Sociobiological Interactions in Brain Health: From Disparities to Social Epigenomics

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Background

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), brain health refers to a state of cognitive, mental, physical, and social well-being occurring at any point throughout the continuous development of a healthy brain. Complex interactions among genetic factors, biological mechanisms, and social-environmental influences shape brain health outcomes across the lifespan.

Social factors such as those in which people are born, grow, live, and age, called social determinants of health (SDH), are among the most influential factors determining brain health disparities. Socioeconomic status, education, employment, health access, nutrition opportunities, early adverse social experiences, social inclusion, and experiences of conflict are critical SDH impacting brain health. Negative experiences associated with SDH also affect brain health triggering chronic diseases, cardiometabolic risks, and dementia. Multiple SDH impact brain health across the lifespan. Early social adversities impact neurodevelopment and relate to mental and physical disorders. Socioeconomic status at different stages of the lifespan is a top factor influencing health disparities and determining brain structure, brain function, and cognition. Experiences of discrimination and violence are associated with increased acute and chronic stress leading to a high burden related to allostatic overload.

Critical environmental experiences, including those triggered by SDH, may induce changes in the various molecules interacting with DNA, determining which genes are switched on or off. This biological mechanism for controlling gene expression is called the epigenome. A recent research agenda has been promoted for studying the impact of SDH on the epigenome, a new field of study named social epigenome. Studies on social epigenome have significantly developed in the field of brain health. Epigenetic modifications due to social risks on inflammatory, metabolic, stress, and neurotrophic genes have been associated with the emergence of stress-related disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety. Moreover, different epigenetic modifications on distinct genes predict aging and age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementias like frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

Most studies on social-biological interactions in brain health, including social epigenomics studies, lack diversity, thus impacting the generalizability of biomarkers for different neuropsychiatric disorders. Despite the burden of stress-related disorders, depression, anxiety, and dementias disproportionately affecting underrepresented populations, research on social, genetic, and epigenetic interactions critical for understanding disease etiology and risk have been generated disproportionately in high-income countries (HICs). A further study of those interactions in underrepresented populations considers growing evidence revealing that different explanatory models of disease risk with works in HICs don't generalize in underrepresented non-stereotypical populations.

Against this background, this Research Topic aims to collect studies dedicated to exploring the complex interactions among SDH, epigenetics, genetics, neurocognitive processes, and neuropsychiatric disorders. We mainly welcome studies assessing health social-biological interactions underlying brain health disparities in non-stereotypical and underrepresented populations, including those living in developing countries. We encourage both senior and early career researchers to contribute to this call. In this Research Topic series of articles, we also welcome all submissions of original research papers, hypothesis and theory reports, short communications, as well as mini or full-reviews and perspectives involving:

1) Characterizing the effects of SDH and other environmental influences on brain health in non-stereotypical and underrepresented populations
2) Describing the impact of SDH on genetic factors associated with neurodevelopment and neuropsychiatric disorders across the lifespan
3) Describing interactions between SDH, allostatic overload, and brain diseases in different samples
4) Characterizing the social epigenome in brain disorders, including dementias
5) Multi-omic biomarker studies (e.g., epigenomics, proteomics, transcriptomics) of aging, SDH, brain health, and age-related diseases in under studied and underrepresented populations.
6) Offering new biological explanations, the interactions between social risks and biological mechanisms
7) Offering new methodologic and theoretical frameworks to study complex interactions between social risks and biological mechanisms of brain health disparities

Keywords: Brain Health, Social Epigenomics, Social Factors, SDH, Epigenetics.

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.

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