Introduction: molecular and cellular organization of the central nervous system - implications for new therapeutics. Part 1 Mechanisms of neuronal injury and death: calcium and glutamate-induced cortical neuronal death glutamate receptors and excitotoxicity cellular physiology of hypoxia of the mammalian central nervous system metrochondrial dysfunction as a mechanism of CNS injury free radicals in CNS injury. Part 2 Neuronal injury in specific disease states: strokes involving gray matter - studies on in situ models of cerebral anoxia anoxic injury of central myelinated axons - ionic mechanisms and pharmacology the ischemic penumbra in stroke - prospects for analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy role of excitotoxins in heredito-degenerative neurologic diseases the therapeutic window for methylprednisolone treatment of acute spinal cord injury - implications for cell injury mechanisms. Part 3 Therapeutic strategies: emerging strategies for the treatment of ischemic brain injury the design and appraisal of randomized clinical trials in cerebrovascular disease and CNS trauma pharmacological modification of axon membrane molecules and cell transplantation as approaches to the restoration of conduction in demyelinated axons current anti-sense nucleic acid strategies for manipulating neuronal and glial cells. Part 4 Cellular and molecular replacement: factors affecting proviral expression in primary cells grafted into the CNS cellular replacement of dopamine deficit in Parkinson's disease using human foetal mesencephalic tissue - preliminary results in four patients intracerebral transplantation - prospects for neuronal replacement in neurodegenerative diseases.