Micromachines for Neurological Research

Dear Colleagues,

It is our pleasure to announce a forthcoming Special Issue of Micromachines, entitled “Micromachines for neurological research”.

Over the past few decades microfluidic systems, microfabrication techniques and microelectronics have synergistically advanced the possibilities to study, mimic and probe the central nervous system and, even today, they are continuing to expand the frontiers of neuroscience.

Advanced cell culture systems enabled by microfluidic topologies have provided precise control of flows and the chemical microenvironment to manipulate and guide the growth of heterogeneous cell populations. This has enabled in vitro mimetics of functional units of the brain from blood brain barrier models, to in vitro neuronal circuits. Microfluidic point of care diagnostics and paper microfluidics show potential for faster, cheaper diagnosis and monitoring of neurological disease such as Alzheimer’s disease in low income countries. Advances in micro-electrode arrays have allowed for enhanced spatial and temporal resolution of neuronal recording both in vitro and in vivo. Developments in materials sciences are now paving the way for transparent and flexible electrodes to extend the potential for integrated recording of trans-endothelial resistance and barrier properties in blood brain barrier models, along with the stimulation and recording of neuronal activity in complex 3D microenvironments.

From “Organ on Chip” CNS models to brain-computer interfaces, micro-machines are rapidly advancing our understanding of the central nervous system, providing new possibilities and insights into the workings of the brain, increasing throughput and relevance of drug discovery and providing patho-mechanistic insights into neurological disease.

This Special Issue seeks to showcase research papers, protocols, short communications, and review articles that focus on the application and development of microfluidic systems, micro-electronics and micro-machines for neurobiological research.

We are looking forward to receiving your submissions.

Dr. Paul Holloway
Dr. Michele Zagnoni
Guest Editors

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. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2100 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.