Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors: Therapeutic Agents and Research Tools for Deciphering Motor Neuron Diseases

Title: Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors: Therapeutic Agents and Research Tools for Deciphering Motor Neuron Diseases

Volume: 15 Issue: 13

Author(s): A. Echaniz-Laguna, O. Bousiges, J.-P. Loeffler and A.-L. Boutillier

Affiliation:

Keywords: Motor neuron diseases, Histone deacetylases inhibitors, acetylation, transcription, neuronal death, epigenetic regulations

Abstract: Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibition as a therapeutic regimen in motor neuron diseases (MND) is generating intense interest in both the scientific and medical areas, with a number of potent compounds having demonstrated good safety profiles and hints of clinical activity on animal models. In this review, we discuss recent developments in dissecting the mechanism of action of HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) as a new group of mechanism-based drugs for motor neuron diseases, together with current progress in understanding their clinical application. We also discuss how the use of HDACi on animal models with motor neuron defects has allowed critical advances in the understanding of the pathophysiology of motor neuron diseases. The use of HDACi and possible mechanisms of action will be reviewed in three MND, i.e. amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA), diseases among which clinical trials with HDACi are currently perfomed (ALS, SMA).

Cite this article as:

Echaniz-Laguna A., Bousiges O., Loeffler J.-P. and Boutillier A.-L., Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors: Therapeutic Agents and Research Tools for Deciphering Motor Neuron Diseases, Current Medicinal Chemistry 2008; 15 (13) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/092986708784534974