ABSTRACT
Aspirin has been found to have potential therapeutic effects over the years, in a wide variety of conditions, that are not related to its conventional applications in the control of pain, inflammation, fever or thrombotic states. Many of these ‘non-conventional’ applications arose from either serendipitous observations (e.g. control of plasma glucose in diabetes mellitus, prevention of the decline in cognitive function in Alzheimer’s disease) or the logical extension that inhibiting prostaglandin production that is otherwise upregulated in certain conditions (e.g. colorectal and other cancers) might lead to potentially beneficial effects of aspirin and related drugs. Here these potential therapeutic actions of aspirin and other related NSAIDs or analgesics are considered. Understanding the mechanisms of action has been a major factor in refining the development of therapeutic protocols with these drugs, as well as in giving biological credibility for their use in these non-conventional conditions. Furthermore, in some cases deeper understanding of the mechanisms of action of aspirin compared with other NSAIDs/ analgesics has led to differentiation of prostaglandin-dependent from non-prostaglandin-dependent mechanisms. Recent advances in the understanding of the cellular and molecular biology of the control of cell growth and differentiation, apoptosis and angiogenesis have set the basis for further investigations on the mode of action of aspirin and related drugs in these processes, which has led to improved understanding of their potential as novel therapeutic (non-conventional) agents as well as giving insight into their actions in chronic inflammatory and neurodegenerative conditions.
