 Acute stroke is the third leading cause of mortality in developed countries and the major medical cause of disability. The outcome can be improved by early treatment with thrombolysis. Alteplase r-tPA is the only approved thrombolytic drug in the indication of acute ischemic stroke. However, the use of alteplase is currently restricted by the need to administer it within 3 hours of symptom onset. As the risk of transforming a cerebral infarct into haemorrhage probably rises as the time elapsed increases, a thrombolytic drug that carries a lower risk of haemorrhage than alteplase may offer a wider time-to-treatment window and improve the safety profile.Desmoteplase DSPA with its high fibrin specificity, lack of neurotoxicity, potential neuroprotective effect, non-activation by ß-amyloid, and long terminal half-life may account for an improved safety and efficacy profile within the first 9 hours after onset of symptoms. 