Emerging Translational Research in Neurological and Psychiatric Diseases: From In Vitro to In Vivo Models, from Animals to Humans, from Qualitative to Quantitative Methods 2.0

Dear Colleagues,

Translational research is one of the most essential but challenging areas of laboratory sciences when it comes to understanding the underlying pathomechanisms of neurological and psychiatric disorders. These challenges additionally arise when searching for new biomarkers and developing novel therapeutics. Furthermore, many branches of neuroscience can help us understand the underlying molecular factors and neural computations behind brain impairments and psychiatric disorders, as well as determining where and how to focus research and treatment. In vivo and in vitro disease models have been casting a light on the complex polygenic, multifactorial, and heterogenous disease mechanisms. Furthermore, emerging animal models are revealing the intriguing interaction of sex and aging with the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric diseases; meanwhile, emerging research in patients has been paying closer attention to the heterogeneity of treatment responses that may help in developing personalized medicine. The diseases which translational research is applicable to include Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, Huntington’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, infectious prion disease, sequelae, stroke, HIV infection, and psychiatric disorders—including depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, substance abuse disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, somatic symptom disorder, autism spectrum disorder, hyperactive attention deficit disorder, and rare diseases. This Topic highlights the most recent developments in translational research in neurologic and psychiatric diseases. We cordially invite authors to contribute original research articles focusing on—but not limited to—the following:

• Etiology, pathogenesis, and progression mechanisms;
• Early diagnosis, including biomarkers, bioimaging, biosensors, and neuroimaging;
• Methodologies;
• Biomaterial biomedical research;
• Prophylactic, disease-modifying, and therapeutic strategies, and novel targets;
• Novel drug discovery and development, naturally driven biomedicines, natural bioactive molecules, and vaccines;
• Novel targets in various therapeutic areas: cardiovascular, vascular, hematology, oncology, neurology, orthopedics, dermatology, ophthalmology, and other peripheral systems;
• Biopharmaceutical biomedicine, biologics, biosimilars, nanobiotechnology, nanosimilars, nano biosimilars;
• Nanoscaffold implants (synthetic vascular graft);
• Bioimaging, gene therapy, vaccine, cell therapy, and tissue engineering;
• Predictors of clinical treatment responses;
• Computational neuroscience and computational psychiatry.

Review articles including expert opinions, systematic analysis, metanalysis, and other statistical and analytical methods are also welcome.

Dr. Masaru Tanaka
Dr. Lydia Giménez-Llort
Dr. Simone Battaglia
Dr. Chong Chen
Dr. Piril Hepsomali
Topic Editors