The American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics (ASENT) was established in 1996 to facilitate the development of therapies for nervous system disorders by providing a forum for communication among individuals from academia, government, industry, and patient support groups. ASENT has sponsored five annual meetings, focused on providing timely detailed updates in the neurotherapeutics field. The success of these meetings underscored the need for a journal that would provide critical and comprehensive reviews. NeuroRx®, the official journal of ASENT, was established to serve this purpose. An outstanding Editorial Board was selected, representing the diverse constituencies of the Society. Published quarterly, each issue of NeuroRx® is devoted to reviews of a single topic relating to neurotherapeutics and is intended to serve as a reference work in that area. Each topic is organized by one or more Guest Editors, who have expertise in the review area. NeuroRx® will be published both in print and online, and we are particularly fortunate to have secured the services of two premier publishers: Cadmus Professional Communications for print and HighWire Press for online publication.
The Editorial Board has identified areas of particular importance and timeliness. Issue topics for 2004 include Neuroprotection, Biomarkers and Surrogates, Evidence-Based Neurotherapeutics, and Cell Therapy. For the year 2005, topics will include Imaging in Neurotherapeutics, Blood-Brain Barrier, Strategies for Neurotherapeutics Discovery, and Protection of Human Subjects and the Ethics of Clinical Trials. A summary of the first issue is provided in a separate editorial.
NeuroRx® is owned by ASENT, which has assumed financial responsibility for the Journal. Both the Society and the Journal leadership recognize the importance of avoiding conflicts of interest (real or perceived), particularly for a journal dedicated to critical reviews and partially sponsored (through the Society) by industry. A statement on Conflict of Interest, covering both the Journal and the Society, appears in this issue. In addition to requiring full disclosure of potential financial interests or consulting relationships, ASENT has established a Publications Oversight Committee, separate from the Editorial Board, to oversee the Journal and address any perceived and potential conflicts of interest. Thus, the Editorial Board will exclusively be involved in determining content and quality, whereas the Publications Oversight Committee will serve to separate the Editorial Board from interactions with sponsors and from the business considerations of the Journal.
We are indebted to those who have agreed to serve on the Editorial Board and Publications Oversight Committee. These individuals are listed in the journal, as well as on the websites for NeuroRx® and ASENT. It is a privilege to work with these exceptional individuals and with Dr. Patricia A. Grady, our Associate Editor.
Listed below are details regarding the remaining first-year issues:
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April 2004: Biomarkers and Surrogates
Guest Editors: John H. Growdon and Nicholas Fox
Biomarkers in Neurodegenerative Disease, Richard Mayeux
Biologic and Surrogate Markers: An FDA Perspective, Russell Katz
Alzheimer’s Disease Genetics, John Hardy
MR Brain Imaging in AD, Kejal Kantaraci and Clifford Jack
Functional Neuroimaging in AD, Bill Jagust
AD Biomarkers in CSF, Kaj Blennow
Plasma AD Molecular Markers, Michael Irizarry
Parkinson Disease Genetics, Nathan Pankratz and Tatiana Foroud
Neuroimaging in Parkinson’s Disease, David Brooks
Huntington’s Disease Genetics, Richard Myers
HD Neuroimaging, Diana Rosas, AS Feigin, and Steven Hersch
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Biomarkers, Merit Cudkowicz
Multiple Sclerosis Biomarkers, David Miller
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July 2004: Evidence-based Neurotherapeutics
Guest Editors: Robert Holloway and Andrew Siderowf
Evidence-Based Neurotherapeutics: A Spectrum of Evidence, Robert Holloway and Andrew Siderowf
Evidence: From Animals to Humans, Steve Hersch and Robert Ferrante
FDA: Evidentiary Standards for Drug Approval, Russell Katz
Evidence: NINDS Perspective, Bernard Ravina
Evidence from Surrogate Endpoints, Andrew Feigin
From Evidence to Action, Gary Gronseth
Experimental versus Observational Evidence, John Peter Concato
Evidence from Cost-Effectiveness Research, Robert Holloway
Evidence and Health Policy, Gary Franklin
The Role of Clinical Trials, Andrew Siderowf
Evidence-Based Ethics in Neurology and Psychiatry, Scott Kim
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October 2004: Cell Therapy
Guest Editors: Olle Lindvall and Anders Björklund
Cell Therapy in Parkinson’s Disease, Olle Lindvall and Anders Björklund
Cell Therapy in Huntington’s Disease, Steve Dunnett and Anne Rosser
Cell Therapy in Stroke, Louis Caplan
Cell Therapy in Demyelinating Disorders, Neil Scolding
Cell Therapy in Spinal Cord Injury, Paul Reier
Brain Repair from Endogenous or Grafted Stem Cells? Jeff Macklis
Immune Problems in CNS Cell Therapy, Roger Barker and Håkan Widner
Imaging in Cell Therapy Trials, David Brooks
Design of Clinical Trials with CNS Cell Therapy, Marc Pechanski