Central Nervous System Disorders

A cluster of complex diseases

Because of the complexity of the human neuronal system, most of the diseases affecting the central nervous system (CNS) do not receive optimal treatment with currently available therapies.

Some of these conditions are:
Alzheimer’s disease: a neurodegenerative pathology which progressively impairs cognitive ability, and brings about behavioral disorders and functional deterioration leading to dementia,
Multiple Sclerosis (MS): characterized by destruction of the myelin, which covers and protects the nerves of the central nervous system,
Schizophrenia: generally a chronic disease marked by delirium, hallucinations or introspection and inability to act,
and also insomnia, anxiety, Parkinson’s disease…

These are major public health issues

Approximately 22 million patients suffer from various forms of dementia, two thirds of which are related to Alzheimer’s. Prevalence of this disease could double within the next 25 years.

The WHO (World Health Organization) estimate the number of people suffering from multiple sclerosis worldwide at 2.5 million.

As for schizophrenia, 1% of the world’s population may be at risk.

Sanofi-aventis approaches

In this particularly complex therapeutic area, sanofi-aventis is committed to developing innovative compounds through a multitude of pharmacological and scientific approaches:

• nerve cell growth factor activators (neurotrophins),
• agonists of neurotransmitters or of their receptors (acetylocholine, serotonin, nicotine, ….),
• antagonists of neurotransmitter receptors (GABA, serotonin, cytokine, neurokinins, ….),
• inhibitors of ion channels, transporters, enzymes (hydrolase, phosphorylase, …).

Targeted disorders