Neural signal transduction in health and disease—cytokines, mitochondrial dysfunction and transport processes

Deficiencies in neural signaling play a role in a number of disorders in the central nervous system. Regardless of whether they appear as a primary defect or whether they are consequences of other pathogenic insults, detailed knowledge of the molecular mechanisms of particular signaling cascades should allow for the derivation of therapeutic strategies to selectively intervene in pathogenic signaling processing. An international conference on ‘‘Neural Signal Transduction in Health and Disease—Cytokines, Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Transport Processes’’, held in Leipzig in October 2005 and organized by the Study Group Neurochemistry of the German Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (GBM) and supported by the Interdisciplinary Centre for Clinical Research (IZKF) and the Graduate College InterNeuro of the University of Leipzig as well as by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), intended to provide a forum to discuss novel developments in understanding these processes including novel insights into signaling from synapse to nucleus, mitochondrial dysfunction as a central point in apoptosis, axonal transport, motor proteins and implications of possible dysfunctions, as well as interaction of intraand intercellular signaling cascades induced by immunomediators, and to highlight potential clinical implications and neuroprotection. The scientific contributions presented during the course of this meeting provided the basis for this special issue of the International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience. Shortly before this meeting took place, the director of the Paul Flechsig Institute for Brain Research at the University of Leipzig and former speaker of the Study Group Neurochemistry, Professor Dr. Dr. h.c. Volker Bigl passed away at his home in Leipzig at the age of 63 years after a serious illness. This international conference has been dedicated to Volker Bigl to appreciate his scientific achievements on the basal forebrain cholinergic system, neurodegeneration and Alzheimer’s disease as well as his tremendous activities in developing and fostering neurochemistry research in Germany. Understanding the aetiology of neurodegenerative diseases and identifying ways of early detection has become an increasingly important approach in treatment and prevention of such diseases. It is generally believed that all of the neurodegeneration-inducing insults ultimately lead to the