Neurodegenerative disorders have increasing incidence with limited treatment options. Approaches to target neuroinflammation in various neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), involve a quest for innovative therapeutics. A comprehensive understanding of the quest for small compounds that improve amyloid processing, regulate autophagy, hinder Aß accumulation, and investigate the array of phytochemicals present in naturally occurring nootropics (ethnomedicines) and polypharmacology may facilitate the exploration of diverse pharmacological approaches to impede disease advancement. Galantamine from snowdrops (Galanthus spp.) is just one example of a current core medication used in the management of cognitive decline, pointing to the potential of small molecules in this context. In addition, the combinations of computational and experimental pharmacological methods enable the exploration of small molecules within crucial neurodegenerative processes, which can help to develop potential therapeutic compounds.
Finding novel treatment approaches to address neurodegeneration poses challenges due to the complexity of the human brain's neural network. Moreover, neurodegenerative disorders often lack trustworthy and easily quantifiable biomarkers, which are crucial for effective diagnosis, hindering the evaluation of a drug's impact on the underlying pathophysiology. Furthermore, developing medications with blood-brain barrier permeability is also challenging. Notably, neurodegenerative disorders exhibit significant variability in symptoms, underlying mechanisms, and affected brain regions, making the therapeutic screening strategy a formidable challenge. Multiple omics technologies play vital roles in the search for new medications and biomarkers that combat AD. By combining information from transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and genomes, we can analyze the molecular landscape to find potential targets and/or biomarkers indicating the course of the disease. In addition, computational pharmacology allows sorting through large datasets to identify medication candidates capable of protecting neurons and accelerate the drug discovery process by prioritizing molecules expected to be effective against AD that can be further assessed through experimental methods. Integrating these approaches provides a comprehensive understanding of molecular details, facilitating the identification of accurate biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis and the search for novel treatment drugs.
This Research Topic seeks to gather innovative information relating to therapeutic targets and identify small molecules with holistic treatment strategies to mitigate neuroinflammation. We welcome both research and review articles including but not limited to:
1. In-depth analysis of novel amyloid processing mechanisms.
2. Investigation into the role of autophagy and potential therapeutic targets in neurodegenerative diseases and its impact on neuroinflammation.
3. Utilization of computational methods (multi-protein targeting strategy) to model and predict the effects of pharmacological interventions for individual molecules.
4. Experimental pharmacological approaches to assess computational predictions, and identify novel drug candidates.
5. Examination of integrative approaches combining various therapeutic modalities to target multiple aspects of neuroinflammation simultaneously.
6. Analysis of commonalities and differences in neuroinflammation across different neurodegenerative conditions.
7. Investigation of the potential neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory properties of nootropics.
8. Identification and characterization of compounds with polypharmacological potential.
All the manuscripts submitted to the collection must fully comply with the Four Pillars of Best Practice in Ethnopharmacology (you can freely download the full version
here). Please self-assess your MS using the ConPhyMP tool, and follow the standards established in the ConPhyMP statement Front. Pharmacol. 13:953205. Please note the traditional context, including the primary background and modern uses with supporting references, must be included in the manuscript introduction. Purely in silico approaches using complex mixtures (extracts) or manuscripts suggesting modes of action of compounds without experimental validation are generally not considered.