Investigating the Role of Biological Pathways Involved in Brain Disorder and Infection

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About this Research Topic

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Background

Brain disease is an umbrella term comprising of a wide range of neurological disorders. This includes encephalitis, meningitis, neurodegenerative disorders, brain trauma epilepsy and other seizure disorders such as stroke, transient ischemic attack, and tumors. Infections of the brain are extremely dangerous and can be fatal; neurological illnesses are a major cause of disability and the second greatest cause of mortality in the contemporary world. The membrane meninges, skull, blood brain barrier and cerebrospinal fluid all function to protect the brain against physical injury, chemical agents, and infectious agents. Despite these protective barriers, bacterial infection can occur resulting in meningitis, where the lining of the brain or spinal cord becomes inflamed. Similarly, viral infection, malaria, influenza, sepsis, and COVID-19 can cause encephalitis, another inflammatory disorder of brain tissue. However, often bacterial meningitis progresses to the brain causing encephalitis. The inflammation caused by these diseases not only result in wide range of behavioral symptoms but also brain damage, stroke, or even death. Recent studies have seen that gut microbiota influence several aspects of brain function and behavior; neurotransmitters and neuroactive microbial metabolites including short-chain fatty acids, alter neuronal function and brain functionality and, as a result, the host's well-being. Another major factor leading to brain disorder is aging. This causes changes in blood vessel structure, altering blood flow to peripheral organs and disintegration of the blood brain barrier, leading to cognitive and sensorimotor decline including, ultimately, vascular dementia.

Despite advancements in clinical and preclinical research, deciphering the pathways leading to brain disorders is still elusive, hence there are no effective therapeutic strategies to control or halt brain related disorders currently. Apart from neuroinflammatory pathways, genetics of neurodevelopmental pathways are also involved in brain diseases. Overactivation or mutation in developmental genes related to Sonic hedgehog (Shh) pathway, WNT, Notch, TGFβ, MYC, MAPK, Nrf2 and Hippo pathway leads to brain tumors. Even though the processes behind cancer and neurodegenerative disorders differ, both diseases have the same molecular signaling pathways in initiation and progression. Therefore, understanding these signaling mechanisms is necessary to develop therapeutic interventions to the brain disorders and infections described.

This Research Topic aims to provide insights into the pathogenic mechanisms and pathways underlying neuronal disorders. It is also hoped to identify potential biomarkers and novel therapeutic strategies to overcome the brain disorders described.
Under this theme, we welcome original research contributions and reviews, which fall within the following topics:

• Understanding brain disease – receptor dysregulation, oxidative stress, neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation and cognitive impairment
• Pathogenesis of neurotrauma and therapeutic strategies
• Understanding the impact of neurotropic infections on the nervous system
• Unrevealing the role of infectious agents in the development of neurodegenerative diseases
• Genetic risk and pathways leading to neurodegenerative disorders
• Interrelationship between neurotropic pathogens, neuroinflammatory pathways, and autophagic neural cell death
• New insight into the molecular mechanism leading to neurodegenerative disorders and treatment strategies
• Mitochondrial pathophysiology and oxidative stress in neurodegeneration and infection of the central nervous system
• Autophagy signaling pathway in brain disorders and infection
• Impact of COVID-19 infection on brain health and its function
• Nanotechnology-based approach for the treatment of neurological diseases

Keywords: Aging, Infectious disease, Neurodegeneration, Vascular dementia, Stroke, Epilepsy, Neuroinflammation

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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