Patent ID: 8618074

Claim:
A method of treating cerebral trauma in a subject comprising: administering to a subject in need of such treatment a pharmaceutical composition comprising a therapeutically effective amount of a nucleotide diphosphate having the structure, wherein: X 1 , and X 2 are each independently either â€”OH, â€”O âˆ’ , â€”SH, or â€”S âˆ’ ; Y is H or OH; R 1 is O, imido, methylene, or dihalomethylene; Z is Cl or SR, wherein R is C 1 -C 20 saturated alkyl or C 1 -C 20 unsaturated alkyl; R 3 and R 4 are H while R 2 is nothing and there is a double bond between N-1 and C-6 (adenine), or R 3 and R 4 are H while R 2 is nothing and Z is SR, or R 3 and R 4 are H while R 2 is O and there is a double bond between N-1 and C-6 (adenine 1-oxide), or R 3 , R 4 , and R 2 taken together are â€”CHâ•CHâ€”, forming a ring from N-6 to N-1 with a double bond between N-6 and C-6 (1,N6-ethenoadenine); wherein the pharmaceutical composition is effective to increase the extracellular concentration of the nucleotide diphosphate in the central nervous system of the subject such that at least a portion of astrocytes in the affected area of the CNS initiate IP 3 -mediated Ca 2+ release and mount a neuroprotective response.