About this Research Topic
Neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs) affect millions of people worldwide. Depending on the disease, symptoms can range from motor disabilities to cognitive and neuropsychiatric deficits.
Despite significant efforts allocated in the last decades, slowing the progression of neurodegeneration and related disorders is still not possible, and there is no cure.
Certain available pharmacological or surgical treatments may help relieve or slow down some of the symptoms, but only partially. In addition, the currently adopted treatments might even trigger important side effects in the patient because of the lack of treatment specificity.
A prime example is how dopaminergic medication and deep brain stimulation can alleviate motor disabilities to a certain extent in patients with Parkinson’s Disease but also promotes important psychiatric complications such as impulse control disorders or apathy. This lack of efficiency of current symptomatic treatments is mainly due to a poor understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms driving the symptoms and/or the lack of specificity, especially when it comes to targeting mood disorders such as cognitive decline, apathy, or depression associated with NDDs, as there is often co-occurrence of symptoms, making it difficult to identify the specific mechanism to be targeted.
Over the past years, significant progress was made in understanding brain structures and pathways involved in non-motor pathophysiologic behaviors, shedding light on how circuit and synaptic adaptations, and plasticity can deeply change these processes.
Moreover, recent reports highlight evidence that numerous psychiatric and NDDs share epidemiologic risks. This intriguing link remains to be fully investigated and there is a need to clarify whether both disorders share common mechanisms, or not.
The aim of this Research Topic is to elucidate the pathological adaptation of brain circuitries underlying mood disorders/psychiatric symptoms in NDDs and to emulate new considerations about the common neurobiological basis between psychiatric and NDDs. The endpoint is to leverage this knowledge to emulate therapeutic approaches with increased specificity, targeting shared mechanisms.
We welcome all article types including research reports, reviews, meta-analyses, perspectives, case reports, commentaries, and opinion articles highlighting recent advances in the field and contributing to a detailed understanding of the following:
1) Pathophysiology of brain circuits underlying mood disorders in NDDs,
2) Mechanistic features underlying the therapeutics of available treatments: pharmacological molecules or brain stimulation.
3) Evidence elucidating the underlying mechanisms of neuropsychiatric side effects of classical treatment for motor or non-motor symptoms.
4) Studies linking NDDs to pain and pain consequences on mood disorders.
5) Insights into the link between psychiatric and neurodegenerative disease, clarifying where frontiers should be set between the rewiring effect of neurodegenerative disorders causing mood disorders and the shared biological basis.
6) Development of new therapeutic approaches targeting pathological activity or plasticity of brain circuits to alleviate mood and cognitive deficits in neurodegenerative disorders.
Dr. Huot does not have a conflict of interest about the current project. He discloses having received payments in the past from Abbvie, adMare BioInnovations, ConSynance Therapeutics, Neurodiem, Sanford Burnham Prebys, Sunovion, ConSynance Therapeutics, and Througline Strategy. The other guest editors declare no conflict of interest
Despite significant efforts allocated in the last decades, slowing the progression of neurodegeneration and related disorders is still not possible, and there is no cure.
Certain available pharmacological or surgical treatments may help relieve or slow down some of the symptoms, but only partially. In addition, the currently adopted treatments might even trigger important side effects in the patient because of the lack of treatment specificity.
A prime example is how dopaminergic medication and deep brain stimulation can alleviate motor disabilities to a certain extent in patients with Parkinson’s Disease but also promotes important psychiatric complications such as impulse control disorders or apathy. This lack of efficiency of current symptomatic treatments is mainly due to a poor understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms driving the symptoms and/or the lack of specificity, especially when it comes to targeting mood disorders such as cognitive decline, apathy, or depression associated with NDDs, as there is often co-occurrence of symptoms, making it difficult to identify the specific mechanism to be targeted.
Over the past years, significant progress was made in understanding brain structures and pathways involved in non-motor pathophysiologic behaviors, shedding light on how circuit and synaptic adaptations, and plasticity can deeply change these processes.
Moreover, recent reports highlight evidence that numerous psychiatric and NDDs share epidemiologic risks. This intriguing link remains to be fully investigated and there is a need to clarify whether both disorders share common mechanisms, or not.
The aim of this Research Topic is to elucidate the pathological adaptation of brain circuitries underlying mood disorders/psychiatric symptoms in NDDs and to emulate new considerations about the common neurobiological basis between psychiatric and NDDs. The endpoint is to leverage this knowledge to emulate therapeutic approaches with increased specificity, targeting shared mechanisms.
We welcome all article types including research reports, reviews, meta-analyses, perspectives, case reports, commentaries, and opinion articles highlighting recent advances in the field and contributing to a detailed understanding of the following:
1) Pathophysiology of brain circuits underlying mood disorders in NDDs,
2) Mechanistic features underlying the therapeutics of available treatments: pharmacological molecules or brain stimulation.
3) Evidence elucidating the underlying mechanisms of neuropsychiatric side effects of classical treatment for motor or non-motor symptoms.
4) Studies linking NDDs to pain and pain consequences on mood disorders.
5) Insights into the link between psychiatric and neurodegenerative disease, clarifying where frontiers should be set between the rewiring effect of neurodegenerative disorders causing mood disorders and the shared biological basis.
6) Development of new therapeutic approaches targeting pathological activity or plasticity of brain circuits to alleviate mood and cognitive deficits in neurodegenerative disorders.
Dr. Huot does not have a conflict of interest about the current project. He discloses having received payments in the past from Abbvie, adMare BioInnovations, ConSynance Therapeutics, Neurodiem, Sanford Burnham Prebys, Sunovion, ConSynance Therapeutics, and Througline Strategy. The other guest editors declare no conflict of interest
Keywords: neurodegenerative disorders, mood disorders, pain, neural circuits, plasticity, neuropsychiatric side effects, translational
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