Biography
Biography: Federica Ferrari
Abstract
Stroke is the third cause of death worldwide and the main cause of chronic, severe adult disability. The current therapy aims at restoring cerebral blood flow within a narrow time window in order to prevent damaging the penumbra which surrounds the infarct core. Intravenous thrombolysis remains the fundamental treatment worldwide, though not ideal for various restrictions and complications limiting to 10% or less the percentage of patients treated within the appropriate time window. Neuroprotection is an alternative or adjunct approach to thrombolysis, targeting cerebral parenchyma in the acute ischemic phase. In the past decades, the efficacy and safety of numerous candidate neuroprotective agents were shown in various animal stroke models. However, in clinical trials, promising pre-clinical studies have not been translated into positive outcomes. Our study analyze the possible reasons for this failure and the new approaches and recommendations to overcome it, as well as novel strategies targeting additional events in ischemia cascade. Finally, the neurorepair strategy will be described with special emphasis on the role of cell-based therapies and ischaemic conditioning.