Announcements

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman has been appointed Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Educational Neuroscience” Section in Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425).

Name: Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman
Email: g.leisman@welfare.haifa.ac.il
Affiliations: 1. Movement and Cognition Laboratory, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences Haifa University, Haifa, Israel; 2. Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Institute for Neurology and Neurosurgery, University of the Medical Sciences of Havana, Havana, Cuba
Homepage: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9975-7331
Research keywords: developmental neuroscience; computational neuroscience; cognitive neuroscience; fetal cognition; neuroplasticity; consciousness; neuroeducation hunter

Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman is a full professor and a research fellow at the University of Haifa in Israel and a professor of restorative neurology at the University of Medical Sciences in Havana, Cuba. He studies the relation between movement and cognition development, examining the mechanisms of self-organizing systems in the brain when applied to fetal, neonatal, infant, and childhood development of sensation/perception, memory, cognition, consciousness, death, autism, movement, and gait. He was one of the first to identify functional disconnectivities in the brain. He has been involved in the promotion of consciousness as a scientifically tractable problem since the early 1970s, and has been particularly influential in arguing that a fundamental understanding of consciousness can be approached using the modern tools of neurobiology and mechanisms of theoretical physics. Together with Dr. Paul Koch, he developed the biomedical applications of continuum theory. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine (UK) and was elected Fellow of the Association for Psychological Sciences in 1990, a Senior Member of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society in 1986, and a Life Fellow of the International Association for Functional Neurology & Rehabilitation in 2010, in addition to receiving its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011. He has published hundreds of papers and texts in the fields of neurosciences, developmental sciences, cognitive science, biomedical engineering, and in the systems sciences literature.

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman, who shared his vision for the journal with us, as well as his views of the research area and open access publishing:

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to take the role as its Section Editor-in-Chief?
Brain Sciences is an open access journal that has been publishing high-standard research for about ten years. It is during this period of time that the journal has obtained high visibility through it being indexed in PubMed Scopus, Web of Sciences and other databases. The review processes are swift and effective. For example, in one paper that has been through the review process, the reviewer’s critique was significantly longer than the paper itself. It is for this and other reasons that the journal’s impact factor has steadily risen. Secondly, the diversity of the journal’s coverage is extensive. This is a factor important to me in particular as it is my intention to parlay the knowledge base in cognitive neuroscience, developmental cognitive neuroscience, human factors, experimental psychology, occupational and physical therapy, systems theory, neurology, rehabilitation sciences, industrial engineering, production management and operations research as well as many other not so obvious applications and to translate that knowledge base into practical translations in the education of neurotypical, impaired, aging and elderly learners. There is a saying, “The day is short and the work much.” So, another appeal of the Brain Sciences is its rapid publication coupled with its copious review process.

2. What is your vision for the Section?
It is astounding that the central model for knowledge acquisition within the educational system is, even today, the “talking head” while the student sits. What an embarrassment, given the huge literature in the cognitive neurosciences providing us with many alternatives. For example, we know that movement influences cognition and vice versa. Strong connections exist between movement, physical education, breaks, recess, energizing activities, and improved cognition. Movement can be an efficient cognitive approach to reinforce learning, improve memory and retrieval, and enhance learner motivation and morale.

Perhaps that is the reason that we have not effected change in public policy towards school-aged children, and why people are still required to retire in their sixties when we know that movement, social engagement and cognitive stimulation will reduce health care costs significantly in both the developing and developed world, is because we are busy doing what we have always done. We do not change when the data and evidence require it. There seems to be a disconnection between the world of science and public policy in this arena.

In times of shrinking financial resources, educators, health officials, government policymakers and employers must make difficult choices. In the school system, do dance, theater, recess, and physical education belong in the curriculum? Are they frills or fundamentals? What does brain research tell us about the relationship between the body and cognitive function? If movement and learning are connected, we should expect evidence to support the idea.

I see the Section “Educational Neurosciences” growing its board for inclusion of disciplines and research that directly or even indirectly affect the individual’s capacity to learn, retain, and apply what has been learned. I plan to develop Special Issues that focus on poorly understood application areas in educational neuroscience. I also see the Section “Educational Neurosciences” becoming the go-to interdisciplinary source for burgeoning theory and applications to the classroom and out-of-the-classroom learning and instructions. I plan for the journal to become integrally involved in university program development as well as form linkages with professional organizations pushing forward with the same vision and agenda.

3. What does the future of this field of research look like?
Cognitive neuroscience has made many strides over the past eighty years and the application to classroom-based instruction offers the possibility of a fundamental sea change in how the educational product is delivered and acquired. Recent advances in cognitive neuroscience have produced fundamental changes in how we understand nervous system structure and function as applied to thinking, cognition, memory, brain organization and behavior, and much more than previously thought. We now know that simplistic left-right differences and cerebral asymmetries are less important in understanding classroom learning but more multifaceted brain network, applications to instruction and external means of altering brain chemistry and neuroplasticity to facilitate learning have led to newly developed concepts and findings that have not found their way into the classroom, in teacher training and in educational policy.

We require the advancement of innovative models to better understand activities that can importantly affect motivation, learning, and memory as well as evaluation methodologies that can observe, study and assess these functions. We are slowly realizing that there exists a significant intersection between the problems of psychological, sociological, and educational processes and those of neurobiology, biochemistry, and neurophysiology, with the possibility of reciprocal assistance. Neuroscience has influenced school-based activity in various ways. For example, it has provided us with a better understanding of the nature of dyslexia and has offered insights into how diverse variables such as attention, sleep, relationships and anxiety can affect educational outcomes. Many difficulties exist in actualizing cognitive neuroscience applied to the classroom. Principally the various disciplines have different end goals such as prescriptive vs. descriptive or fact vs. solution oriented. Additionally, the neurosciences have been measuring effects in milliseconds to minutes whereas education has been more concerned with changes measured in days, weeks, and years. What is therefore necessary is the creation of a common language integrating what we know, what we have yet to learn, and mechanisms of translation to practice in the same way that the ancient Greeks required a common language for workers from various parts of the Greek world to understand each other in order to build “The Glory that was Greece and the grandeur that was Rome.” Plainly, we need to find a common language for education, learning, and study.

4. What do you think of the development of open access in the publishing field?
Science is paid for largely by governments and the results and applications of sciences, therefore, are owned by those who fund it – the people. Article 19 of the Declaration of human rights clearly states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” I think it is quite clear that the dissemination of information, including scientific ones, demands free access by the public and Creative Commons speaks directly to that. I see open access as a human right.

The editorial team warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman in his role as Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Educational Neuroscience” Section, and we look forward to his leading Brain Sciences to achieve more milestones.

MDPI will be attending ASHG 2022, held in Los Angeles, USA, from 25 to 29 October 2022.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Genes;
• JPM;
• Biomedicines;
• Biomolecules;
• Cardiogenetics;
• Cancers;
• Brain Science;
• Symmetry;
• Diagnostics;
• Metabolites;
• Cells;
• Biology;
• Humans;
• DNA.

If you plan on attending this conference, feel free to stop by our booth: #1844. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person to answer any questions you may have.

For more information about the conference, please see the following link:

https://www.ashg.org/meetings/2022-annual-meeting/.

We are pleased to announce the list of the top 10 cited papers published in 2020 and 2021 in Brain Sciences (Brain Sci., ISSN: 2076-3425):

1. “Psychosocial and Behavioral Impact of COVID-19 in Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Online Parent Survey”
by Marco Colizzi, Elena Sironi, Federico Antonini, Marco Luigi Ciceri, Chiara Bovo and Leonardo Zoccante
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 341; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060341
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/341

2. “Epidemiology of Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Review of Worldwide Prevalence Estimates Since 2014”
by Flavia Chiarotti and Aldina Venerosi
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(5), 274; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10050274
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/5/274

3. “Long-Lasting Cognitive Abnormalities after COVID-19”
by Roberta Ferrucci, Michelangelo Dini, Elisabetta Groppo, Chiara Rosci, Maria Rita Reitano, Francesca Bai, Barbara Poletti, Agostino Brugnera, Vincenzo Silani, Antonella D’Arminio Monforte and Alberto Priori
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 235; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020235
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/235

4. “A Deep Siamese Convolution Neural Network for Multi-Class Classification of Alzheimer Disease”
by Atif Mehmood, Muazzam Maqsood, Muzaffar Bashir and Yang Shuyuan
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(2), 84; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10020084
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/2/84

5. “Management of Neuroinflammatory Responses to AAV-Mediated Gene Therapies for Neurodegenerative Diseases”
by Barbara A. Perez, Alison Shutterly, Ying Kai Chan, Barry J. Byrne and Manuela Corti
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(2), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10020119
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/2/119

6. “The Effects of the Early Start Denver Model for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis”
by Elizabeth A. Fuller, Kelsey Oliver, Sarah F. Vejnoska and Sally J. Rogers
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 368; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060368
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/368

7. “Probiotics Alleviate the Progressive Deterioration of Motor Functions in a Mouse Model of Parkinson’s Disease”
by Tsung-Hsun Hsieh, Chi-Wei Kuo, Kai-Hsuan Hsieh, Meng-Jyh Shieh, Chih-Wei Peng, Yen-Chien Chen, Ying-Ling Chang, Ying-Zu Huang, Chih-Chung Chen, Pi-Kai Chang, Kai-Yun Chen and Hsin-Yung Chen
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(4), 206; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10040206
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/4/206

8. “Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio and Symptomatic Hemorrhagic Transformation in Ischemic Stroke Patients Undergoing Revascularization”
by Milena Świtońska, Natalia Piekuś-Słomka, Artur Słomka, Paweł Sokal, Ewa Żekanowska and Simona Lattanzi
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(11), 771; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10110771
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/11/771

9. “Cholesterol and Alzheimer’s Disease Risk: A Meta-Meta-Analysis”
by Olalla Sáiz-Vazquez, Alicia Puente-Martínez, Silvia Ubillos-Landa, Joaquín Pacheco-Bonrostro and Javier Santabárbara
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 386; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060386
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/386

10. “Do Post-Translational Modifications Influence Protein Aggregation in Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Systematic Review”
by Larissa-Nele Schaffert and Wayne G. Carter
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(4), 232; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10040232
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/4/232

Further details about the top 10 cited papers can be found at the following link:
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/brainsci/stats.

Brain Sciences Editorial Office

The 2021 citation metrics have been released in the Journal Citation Reports (JCR), and we’re pleased to announce the following results for MDPI journals:

For more information on Impact Factors and what it means to index academic journals, please visit our related blog posts.

* Journals given their first Impact Factor in 2022

Source: 2021 Journal Impact Factors, Journal Citation Reports ^TM (Clarivate, 2022)

The 2021 citation metrics have been officially released in Scopus!

We are pleased to announce that 182 MDPI journals are included, of which:

● 21 journals received their first CiteScore.
● 85% of journals increased their CiteScore from 2020.
● 155 journals (85%) ranked above average, in at least one category.

The following 65 MDPI journals (36%) ranked among the top 25% of journals, in at least one category:

Source: 2021 CiteScores™ (Elsevier)

In order to acknowledge our reviewers, who so generously dedicate their time to reviewing papers and demonstrate diligence, professionalism, and timeliness when reviewing manuscripts, MDPI journals regularly offer outstanding reviewer awards to scholars who participate in the peer-review process.

We are proud to recognize winners for the year 2021 in the “Biology & Life Sciences” category for their outstanding contributions among extensive competition by presenting them with an Outstanding Reviewer Award.

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the winners on their achievement.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Biology:

• Enrico Vito Perrino, CIHEAM, Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari, Italy
• Dhirendra Kumar, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, USA
• Carlos A. Viegas, Univesity of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal
• Yuri Shavrukov, Flinders University, Australia
• Bipin Gaihre, Mayo Clinic, USA

Brain Sciences:

• Craig D. Workman, University of Iowa, USA
• Vivian Ciaramitaro, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA
• Yang Zhang, University of Minnesota, USA

Cells:

• Bonam Srinivasa Reddy, Université de Paris, France
• Homma Takujiro, Yamagata University, Japan
• Hwang, In Koo, Seoul National University, South Korea
• Kobeissy Firas, University of Florida, USA
• Rebelo, Sandra, University of Aveiro, Portugal

Diversity:

• Günter Gollmann, University of Vienna, Austria
• Stephan Koblmüller, University of Graz, Austria
• Emiliano Mori, Istituto di Ricerca sugli Ecosistemi Terrestri, Italy

Horticulturae:

• Joshua D. Klein, Agricultural Research Organization—The Volcani Center, Israel
• Ana Cristina S Figueiredo, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal

Insects:

• Carmelo Peter Bonsignore, Università Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria, Italy
• Klaus H. Hoffmann, University of Bayreuth, Germany
• Ivan Milosavljević, University of California, USA

Metabolites:

• Remigiusz Bachor, University of Wrocław, Poland
• Nguyen Phuoc Long, Inje University College of Medicine, South Korea
• Chi Chen, University of Minnesota, USA

Nutrients:

• Jadwiga Hamułka, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland
• Grace Campbell, University of Sydney, Australia
• Nicholas Norwitz, Harvard Medical School, USA
• Stefan Kabisch, Charité University Hospital Berlin, Germany
• Luis Rodrigo, University of Oviedo, Spain

Veterinary Sciences:

• Carlos Viegas, Univesity of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal
• Arvind Sharma, The University of Queensland, Australia

MDPI’s Young Investigator Awards recognize promising junior researchers, acknowledge their contributions, and enhance communication among scientists. We are proud to present the 2021 winners in the “Biology & Life Sciences” category. The winners were selected by the journals’ editors.

We warmly congratulate the awarded young investigators for their outstanding contributions.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Agriculture:

• Carlos Guzmán, University of Cordoba, Spain

Animals:

• Katharina Hohlbaum, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany

Cells:

• Uri Ben-David, Tel Aviv University, Israel

Diversity:

• Enrico Lunghi, Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, China

Foods:

• Guodong Zhang, University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA

Horticulturae:

• Luke Bell, Temperate Horticulture, University of Reading, UK

International Journal of Molecular Sciences:

• Alessandro D’Urso, University of Catania, Italy.
• Apostolos Zaravinos, University of Cyprus, Cyprus
• Cesar de la Fuente-Nunez, University of Pennsylvania, USA
• Maria Teresa Caccamo, Messina University, Italy
• Tiziana Bonifacino, University of Genoa, Italy

Journal of Fungi:

• Federico Baltar, University of Vienna, Austria
• Rebecca Drummond, University of Birmingham, UK
• Miriam Oses-Ruiz, Public University of Navarre, Spain

Life:

• João Pedro da Silva Machado Lobo, University of Porto, Portugal
• Vincenzo Russo, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Italy

Metabolites:

• Gabriele Rocchetti, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Italy

Nutrients:

• Fiona Lavelle, Queen's University Belfast, UK
• Matthew Snelson, Monash University, Australia

Pathogens:

• Si Ming Man, Australian National University, Australia
• Jasper Fuk-Woo Chan, University of Hong Kong, China

Plants:

• Stefania Sut, University of Padova, Italy
• Mohamed Ahmed El-Esawi, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt

Vaccines:

• Nicholas M. Provine, University of Oxford, UK

Viruses:

• Nicholas S. Heaton, Duke University, USA

We are proud to recognize the winners of MDPI’s 2021 Travel Awards in the “Biology & Life Sciences” category for their outstanding presentations and to present them with the prize.

MDPI journals regularly offer travel awards to encourage talented junior scientists to present their latest research at academic conferences in specific fields, which helps to increase their influence.

The winners mentioned below were carefully selected by the journal editors based on an outline of their research and the work to be presented at an academic conference.

We would like to warmly congratulate the winners of 2021 Travel Awards and wish them the greatest success with their future research endeavors. MDPI will continue to enhance communication among scientists.

Agriculture:

• Zahra Bitarafan, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), Norway
• Nikolaos Tsoulias, Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB), Germany

Fermentation:

• Michela Verni, University of Bari, Italy
• Philipp Demling, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

Horticulturae:

• Jagveer Singh, Punjab Agricultural University, India
• Ibrar Hussain, State University of Londrina, Brazil

Microorganisms:

• Francis Muchaamba, University of Zurich, Switzerland

Methods and Protocols:

• Tanja Eisemann, SBP Medical Discovery Institute, USA

Nutrients:

• Mrinalini Dey, National Institute for Health Research, UK
• Ben Kirk, University of Melbourne, Australia
• Kirrilly Pursey, University of Newcastle, Australia
• Dieuwertje Kok, Wageningen University, the Netherlands
• Hanna Huber, University of Bonn, Germany
• Marlene Lages, University of Porto, Portugal
• Zohra S. Lassi, University of Adelaide, Australia
• Rik Olde Engberink, Amsterdam University Medicial Center, the Netherlands
• Sarah Warkentin, University of Porto (ISPUP), Portugal
• Álvaro Hernáez, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Norway
• Leila Abdelhamid, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Tech, USA
• Maria Michela Cesare, University of Siena, Italy
• Kaisa Hiippala, University of Helsinki, Finland

Pathogens:

• Vanessa Silva, University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Portugal
• Hejun Liu, Scripps Research Institute, USA
• Tomokazu Tamura, Princeton University, USA

Toxins:

• Cecilie Knudsen, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark
• Laura Biessy, Cawthron Institute, New Zealand
• Marcelo Mendes Rabelo, University of Florida, USA

Vaccines:

• Hee Chun Chung, Seoul National University, South Korea
• Alejandro Marin Lopez, Yale University, USA

The purpose of our Best Paper Awards is to promote and recognize the most impactful contributions published within MDPI journals.

The editors of each journal carefully selected reviews and research papers through a rigorous judging process based on criteria such as the scientific merit, overall impact, and the quality of presentation of the papers published in the journal last year.

We are honored to present the winners in the subject areas of “Biology & Life Sciences”, who were selected amongst extensive competition, and congratulate the authors for their outstanding scientific publications.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Animals:

• “Effects of Dietary Betaine on Growth Performance, Digestive Function, Carcass Traitsand Meat Quality in Indigenous Yellow-Feathered Broilers under Long-Term Heat Stress”

by Wenchao Liu, Yilin Yuan, Chenyu Sun, Balamuralikrishnan Balasubramanian, Zhihui Zhao and Lilong An

Animals 2019, 9(8), 506, doi 10.3390/ani9080506

• “The Ethics of Human–Animal Relationships and Public Discourse: A Case Study of Lions Bred for Their Bones”

by Peter Coals, Dawn Burnham, Andrew Loveridge, David W. Macdonald, Michael ’t Sas-Rolfes, Vivienne L. Williams and John A. Vucetich

Animals 2019, 9(2), 52; doi 10.3390/ani9020052

• “The Potential Role of Insects as Feed: A Multi-Perspective Review”

by Giovanni Sogari, Mario Amato, Ilaria Biasato, Silvana Chiesa and Laura Gasco

Animals 2019, 9(4), 119; doi 10.3390/ani9040119

Antibodies:

• “Antibody Structure and Function: The Basis for Engineering Therapeutics”

by Mark L. Chiu; Dennis R. Goulet; Alexey Teplyakov and Gary L. Gilliland

Antibodies 2019, 8(4), 55; doi 10.3390/antib8040055

Antioxidants:

• “Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Flavanones from Glycyrrhiza glabra L. (licorice) Leaf Phytocomplexes: Identification of Licoflavanone as a Modulator of NF-kB/MAPK Pathway”

by Luca Frattaruolo, Gabriele Carullo, Matteo Brindisi, Sarah Mazzotta, Luca Bellissimo, Vittoria Rago, Rosita Curcio, Vincenza Dolce, Francesca Aiello and Anna Rita Cappello

Antioxidants 2019, 8(6), 186; doi 10.3390/antiox8060186

• “LC-ESI-QTOF/MS Characterisation of Phenolic Acids and Flavonoids in Polyphenol-Rich Fruits and Vegetables and Their Potential Antioxidant Activities”

by Chunhe Gu, Kate Howell, Frank R. Dunshea and Hafiz A. R. Suleria

Antioxidants 2019, 8(9), 405; doi 10.3390/antiox8090405

• “Nutritional Value, Chemical Composition and Cytotoxic Properties of Common Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) in Relation to Harvesting Stage and Plant Part”

by Spyridon A. Petropoulos, Ângela Fernandes, Maria Inês Dias, Ioannis B. Vasilakoglou, Konstantinos Petrotos, Lillian Barros and Isabel C. F. R. Ferreira

Antioxidants 2019, 8(8), 293; doi 10.3390/antiox8080293

• “A Comprehensive Review on Lipid Oxidation in Meat and Meat Products”

by Rubén Domínguez, Mirian Pateiro, Mohammed Gagaoua, Francisco J. Barba, Wangang Zhang and José M. Lorenzo

Antioxidants 2019, 8(10), 429; doi 10.3390/antiox8100429

Biology:

• “The Mammalian Circadian Timing System and the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus as Its Pacemaker”

by Michael H. Hastings, Elizabeth S. Maywood and Marco Brancaccio

Biology 2019, 8(1), 13; doi 10.3390/biology8010013

• “Combined Effects of Acute Temperature Change and Elevated pCO₂ on the Metabolic Rates and Hypoxia Tolerances of Clearnose Skate (Rostaraja eglanteria), Summer Flounder (Paralichthys dentatus), and Thorny Skate (Amblyraja radiata)”

by Gail D. Schwieterman, Daniel P. Crear, Brooke N. Anderson, Danielle R. Lavoie, James A. Sulikowski, Peter G. Bushnell and Richard W. Brill

Biology 2019, 8(3), 56; doi 10.3390/biology8030056

Biomolecules:

• “Flagella-Driven Motility of Bacteria”

by Shuichi Nakamura and Tohru Minamino

Biomolecules 2019, 9(7), 279; doi 10.3390/biom9070279

• “Systematic FTIR Spectroscopy Study of the Secondary Structure Changes in Human Serum Albumin under Various Denaturation Conditions”

by Dmitrii Usoltsev, Vera Sitnikovaandrey Kajava and Mayya Uspenskaya

Biomolecules 2019, 9(8), 359; doi 10.3390/biom9080359

• “Quantification of Fecal Short Chain Fatty Acids by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry—Investigation of Pre-Analytic Stability”

by Gerhard Liebisch, Josef Ecker, Sebastian Roth, Sabine Schweizer, Veronika Öttl, Hans-Frieder Schött, Hongsup Yoon, Dirk Haller, Ernst Holler, Ralph Burkhardt and Silke Matysik

Biomolecules 2019, 9(4), 121; doi 10.3390/biom9040121

• “Cytotoxicity of Dendrimers”

by Anna Janaszewska, Joanna Lazniewska, Przemysław Trzepiński, Monika Marcinkowska and Barbara Klajnert-Maculewicz

Biomolecules 2019, 9(8), 330; doi 10.3390/biom9080330

Cells:

• “Combined Inhibition of TGF-β Signaling and the PD-L1 Immune Checkpoint Is Differentially Effective in Tumor Models”

by Heng Sheng Sow, Jiang Ren, Marcel Camps, Ferry Ossendorp and Peter ten Dijke

Cells 2019, 8(4), 320; doi 10.3390/cells8040320

• “Exosome Treatment Enhances Anti-Inflammatory M2 Macrophages and Reduces Inflammation-Induced Pyroptosis in Doxorubicin-Induced Cardiomyopathy”

by Dinender K. Singla, Taylor A. Johnson and Zahra Tavakoli Dargani

Cells 2019, 8(10), 1224; doi 10.3390/cells8101224

• “Overview of Extracellular Vesicles, Their Origin, Composition, Purpose, and Methods for Exosome Isolation and Analysis”

by Laura M. Doyle and Michael Zhuo Wang

Cells 2019, 8(7), 727; doi 10.3390/cells8070727

• “Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Regenerative Medicine”

by Yu Han, Xuezhou Li, Yanbo Zhang, Yuping Han, Fei Chang and Jianxun Ding

Cells 2019, 8(8), 886; doi 10.3390/cells8080886

Genes:

• “A High-Quality De novo Genome Assembly from a Single Mosquito Using PacBio Sequencing”

by Sarah B. Kingan, Haynes Heaton, Juliana Cudini, Christine C. Lambert, Primo Baybayan, Brendan D. Galvin, Richard Durbin, Jonas Korlach and Mara K. N. Lawniczak

Genes 2019, 10(1), 62; doi 10.3390/genes10010062

• “Eukaryotic 5-methylcytosine (m⁵C) RNA Methyltransferases: Mechanisms, Cellular Functions, and Links to Disease”

by Katherine E Bohnsack, Claudia Höbartner and Markus T Bohnsack

Genes 2019, 10(2), 102; doi 10.3390/genes10020102

• “Tree Lab: Portable Genomics for Early Detection of Plant Viruses and Pests in Sub-Saharan Africa”

by Laura M. Boykin, Peter Sseruwagi, Titus Alicai, Elijah Ateka, Ibrahim Umar Mohammed, Jo-Ann L. Stanton, Charles Kayuki, Deogratius Mark, Tarcisius Fute, Joel Erasto, Hilda Bachwenkizi, Brenda Muga, Naomi Mumo, Jenniffer Mwangi, Phillip Abidrabo, Geoffrey Okao-Okuja, Geresemu Omuut, Jacinta Akol, Hellen B. Apio, Francis Osingada, Monica A. Kehoe, David Eccles, Anders Savill, Stephen Lamb, Tonny Kinene, Christopher B. Rawle, Abishek Muralidhar, Kirsty Mayall, Fred Tairo and Joseph Ndunguru

Genes 2019, 10(9), 632; doi 10.3390/genes10090632

• “Transcription Factors Associated with Abiotic and Biotic Stress Tolerance and Their Potential for Crops Improvement”

by Elamin Hafiz Baillo, Roy Njoroge Kimotho, Zhengbin Zhang and Ping Xu

Genes 2019, 10(10), 771; doi 10.3390/genes10100771

Horticulturae:

• “Recent Advances in Hormonal Regulation and Cross-Talk during Non-Climacteric Fruit Development and Ripening”

by Lida Fuentes, Carlos R. Figueroa and Monika Valdenegro

Horticulturae 2019, 5(2), 45; doi 10.3390/horticulturae5020045

• “Evaluation of Two Wild Populations of Hedge Mustard (Sisymbrium officinale (L.) Scop.) as a Potential Leafy Vegetable”

by Marta Guarise, Gigliola Borgonovo, Angela Bassoli and Antonio Ferrante

Horticulturae 2019, 5(1), 13; doi 10.3390/horticulturae5010013

Insects:

• “Olfactory Preference of Drosophila suzukii Shifts between Fruit and Fermentation Cues over the Season: Effects of Physiological Status”

by Rik Clymans, Vincent Van Kerckvoorde, Eva Bangels, Wannes Akkermans, Ammar Alhmedi, Patrick De Clercq, Tim Beliën and Dany bylemans

Insects 2019, 10(7), 200; doi 10.3390/insects10070200

• “Telenomus remus, a Candidate Parasitoid for the Biological Control of Spodoptera frugiperda in Africa, is already Present on the Continent”

by Marc Kenis, Hannalene du Plessis, Johnnie Van den Berg, Malick Niango Ba, Georg Goergen, Koffi Eric Kwadjo, Ibrahim Baoua, Tadele Tefera, Alan Buddie, Giovanni Cafà, Lisa Offord, Ivan Rwomushana and Andrew Polaszek

Insects 2019, 10(4), 92; doi 10.3390/insects10040092

• “Symbiotic Plant Biomass Decomposition in Fungus-Growing Termites”

by Rafael R. da Costa, Haofu Hu, Hongjie Li and Michael Poulsen

Insects 2019, 10(4), 87; doi 10.3390/insects10040087

International Journal of Molecular Sciences:

• “Aging, Melatonin, and the Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Networks”

by Rüdiger Hardeland

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(5), 1223; doi 10.3390/ijms20051223

• “Causative Links between Protein Aggregation and Oxidative Stress: A Review”

by Elise Lévy, Nadine El Banna, Dorothée Baïlle, Amélie Heneman-Masurel, Sandrine Truchet, Human Rezaei, Meng-Er Huang, Vincent Béringue, Davy Martin and Laurence Vernis

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(16), 3896; doi 10.3390/ijms20163896

• “Immunobiology of Atherosclerosis: A Complex Net of Interactions”

by Beatriz Herrero-Fernandez, Raquel Gomez-Bris, Beatriz Somovilla-Crespo and Jose Maria Gonzalez-Granado

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(21), 5293; doi 10.3390/ijms20215293

• “Development of a Gut-on-a-Chip Model for High Throughput Disease Modeling and Drug Discovery”

by Claudia Beaurivage, Elena Naumovska, Yee Xiang Chang, Edo D. Elstak, Arnaud Nicolas, Heidi Wouters, Guido van Moolenbroek, Henriëtte L. Lanz, Sebastiaan J. Trietsch, Jos Joore, Paul Vulto, Richard A.J. Janssen, Kai S. Erdmann, Jan Stallen and Dorota Kurek

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(22), 5661; doi 10.3390/ijms20225661

• “Triple-Negative Breast Cancer with High Levels of Annexin A1 Expression Is Associated with Mast Cell Infiltration, Inflammationand Angiogenesis”

by Maiko Okano, Masanori Oshi, Ali Linsk Butash, Eriko Katsuta, Kazunoshin Tachibana, Katsuharu Saito, Hirokazu Okayama, Xuan Peng, Li Yan, Koji Kono, Toru Ohtake and Kazuaki Takabe

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(17), 4197; doi 10.3390/ijms20174197

• “CGRP Induces Differential Regulation of Cytokines from Satellite Glial Cells in Trigeminal Ganglia and Orofacial Nociception”

by Shaista Afroz, Rieko Arakaki, Takuma Iwasa, Masamitsu Oshima, Maki Hosoki, Miho Inoue, Otto Baba, Yoshihiro Okayama and Yoshizo Matsuka

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(3), 711; doi 10.3390/ijms20030711

Life:

• “Characterization of Resistance in Gram-Negative Urinary Isolates Using Existing and Novel Indicators of Clinical Relevance: A 10-Year Data Analysis”

by Márió Gajdács, Zoltán Bátori, Marianna Ábrók, Andrea Lázár and Katalin Burián

Life 2020, 10(2), 16; doi 10.3390/life10020016

• “Neuroprotection or Neurotoxicity of Illicit Drugs on Parkinson’s Disease”

by Carla Ferreira, Catarina Almeida, Sandra Tenreiro and Alexandre Quintas

Life 2020, 10(6), 86; doi 10.3390/life10060086

Nutrients:

• “Gut Microbiome: Profound Implications for Diet and Disease”

by Ronald D. Hills, Benjamin A. Pontefract, Hillary R. Mishcon, Cody A. Black, Steven C. Sutton and Cory R. Theberge

Nutrients 2019, 11(7), 1613; doi 10.3390/nu11071613

• “Vitamin C Can Shorten the Length of Stay in the ICU: A Meta-Analysis”

by Harri Hemilä and Elizabeth Chalker

Nutrients 2019, 11(4), 708; doi 10.3390/nu11040708

• “Early Time-Restricted Feeding Improves 24-Hour Glucose Levels and Affects Markers of the Circadian Clock, Aging, and Autophagy in Humans”

by Humaira Jamshed, Robbie A. Beyl, Deborah L. Della Manna, Eddy S. Yang, Eric Ravussin and Courtney M. Peterson

Nutrients 2019, 11(6), 1234; doi 10.3390/nu11061234

Pathogens:

• “Alteration of Gut Microbiota in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): Cause or Consequence? IBD Treatment Targeting the Gut Microbiome”

by Israr Kha, Naeem Ullah, Lajia Zha, Yanrui Bai, Ashiq Khan, Tang Zhao, Tuanjie Che and Chunjiang Zhang

Pathogens 2019, 8(3), 126; doi 10.3390/pathogens8030126

• “Candida albicans Interactions with Mucosal Surfaces during Health and Disease”

by Spyridoula-Angeliki Nikou,Nessim Kichik, Rhys Brown, Nicole O. Ponde, Jemima Ho, Julian R. Naglik and Jonathan P. Richardson

Pathogens 2019, 8(2), 53; doi 10.3390/pathogens8020053

• “Bacteriophages in Natural and Artificial Environments”

by Steven Batinovic, Flavia Wassef, Sarah A. Knowler, Daniel T.F. Rice, Cassandra R. Stanton, Jayson Rose, Joseph Tucci, Tadashi Nittami, Antony Vinh, Grant R. Drummond, Christopher G. Sobey, Hiu Tat Chan, Robert J. Seviour, Steve Petrovski and Ashley E. Franks

Pathogens 2019, 8(3), 100; doi 10.3390/pathogens8030100

Plants:

• “Plant Disease Detection and Classification by Deep Learning”

by Muhammad Hammad Saleem, Johan Potgieter and Khalid Mahmood Arif 

Plants 2019, 8(11), 468; doi 10.3390/plants8110468

• “Involvement of Phenolic Acids in Short-Term Adaptation to Salinity Stress is Species-Specific among Brassicaceae”

by Ida Linić, Dunja Šamec, Jiří Grúz, Valerija Vujčić Bok, Miroslav Strnad and Branka Salopek-Sondi

Plants 2019, 8(6), 155; doi 10.3390/plants8060155

• “Isoform-Specific NO Synthesis by Arabidopsis thaliana Nitrate Reductase”

by Marie Agatha Mohn, Besarta Thaqi and Katrin Fischer-Schrader

Plants 2019, 8(3), 67; doi 10.3390/plants8030067

• “GWAS for Starch-Related Parameters in Japonica Rice (Oryza sativa L.)”

by Chiara Biselliandrea Volante, Francesca Desiderio, Alessandro Tondelli, Alberto Gianinetti, Franca Finocchiaro, Federica Taddei, Laura Gazza, Daniela Sgrulletta, Luigi Cattivelli and Giampiero Valè

Plants 2019, 8(8), 292; doi 10.3390/plants8080292

Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425) is an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal on neuroscience. It has been covered by leading indexing services, including Scopus, SCIE (Web of Science), PubMed, PMC, etc. The 2020 Impact Factor was 3.394. The aims and scope of the journal can be found at the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/brainsci/about.

The Brain Sciences editorial team is pleased to announce this open call for Special Issue proposals, which offers a group of authors the opportunity to work on an interconnected set of papers on an innovative topic. Special Issues are led by Guest Editors who are experts in the subject and oversee the editorial process for papers.

Proposals for Special Issues should be sent to the Editorial Office (brainsci@mdpi.com) or via the website: https://www.mdpi.com/journalproposal/sendproposalspecialissue/brainsci.

Information to be provided in a proposal:

• A 150–200-word summary that clearly states the significance, novelty, technical advancement, and adherence to the scope of the journal of the proposed topic;
• A list of 5–10 keywords on the topic;
• A brief resume of proposed Guest Editors, together with their information (title, name, email, affiliation, personal website, keywords of interests);
• A proposed submission deadline (a Special Issue will usually be open for submissions for 6–8 months);
• A list of at least 20 potential contributors or a list of 8 planned papers.

As a Guest Editor, you would be responsible for:

• Inviting papers from your peers to be published in your Special Issue;
• Checking the suitability of abstracts/manuscripts submitted to the Special Issue;
• Making pre-check decisions regarding whether to send a new submission to peer review;
• Making final decisions regarding whether to accept or reject a paper based on peer-review outcomes.

As a Guest Editor, you would have the following privileges:

• A recognition certificate as a Guest Editor of Brain Sciences;
• The opportunity to publish one paper free of charge in your Special Issue;
• The ability to invite high-quality papers to be published in your Special Issue free of charge or with certain discounts;
• A printed book version of your Special Issue if at least 10 accepted manuscripts are published after full peer review.

Editorial Office’s responsibility:

The Editorial Office will set up the Special Issue website, arrange promotional material, assist with paper invitations, and take care of the administrative tasks associated with peer review, including inviting reviewers, collecting reports, contacting authors, and arranging professional production before publication.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Editorial Office (brainsci@mdpi.com) if you are interested and would like further details and clarifications.

We look forward to receiving your proposals.

Brain Sciences Editorial Office