New Understanding of Plasticity in the Vestibular System: From Bench to Bed Side

  • 19k

    Total downloads

  • 95k

    Total views and downloads

Submit your idea

You will be redirected to our submission process.

Submit your manuscript summarySubmit your manuscript

About this Research Topic

Submission closed

Background

The vestibular system is composed of highly tuned sensors for head and body motion situated in the peripheral vestibular endorgans. These receptors transmit signals to groups of neurons distributed discretely in the brain, with axonal outputs to cranial or spinal motor neurons to control gaze or posture, or ascending axons to cortical areas for conscious awareness of motion, spatial orientation and navigation. In all vertebrates, the peripheral vestibular system operates as a bilateral network so that the brain processes vestibular signals by comparing inputs from the two ears. The vestibular system offers an attractive model to study motor control because it permits a precise quantification of sensory input and motor output in the vestibuloocular and vestibulospinal networks. Recent research has described how vestibular information is processed from the periphery to the first brain centers in the vestibular nuclei and on to diverse neuron groups to ultimately generate motor commands. The experiments apply multiple structural and functional approaches on intact animals, isolated vestibular networks in culture, or brain slice preparations because sensorimotor transformation depends on both the functional properties of the whole neuronal network as a unit, as well as the synaptic and intrinsic membrane conductances of constituent neurons.
Although the vestibular system is phylogenetically old and highly conserved during evolution, it shows a remarkable capacity to adapt to changing environmental demands, to developmental changes, and in response to pathologies affecting the peripheral vestibular receptors. This adaptability, termed neural plasticity, is defined as long-lived changes in neuron structure or function, which affect behavior. Thus, the vestibular system offers an important model to study functional and postlesional brain plasticity. Peripheral vestibular lesions can precipitate a complex and debilitating syndrome of oculomotor and postural deficits with diverse symptoms including vertigo, nystagmus, head and body tilt, ataxia, imbalance, nausea and vomiting. Labyrinthine dysfunctions may be partial or complete, fluctuating or constant, progressive or recovering. Many consequences of a lesion diminish or disappear rapidly due to an adaptive process called vestibular compensation. The symptoms can be detected by behavioral testing in humans and experimental animals, while at the cellular/molecular level changes may include synaptic reorganization, long-term potentiation or depression of synaptic transmission, changes in synaptic efficacy, or changes in the active and passive membrane properties of neurons.
The study of the vestibular system is important to society, since vestibular function is often impaired with age resulting in deterioration of postural control and falls, a leading cause of death and institutionalization in senior citizens. Therefore, understanding the function of the vestibular system not only paves the way for new medications and rehabilitation procedures, but contributes to the design of better tests to measure gaze and balance deficits. These topics are directed toward clinicians who want to bridge the gap between new basic science concepts of vestibular function and treating patients for vestibular disorders, vestibular neuroscientists using structural and functional approaches to understand the labyrinth and its central pathways involved in motor control and neuronal plasticity, and sensory system neuroscientists intrigued by similarities and differences among the sensory systems. The six sections composing the topic are: (1) plasticity of peripheral vestibular receptors, (2) plasticity in vestibular nuclei neurons studied in vitro, (3) plasticity in central vestibular networks studied in vivo, (4) plasticity in vestibular networks forming vestibuloautonomic connections, (5) plasticity and testing gaze stabilization, and (6) plasticity and testing stabil

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

Topic editors

Frequently asked questions

  • Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

    Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

  • The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

    Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

  • As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

    A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

  • Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and it falls under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

    In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

  • Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

    As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

    Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

     

  • Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

    Check available article types here 

  • Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

    Suggest your topic here 

  • A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

    The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

  • As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

     

    You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

  • As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

  • If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

  • Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

  • Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

  • As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

    Find out more about our Research Topics

  • Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

    Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

  • In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.

     

Impact

  • 95kTopic views
  • 71kArticle views
  • 19kArticle downloads
View impact