Multimodal Neuroimaging and Precision Management in Neurodegenerative Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

In the rapidly advancing field of neurodegenerative disease research, the integration of multimodal neuroimaging with molecular biomarker analysis presents unprecedented opportunities for precision management. By combining cutting-edge neuroimaging technologies, sophisticated signal processing, and translational neurobiology, researchers can capture a more comprehensive and nuanced view of brain pathology than ever before. A particularly promising direction involves the synergistic use of diffusion and functional MRI alongside molecular PET tracers, enabling complementary insights into neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration, Parkinson’s disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and mixed dementia syndromes. These approaches allow scientists to visualize structural connectivity, functional dynamics, and molecular pathology simultaneously, thereby creating a multidimensional portrait of disease progression.

Harmonizing multimodal datasets through computational pipelines and advanced machine learning algorithms further enhances this framework, allowing for the stratification of patients into biologically meaningful subgroups. These subgroups reflect not only structural and functional brain changes but also the co-expression of molecular markers such as tau, amyloid, and TDP-43. Such stratification is critical for precision management, as neurodegenerative diseases often present overlapping clinical features and co-pathologies that complicate diagnosis and treatment. Translational approaches that integrate preclinical imaging with histopathology strengthen this paradigm, validating imaging-derived biomarkers in transgenic animal models and ensuring biological relevance across species.

This Special Issue’s scope emphasizes both current and prospective studies that apply imaging signatures to guide individualized therapeutic interventions. It aligns with broader efforts to integrate imaging biomarkers with molecular and genetic data, establishing predictive models that inform prognosis, therapeutic responsiveness, and long-term outcomes, thereby advancing the paradigm of personalized neurology. Moreover, this issue will explore the translational bridge between preclinical and clinical cohorts, leveraging animal models to refine imaging protocols and biomarker discovery, while ensuring clinical applicability by linking imaging signatures to functional outcomes such as motor performance, cognitive resilience, and behavioral adaptation.

Ultimately, this Special Issue seeks to establish a precision management framework in which multimodal neuroimaging serves as the central hub for integrating diverse data streams. By uniting advanced imaging modalities, molecular biomarkers, and computational analytics, this approach will drive forward the frontier of precision medicine in neurology, transforming how neurodegenerative diseases are diagnosed, monitored, and treated. In essence, this issue will propose a translational, biomarker-driven framework that not only deepens our understanding of disease mechanisms but also directly enhances patient care through individualized, evidence-based management strategies.

Dr. Rodolfo Gabriel Gatto
Guest Editor

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• neuroimaging technologies
• precision management
• neurodegenerative disease
• molecular biomarkers
• translational neuroscience