ABSTRACT
The central nervous system (CNS) is constituted of the brain and the spinal cord. This chapter presents the potential role of several types of phosphorus-containing dendrimers to fight against diverse diseases of the central nervous system, including prion, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and MS diseases. The most important poly(phosphorhydrazone) (PPH) dendrimer used up to now against diverse neurodegenerative diseases is the generation 4, built from a cyclotriphosphazene core, and covered by ammonium terminal functions. The antioxidant properties of the cationic PPH dendrimers were measured using two methods: scavenging of the stable radical DPPH (2,2-dipheny-1-picrylhydrazyl) and ability to reduce ferric ions to ferrous ions. The biological properties tested with these new dendrimers concerned the cytotoxicity, hemotoxicity, and the antimicrobial and antifungal activities. Human erythrocytes were used for studying the hemotoxicity, measured by the release of hemoglobin. cytotoxicity, hemotoxicity, antimicrobial activities, antifungal activities.
