NMDA and non-NMDA (AMPAlkainate) antagonists have potential in the treatment of a diverse group of neurological disorders associated with excessive activation of excitatory amino acid receptors. Here Michael Rogawski reviews recent progress in the development of therapeutically useful NMDA receptor channel blockers and a new class of selective AMPAI kainate receptor antagonists, the 2, 3_benzodiazepines, Research on these novel noncompetitive excitatory amino acid antagonists has opened promising new avenues for the development of drugs to treat epilepsy, ischaemia, neurodegeneration and Parkinson’s disease.

The pathogenesis of a diverse group of neurological disorders has been linked to excessive activation of excitatory amino acid receptors (or to a defect in the cellular mechanisms that protect against the potentially toxic consequences of normal levels of receptor activation). These disorders include epilepsy, focal and global ischaemia, CNS trauma, neuropathic pain and various