Rewiring the Injured Brain: Synaptic Plasticity and Circuit Modulation After Stroke and Brain Injury
A special issue of Current Issues in Molecular Biology (ISSN 1467-3045). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Medicine".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 99
Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Stroke and traumatic brain injury (TBI) remain major causes of long-term neurological disability worldwide, often leading to persistent motor, sensory, cognitive, and emotional dysfunction. Although spontaneous recovery can occur after the injury, functional restoration is largely dependent on the brain’s capacity for synaptic plasticity, neuronal circuit remodeling, and adaptive reorganization. Increasing evidence suggests that molecular and cellular mechanisms regulating neuronal excitability, synaptic transmission, neuroinflammation, axonal remodeling, and network connectivity critically influence post-injury recovery outcomes.
Recent advances in molecular neuroscience, omics technologies, optogenetics, chemogenetics, electrophysiology, neuroimaging, and neuromodulation approaches have greatly expanded our understanding of how neural circuits reorganize following stroke and brain injury. Emerging findings reveal complex interactions among neurons, glial cells, immune signaling, extracellular matrix remodeling, and epigenetic regulation that collectively shape neuroplasticity and repair.
This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive platform for presenting recent advances in the molecular and circuit-level mechanisms underlying recovery after stroke and brain injury, with particular emphasis on synaptic plasticity, neuronal circuit modulation, and therapeutic interventions that promote functional restoration. The topic aligns closely with the journal’s focus on molecular and cellular mechanisms in health and disease, encompassing both fundamental and translational neuroscience research.
In this Special Issue, we welcome original research articles, reviews, communications, and perspectives addressing, but not limited to, the following topics:
- Molecular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity following stroke and traumatic brain injury;
- Neuronal circuit remodeling and functional reorganization after CNS injury;
- Neurotransmitter systems, synaptic transmission, and excitatory/inhibitory balance;
- Neuroinflammation, microglia–astrocyte interactions, and immune-mediated plasticity;
- Molecular signaling pathways regulating neurorepair (e.g., BDNF, mTOR, CREB, Wnt, MAPK, PI3K/Akt, calcium signaling);
- Axonal sprouting, dendritic remodeling, and synaptogenesis;
- Neurovascular interactions and blood–brain barrier dynamics in neural recovery;
- Epigenetic, transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic mechanisms of post-injury plasticity;
- Neuromodulation approaches, including electrical stimulation, optogenetics, chemogenetics, and rehabilitation-induced circuit remodeling;
- Drug development and therapeutic targets for promoting neurological recovery after stroke and brain injury.
We look forward to receiving your valuable contributions to this Special Issue and to advancing our collective understanding of the molecular and circuit mechanisms underlying neural repair and recovery.
Dr. Xiaofei Wei
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- stroke
- brain injury
- synaptic plasticity
- neuronal circuit modulation
- neural circuit remodeling
- neuroinflammation
- neurorepair
- molecular mechanisms
- neuroplasticity
- neuromodulation
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