The barriers of the brain as active interfaces for brain homeostasis in health and in disease (Frontiers in Neuropharmacology)

The brain is separated from the periphery by the blood-brain barriers, notably the blood-brain barrier, composed by the endothelial cells of the capillaries that irrigate the brain, and by the choroid-plexus-cerebrospinal fluid barrier, localized at the epithelial cells of the choroid plexus within the brain ventricles. While for long these barriers represented mere obstacles for the passage of molecules and cells in and out of the brain, it is now becoming evident that they may, as well, contribute for brain homeostasis in health and in disease. Of notice, is not only the vast network of brain capillaries that irrigate the brain parenchyma, but also the fact that the choroid plexus produces most of the cerebrospinal fluid that fills the brain ventricles and the spinal cord. Therefore, it should not be a surprise that the barriers of the brain are active participants or the cross-talk between the brain parenchyma and the periphery, which is increasingly becoming more evident. This Research Topic intends to highlight novel findings on the physiology of the barriers of the brain.

Potential topics include but are not limited to:
-The barriers as a way out for toxic molecules and their relevance for neurodegeneration
-The barriers of the brain as a way in for immune cells and immune mediators and their implications for diseases of the central nervous system
-The barriers of the brain as obstacles for brain targeted drug delivery
-The barriers of the brain in neurodevelopment: providers of growth factors and endocrine modulators
-The barriers of the brain in neurogenesis
-The barriers of the brain in the response to peripheral stimuli (e.g. inflammation, infection)
-The barriers of the brain in energy homeostasis

This topic is also being hosted in Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience to ensure a wide range of contributions.