Progress report on new antiepileptic drugs: a summary of the Ninth Eilat Conference (EILAT IX).
The Ninth Eilat Conference on New Antiepileptic Drugs (AEDs)-EILAT IX, took place in Sitges, Barcelona from the 15th to 19th of June 2008. Over 300 basic scientists, clinical pharmacologists and neurologists from 25 countries attended the conference, whose main themes included old and new AEDs in generalized epilepsies, novel formulations and routes of administration of AEDs, common targets and mechanisms of action of drugs for treating epilepsy and other central nervous system (CNS) disorders, and opportunities and perspectives in new AED discovery. Consistent with previous formats of this conference, a large part of the programme was devoted to a review of AEDs in development, as well as updates on AEDs introduced since 1989. Unlike previous EILAT manuscripts, the current (EILAT IX) manuscript focuses only on the preclinical and clinical pharmacology of AEDs that are currently in development. These include brivaracetam, carisbamate (RWJ-333369), 2-deoxy-d-glucose, eslicarbazepine acetate (BIA-2-093), ganaxolone, huperzine, JZP-4, lacosamide, NAX-5055, propylisopropylacetamide (PID), retigabine, T-2000, tonabersat, valrocemide and YKP-3089. The CNS efficacy of these compounds in anticonvulsant animal models as well as other disease model systems are presented in first and second tables and their proposed mechanisms of action are summarized in the third table.
Bialer
Meir
M
Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy and David R. Bloom Centre for Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Ein Karem, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91120 Jerusalem, Israel. bialer@md.huji.ac.il
Johannessen
Svein I
SI
Levy
René H
RH
Perucca
Emilio
E
Tomson
Torbjörn
T
White
H Steve
HS
D000818:Animals; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans
D000927:Anticonvulsants