Recent Insights into the Role of Metal Ions in the Nervous System
A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Cellular Neuroscience".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 9
Special Issue Editor
2. Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
3. Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
Interests: zinc neurobiology; experience-dependent plasticity; adult neurogenesis; brain development; brain injury
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Metal ions play indispensable roles in nervous system development, function, and plasticity, acting as essential cofactors in enzymatic reactions, modulators of synaptic transmission, and regulators of intracellular signalling pathways. In recent years, advances in molecular neuroscience, imaging, genetics, and metallomics have substantially expanded our understanding of how metal ions such as zinc, copper, iron, magnesium, calcium, and lithium influence neuronal excitability, circuit maturation, neuroimmune interactions, and behaviour.
This Special Issue, “Recent Insights into the Role of Metal Ions in the Nervous System”, will highlight emerging discoveries helping to elucidate the physiological roles of metal ions across molecular, cellular, circuit, and systems-level neuroscience. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, metal ion homeostasis, metal-dependent synaptic and neuromodulatory mechanisms, interactions between metal ions and neurotransmitter systems, and the contribution of metal dyshomeostasis to neurodevelopmental, neuropsychiatric, and neurodegenerative disorders.
We welcome original research articles, reviews, and perspectives that integrate experimental, computational, or translational approaches to advance our mechanistic understanding of metal ion signalling in the nervous system and to identify novel therapeutic targets or biomarkers.
Prof. Dr. Richard H. Dyck
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cells is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- metal ions
- neurobiology
- zinc signalling
- copper homeostasis
- iron metabolism
- calcium signalling
- magnesium
- lithium
- metallomics
- synaptic transmission
- neuromodulation
- ion transporters
- metal-binding proteins
- oxidateive stress
- mitochondrial function
- neurodevelopment
- synaptic plasticity
- neuroinflammation
- neurodegeneration
- neuropsychiatric disorders
- autism spectrum disorder
- schizophrenia
- Alzheimer disease
- Parkinson disease
- imaging of metal ions
- metal ion dysregulation
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