Petzer, Jacobus P.Petzer, Anél2016-08-222016-08-222015Petzer, J.P. & Petzer, A. 2015. Caffeine as a lead compound for the design of therapeutic agents for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Current medicinal chemistry, 22(8):975-988. [https://doi.org/10.2174/0929867322666141215160015]0929-86731875-533X (Online)http://hdl.handle.net/10394/18352https://www.eurekaselect.com/126931/articlehttps://doi.org/10.2174/0929867322666141215160015The current pharmacological therapies for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease are mostly inadequate and recent, improved therapeutic agents are required. Two important molecular targets for the design of anti-parkinsonian therapeutic compounds are the adenosine A2A receptor and the enzyme, monoamine oxidase (MAO) B. Adenosine A2A receptor antagonists are a relatively new class of anti-parkinsonian agents, which act by potentiating dopamine-mediated neurotransmission via dopamine D2 receptors. MAO-B inhibitors are established therapy of Parkinson’s disease and inhibit the MAO-B-catalysed metabolism of dopamine in the brain. This conserves reduced dopamine stores and extends the action of dopamine. A2A antagonism and MAO-B inhibition have also been associated with neuroprotective effects, further establishing roles for these classes of compounds in Parkinson’s disease. Interestingly, caffeine, a known adenosine receptor antagonist, has been recently considered as a lead compound for the design and discovery of A2A antagonists and MAO-B inhibitors. This review summarizes the recent efforts to discover caffeinederived MAO-B inhibitors. The design of caffeine-derived A2A antagonists has been extensively reviewed previously. The prospect of discovering dual-target-directed compounds that act at both targets is also evaluated. Compounds that block the activation and function of both A2A receptors and MAO-B may have a synergistic effect in the treatment of patients with Parkinson’s diseaseenAdenosine A2A receptorCaffeineDrug designDual-target-directedInhibitionMonoamine oxidaseParkinson's diseaseArticle