| abstract |
Methods and pharmaceutical compositions for providing neuroprotection to the animal central nervous system against the effects of neurological disorders involving ischemia, trauma, metal poisoning and neurodegeneration. The effects of the method are accomplished by stimulating and/or stabilizing hypoxia-inducible factor-α (HIF- α) or by differentially reducing, inhibiting or preventing the increased expression of selected genes caused by neurological disorders. Patients at risk for certain diseases or disorders that are associated with risk for cerebral ischemia may benefit. Intranasal therapeutic agents are administered to the upper third of the nasal cavity to bypass the blood-brain barrier and access the central nervous system directly to avoid unwanted and potentially lethal side effects. Therapeutic agents include those substances that interact with iron and/or copper such as iron chelators, copper chelators, and antioxidants, for example, deferoxamine (DFO) and deferasirox. |