjects of investigation focus on the mechanism of action of drugs affecting dopaminergic and adenosinergic transmission and their interaction in rodent models of Parkinson's disease.

Dr. Nicola Simola holds a M.S. in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and a Ph. D in Pharmacology of Drug Dependence and he is currently Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Cagliari. Dr. Simola's research involves the study and development of new therapeutic agents for the treatment of Parkinson's disease, focusing on adenosine receptor antagonists, the development of new preclinical models of early-stage Parkinson's disease and the study of the interactions between caffeine and other recreational psychostimulants. Moreover, a recent field of Dr Simola's research focuses on the study of ultrasonic vocalizations in rats as a tool for the study of the addictive properties of drugs.

Jadwiga Wardas Ph.D., graduated from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland with an MSc in biology. In 1988 she was granted a fellowship from the National Academy of Sciences, USA. She holds a Ph.D. in Life Sciences from the Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Sciences (IPh PAN). She served as

Associate Professor at the Department of Neuropsychopharmacology, IPh PAN in 2004. She has been awarded numerous competitive research grants by the State Committee for Scientific Research and National Science Centre. Her scientific interests focus on the pathophysiology and therapy of Parkinson's disease and development of animal models of both presymptomatic and symptomatic phase of this disease. For many years she has studied the involvement of adenosine and dopamine receptors in anti parkinsonian and neuroprotective effects. Her work was awarded twice by the Polish Academy of Sciences and she received the Silver Cross of Merit (2004). She is a member of Polish Neuroscience Society and European College of Neuropsychopharmacology.