In a pre-clinical model of cerebral ischemia, acamprosate proved to be directly neuroprotective when administered before (Engelhard et al., 2000) and repeatedly after stroke (Doeppner et al., 2015), with reduced infarct size, cerebral oedema, increased neuronal density and ameliorated tissue-plasminogen activator-induced toxicity. The gene discussed is PLAT; the disease is Cerebral ischemia.