The recent coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic has drastically changed our perspective concerning neurological diseases. Indeed, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is associated with a wide spectrum of neurological complications, ranging from mild symptoms, such as hyposmia, to cerebrovascular diseases and autoimmune manifestations. Moreover, several pieces of evidence have highlighted the persistence of neurological symptoms even in subjects after recovery from SARS-CoV-2 acute infection in the so-called Long Covid/Post-COVID condition. Nevertheless, before the boom in COVID-19 literature, other “traditional“ neuroinfectious diseases, such as HIV and Borreliosis, have always been a significant research topic in neurology considering their epidemiological impact.
In this panorama, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood biomarkers have been shown to represent a valid tool to improve the diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic approach to most neuroinfectious diseases, similarly to what is happening for other neurological diseases. In this regard, several studies have provided interesting data on biomarkers reflecting neuronal damage, neuroinflammation and systemic inflammation, synaptic loss, and other phenomena occurring in the context of central and peripheral nervous system infections and their sequelae. Nevertheless, given the ongoing migration of all medical fields towards a precision medicine approach, the continued identification of new and the validation of well-established biofluid markers in neurology is still an open issue.
We are pleased to announce a new Research topic on “Cerebrospinal fluid and blood biomarkers in COVID-19 and other neuroinfectious diseases”, which will provide a comprehensive update on the latest data in this field. Papers focusing on all the aspects of CSF and blood biomarkers application, covering diagnostic, prognostic, and possibly therapeutical purposes, are highly welcomed.
Conflicts of interest: Ahmed Abdelhak received research funding from the German Multiple Sclerosis Society (DMSG), German MS Trust, Bavaria MS Trust, the AMSEL group, and research support from Roche and Denali Therapeutics. The other guest editors have no conflicts to report.
The recent coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic has drastically changed our perspective concerning neurological diseases. Indeed, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is associated with a wide spectrum of neurological complications, ranging from mild symptoms, such as hyposmia, to cerebrovascular diseases and autoimmune manifestations. Moreover, several pieces of evidence have highlighted the persistence of neurological symptoms even in subjects after recovery from SARS-CoV-2 acute infection in the so-called Long Covid/Post-COVID condition. Nevertheless, before the boom in COVID-19 literature, other “traditional“ neuroinfectious diseases, such as HIV and Borreliosis, have always been a significant research topic in neurology considering their epidemiological impact.
In this panorama, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood biomarkers have been shown to represent a valid tool to improve the diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic approach to most neuroinfectious diseases, similarly to what is happening for other neurological diseases. In this regard, several studies have provided interesting data on biomarkers reflecting neuronal damage, neuroinflammation and systemic inflammation, synaptic loss, and other phenomena occurring in the context of central and peripheral nervous system infections and their sequelae. Nevertheless, given the ongoing migration of all medical fields towards a precision medicine approach, the continued identification of new and the validation of well-established biofluid markers in neurology is still an open issue.
We are pleased to announce a new Research topic on “Cerebrospinal fluid and blood biomarkers in COVID-19 and other neuroinfectious diseases”, which will provide a comprehensive update on the latest data in this field. Papers focusing on all the aspects of CSF and blood biomarkers application, covering diagnostic, prognostic, and possibly therapeutical purposes, are highly welcomed.
Conflicts of interest: Ahmed Abdelhak received research funding from the German Multiple Sclerosis Society (DMSG), German MS Trust, Bavaria MS Trust, the AMSEL group, and research support from Roche and Denali Therapeutics. The other guest editors have no conflicts to report.
