dementia, which result from chronic and progressive loss of neuronal function. In view of an ageing population, disorders of the brain are likely to establish the principal economic challenge in the future of healthcare. [1] The total cost of dementia to society in the UK alone is £26.3 billion, and this is expected to double over the next 30 years given that prevalence is projected to rise by 40% in the coming decade alone. [2] Among NDs, significant attention has been paid to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) given their severe complications and economic burdens. AD, which accounts for the vast majority of age-related dementia, is a progressive disorder that is characterized by gradual neuronal loss and accumulation of proteins, namely extracellular amyloid-β plaques and intracellular tau tangles. [3] PD is a progressive ND resulting from the loss of specific dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta and reduced DA levels in the nigrostriatal DA pathway in the brain. [4,5] Despite significant progress in the management of NDs over the recent years, the early diagnostic and treatment options remain limited. Patients currently suffering from NDs have no available disease-modifying treatments. Instead, patients are offered a therapeutic plan focused on the management of their ND symptoms, whilst concurrently attempting to reduce the adverse effects associated with the medications used. The systemic delivery of drugs to the central nervous system (CNS) is complex due to their poor delivery to the brain, extensive firstpass metabolism which reduces their half-life, and the sideeffects resulting from the drug acting on non-target peripheral tissues. [6] The mainstay of current treatments for NDs is typically through oral administration. For PD medications include L-dopa, carbidopa (peripheral inhibitor of L-dopa into DOPA), dopaminergic agonists, Entacapone (Catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitor), monoamine oxidase-B inhibitors, amongst others. Other routes of drug administration exist such as subcutaneous injection of dopaminergic agonists. Interestingly, deep brain stimulation has also been offered to those patients resistant to medical therapy but again associated with significant adverse effects. L-Dopa, which is considered the most effective treatment in the short-term for PD, [7] is related to longterm wearing-off phenomena, dyskinesias, and neuropsychiatric disorders. [8] Redox regulation has recently been proposed as a critical intracellular mechanism affecting cell survival, proliferation, and differentiation. Redox homeostasis has also been implicated in a variety of degenerative neurological disorders such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. In fact, it is hypothesized that markers of oxidative stress precede pathologic lesions in Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases. Several therapeutic approaches have been suggested so far to improve the endogenous defense against oxidative stress and its harmful effects. Among such approaches, the use o...
