Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology / Selective Neurotoxicity

This volume concentrates on the molecular mechanisms of neurotoxin action. Emphasis is on natural toxins, but some artificial chemical toxins are included. The first chapters deal with the topography of systems which tend to be targets of neurotoxins. They also deal with the protective barriers in the peripheral and central nervous system which limit their access. After a chapter describing toxins affecting axonal transport, the selective vulnerability of adrenergic, cholinergic, dopaminergic, and glutaminergic neurons is treated on the molecular level of enzymes, transport systems and receptors. A special aspect of neurotoxicity, the production of tumors in the nervous system by neurotropic carcinogens, is reported in a separate chapter. Tetanus and botulinum neurotoxins, as well as other bacterial toxins which are not neurotoxins sensu strictu but are used as valuable tools by neuroscientists, and toxins affecting ion channels (Na+-, K+-, Ca2+-channels) are discussed extensively. Recent progress in molecular neurobiology is also included and allows new insights into the mechanisms of selective neurotoxicity.