Quantifying Motor Neurone Disease: Advances and Challenges in Developing Biomarkers, Predictive Models and Outcome Measures
A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensory and Motor Neuroscience".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 140
Special Issue Editors
Interests: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; neurodegeneration; electrophysiology; biomarkers; drug development
2. Neurology Department, University Hospitals Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
Interests: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; frontotemporal dementia; neuroimaging; biomarkers; cognition; mental health
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
One of the major obstacles to developing targeted therapies for motor neurone diseases (MNDs) and their subphenotypes is the lack of quantitative, objective biomarkers for these diseases and their underpinning pathophysiology. Such biomarkers are critical to enabling earlier diagnosis and intervention, prognostic prediction, the tracking of physiological decline and the effects of candidate therapies thereon. Numerous promising candidate biomarkers have emerged in the last ten years, including fluid-based, neuroimaging and electrophysiological measures. In addition, an array of predictive models combining these and/or other measures have been developed to improve prognostication. This Special Issue has been coordinated to facilitate discussion of the latest advances, as well as pertinent challenges, in the development of MND biomarkers and predictive models. We encourage submission of studies performed in human subjects within the following categories for this Special Issue:
(i) Original research articles investigating novel predictive models and candidate biomarkers in MND (including positive and negative results);
(ii) Original research articles aiming to replicate or refine previously identified markers and models in MND;
(iii) Original research articles and reviews highlighting important methodological or physiological considerations regarding candidate biomarkers or predictive modelling approaches in MND.
Dr. Roisin McMackin
Dr. Joke De Vocht
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
- primary lateral sclerosis
- progressive muscular atrophy
- biomarkers (cognition, neurophysiology, biofluid markers, neuroimaging)
- modelling
- therapeutic development
- early detection and diagnosis
- precision medicine
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