Role of Antioxidants and Oxidative Stress in Neurodegenerative Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

Neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson’s disease (PD), Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Huntington’s disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), represent, worldwide, one of the most significant challenges to global health, with a growing number of patients and demand for therapies to prevent or treat these maladies. These pathologies share a common cause, an impairment of the cellular redox homeostasis. This alteration is due to an imbalance between the levels of pro-oxidant reactive nitrogen and reactive oxygen species (RNS and ROS), which are normally generated in physiological conditions, and the antioxidant defenses of the cells. The high oxygen demand and lipid-rich environment of the brain make it particularly vulnerable to oxidative damage. ROS and RNS accumulation harms all the components of the neurovascular unit (NVU), comprising neurons, astrocytes, microglia, brain microvascular endothelial cells, pericytes, and the extracellular matrix, leading to blood–brain barrier (BBB) damage, cell death, extra- and intracellular accumulation of misfolded proteins, metabolic perturbations, synaptic dysfunction, and hyperactivation of inflammatory responses, all events that contribute to neurodegeneration. Therefore, the administration of antioxidant molecules is likely a promising strategy for the cure of neurogenerative diseases. This class of compounds includes diverse chemical species, both of synthetic or natural origin (e.g., polyphenols, vitamins, and carotenoids) able to act as radical scavengers but also as modulators of important signaling pathways that tune cell redox balance, viability, metabolism, protein processing, and inflammation.

This Special Issue of Antioxidants aims to provide an overview of the latest advances in the knowledge of the role of oxidant and antioxidant species in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, as well as an overview of the recent developments in the application of antioxidants for the clinical management of these disorders. To accomplish this, we call for reviews and original papers on this matter of such important public health interest.

Dr. Barbara Sottero
Guest Editor

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• neurodegenerative diseases
• antioxidants
• oxidative stress
• Parkinson’s disease
• Alzheimer’s disease