title: Rationale for the use of multifunctional drugs as neuroprotective agents for glaucoma.
abstract: Glaucoma, the leading cause globally of irreversible blindness, is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive retinal ganglion cell death. To date, no drug has been shown to prevent the retinal ganglion cell loss associated with glaucoma. Multiple mechanisms lead to ganglion cell death in glaucoma, suggesting that a neuroprotectant that has a single mode of action, like memantine, would have a limited positive effect at slowing down ganglion cell death. Conversely, simultaneously targeting several factors may be the best therapeutic approach to improve outcomes. Multifunctional drugs are fast gaining acceptance as a strategy for the treatment of complex disorders of the central nervous system, such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other progressive neurodegenerative diseases. In this paper, we review the current literature on multifunctional drugs and propose a rationale for the use of multifunctional drugs in glaucomatous optic neuropathy.
authors: Department of Ophthalmology, Jingzhou First Hospital, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434000, Hubei Province, China.
authors: Jiahua
authors: J
authors: Fang
authors: Department of Ophthalmology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430022, Hubei Province, China.
authors: Fagang
authors: F
authors: Jiang
authors: Department of Ophthalmology, Jingzhou First Hospital, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434000, Hubei Province, China.
authors: Jingbo
authors: J
authors: Li
authors: Department of Ophthalmology, Jingzhou First Hospital, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434000, Hubei Province, China.
authors: Yanhua
authors: Y
authors: Zhu
keywords: glaucoma; multifunctional drugs; neurodegenerative disease; neuroprotection; retinal ganglion cells; reviews