Special Issue "Alpha-Synuclein in Neurological Disorders: From Physiology to Pathology"

Dear Colleagues,

The physiological role of the protein α-synuclein is widely debated. It is expressed constitutively in neurons and found in glia under certain pathological conditions. More recently, the function of α-synuclein in the CNS has been associated with the regulation of exocytotic neurotransmitter release at the synapse. The fibrillary aggregation of α-synuclein and its spread throughout neuroanatomically connected regions are hallmarks of a series of neuropathologies termed synucleinopathies, including Parkinson’s disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, pure autonomic failure, and multiple system atrophy. Since the discovery of α-synuclein in Lewy bodies in 1997, a wealth of information about this protein has become available. However, several questions remain unanswered: is α-synuclein aggregation a cause or effect of the pathological process? What determines the transition from the physiological to pathological state of α-synuclein? Is neuronal α-synuclein different from the α-synuclein found in glial cells? Is it worth using α-synuclein in animal models? In this Special Issue, we aim to shed light upon the complex scenario of α-synuclein’s transition from physiology to pathology in synucleinopathies, with a wide view from the clinic to basic experimental knowledge.

Dr. Benjamin Dehay
Dr. Fabio Cavaliere
Dr. Federico N. Soria
Guest Editors

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• neuroinflammation
• neurodegeneration
• gliosis
• synaptic function
• exocytosis
• endocytosis