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Advances in Neurodegenerative Diseases Research and Therapy, Fourth Edition

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Neurobiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 1309

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Degenerative diseases of the nervous system affect millions of people worldwide and remain associated with limited therapeutic options, in part because the blood–brain barrier restricts the passage of most drug candidates into the brain tissue. 'Neurodegenerative disease' is commonly used as an umbrella term encompassing a range of debilitating conditions that affect the brain, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and Huntington's disease, among others. Historically, research in this field has focused primarily on neuronal degeneration as the primary cause of these diseases. However, accumulating evidence now highlights the critical role of glial cells in maintaining physiological neural function and contributing to disease onset and progression.

Although neurodegenerative diseases exhibit distinct pathological hallmarks and clinical symptoms, they share common molecular pathways, including gliosis, proteostasis, inflammation, and metabolic alterations. A deeper understanding of the molecular changes that occur during disease development and progression is, therefore, essential for the identification and design of effective therapeutic interventions.

This Special Issue, ‘Advances in Neurodegenerative Diseases Research and Therapy, Fourth Edition’, continues to invite original research articles and reviews that provide updated insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases. Particular emphasis will be placed on the development of clinically relevant therapeutic strategies, including optimization studies, clinical efficacy studies, biomarker evaluations, drug delivery approaches, and more.

Dr. Sumonto Mitra
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. 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

  • neurodegenerative diseases
  • therapy
  • molecular mechanisms
  • neuron
  • astrocytes
  • microglia
  • inflammation
  • brain
  • drug delivery

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Review

30 pages, 1238 KB  
Review
Opioid Signaling in Multiple Sclerosis: Emerging Targets for Repair
by Renata Perlikowska, Małgorzata Domowicz, Agnieszka Śliwińska and Mariusz Stasiołek
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(9), 4122; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27094122 - 5 May 2026
Viewed by 599
Abstract
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic immune-mediated disorder of the central nervous system (CNS) characterized by persistent inflammation, demyelination, and progressive neurodegeneration, driven largely by aberrant activation of T and B lymphocytes that infiltrate the CNS and cause myelin and axonal damage, leading [...] Read more.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic immune-mediated disorder of the central nervous system (CNS) characterized by persistent inflammation, demyelination, and progressive neurodegeneration, driven largely by aberrant activation of T and B lymphocytes that infiltrate the CNS and cause myelin and axonal damage, leading to neurological impairment. Although current therapies broadly suppress immune activity and reduce relapse rates, their effects on neurodegenerative processes remain limited. Also, the safety profile of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) may become problematic, especially in older patients with comorbidities and/or advanced disability. Emerging data suggest that opioid signaling may exert immunomodulatory, remyelinating, and neuroprotective effects, representing a novel and underexplored therapeutic avenue. Given that current MS therapies primarily target inflammation but fail to promote myelin repair or prevent neurodegeneration, opioid signaling emerges as a novel and underexplored pathway with potential benefits for immunomodulation and remyelination, as well as possible neuroprotective effects. Despite concerns about classical opioid-related adverse effects, accumulating evidence shows that opioid-mediated interventions have been associated with reduced inflammatory activity, attenuation of demyelination, and enhanced neuronal survival and have shown therapeutic benefit in MS. Although current findings are largely preclinical, they provide a compelling rationale for further investigation of the opioid system as a potential adjunctive or novel therapeutic strategy. Full article
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