Your browser does not fully support modern features. Please upgrade for a smoother experience.
Subject:
All Disciplines Arts & Humanities Biology & Life Sciences Business & Economics Chemistry & Materials Science Computer Science & Mathematics Engineering Environmental & Earth Sciences Medicine & Pharmacology Physical Sciences Public Health & Healthcare Social Sciences
Sort by:
Most Viewed Latest Alphabetical (A-Z) Alphabetical (Z-A)
Filter:
All Topic Review Biography Peer Reviewed Entry Video Entry
Biography
Giovanna Mallucci
Giovanna Mallucci is a professor in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge in England. She is a specialist in neurodegenerative diseases[1][2] and the programme leader in the MRC Toxicology Unit.[3][4][5] [6]Professor, Department of Cell Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Leicester 2008 – present Programme Leader, MRC Toxicology Unit 2008 – presen
  • 1.7K
  • 26 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Voltage-Gated K+ Channels
Voltage-gated K+ (Kv) channels are intrinsic plasma membrane proteins mediating the selective flow of potassium ions in response to depolarization of the transmembrane electric field. Their ionic selectivity and voltage dependence allow Kv channels to be central players in virtually all physiological functions, including the maintenance and modulation of neuronal and muscular (both cardiac and skeletal) excitability, regulation of calcium signaling cascades, control of cell volume, immune response, hormonal secretion, and others.
  • 1.7K
  • 29 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Blindness and Spatial Asymmetries
The human cerebral cortex is asymmetrically organized with hemispheric lateralization pervading nearly all neural systems of the brain. Whether the lack of normal visual development affects hemispheric specialization subserving the deployment of visuospatial attention asymmetries is controversial. In principle, indeed, the lack of early visual experience may affect the lateralization of spatial functions, and the blind may rely on a different sensory input compared to the sighted. In this entry, we thus present a current state-of-the-art synthesis of empirical evidence concerning the effects of visual deprivation on the lateralization of various spatial processes (i.e., including line bisection, mirror symmetry, and localization tasks). Overall, the evidence reviewed indicates that spatial processes are supported by a right hemispheric network in the blind, hence, analogously to the sighted. Such a right-hemisphere dominance, however, seems more accentuated in the blind as compared to the sighted as indexed by the greater leftward bias shown in different spatial tasks. This is possibly the result of the more pronounced involvement of the right parietal cortex during spatial tasks in blind individuals compared to the sighted, as well as of the additional recruitment of the right occipital cortex, which would reflect the cross-modal plastic phenomena that largely characterize the blind brain.
  • 1.7K
  • 27 Oct 2020
Topic Review
The Blood-Brain Barrier
Blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity is essential to maintaining brain health. Aging-related alterations could lead to chronic progressive leakiness of the BBB, which is directly correlated with cerebrovascular diseases. Indeed, the BBB breakdown during acute ischemic stroke is critical.
  • 1.7K
  • 13 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Epilepsy in Down Syndrome
Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) have an increased risk for epilepsy during the whole lifespan, but especially after age 40 years. The increase in the number of individuals with DS living into late middle age due to improved health care is resulting in an increase in epilepsy prevalence in this population. However, these epileptic seizures are probably underdiagnosed and inadequately treated. This late onset epilepsy is linked to the development of symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which is the main comorbidity in adults with DS.
  • 1.7K
  • 02 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Cytochrome P450
Tryptophan is metabolized along three main metabolic pathways, namely the kynurenine, serotonin and indole pathways. The majority of tryptophan is transformed via the kynurenine pathway, catalyzed by tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase or indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase, leading to neuroprotective kynurenic acid or neurotoxic quinolinic acid. Serotonin synthesized by tryptophan hydroxylase, and aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase enters the metabolic cycle: serotonin → N-acetylserotonin → melatonin → 5-methoxytryptamine→serotonin. Recent studies indicate that serotonin can also be synthesized by cytochrome P450 (CYP), via the CYP2D6-mediated 5-methoxytryptamine O-demethylation, while melatonin is catabolized by CYP1A2, CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 via aromatic 6-hydroxylation and by CYP2C19 and CYP1A2 via O-demethylation. In gut microbes, tryptophan is metabolized to indole and indole derivatives. Some of those metabolites act as activators or inhibitors of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor, thus regulating the expression of CYP1 family enzymes, xenobiotic metabolism and tumorigenesis. The indole formed in this way is further oxidized to indoxyl and indigoid pigments by CYP2A6, CYP2C19 and CYP2E1. The products of gut-microbial tryptophan metabolism can also inhibit the steroid-hormone-synthesizing CYP11A1. In plants, CYP79B2 and CYP79B3 were found to catalyze N-hydroxylation of tryptophan to form indole-3-acetaldoxime while CYP83B1 was reported to form indole-3-acetaldoxime N-oxide in the biosynthetic pathway of indole glucosinolates, considered to be defense compounds and intermediates in the biosynthesis of phytohormones. Thus, cytochrome P450 is engaged in the metabolism of tryptophan and its indole derivatives in humans, animals, plants and microbes, producing biologically active metabolites which exert positive or negative actions on living organisms. Some tryptophan-derived metabolites may influence cytochrome P450 expression, affecting cellular homeostasis and xenobiotic metabolism.
  • 1.7K
  • 10 May 2023
Topic Review
G-Protein-Coupled Receptors in CNS
Neurodegenerative diseases are a large group of neurological disorders with diverse etiological and pathological phenomena. However, current therapeutics rely mostly on symptomatic relief while failing to target the underlying disease pathobiology. G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are one of the most frequently targeted receptors for developing novel therapeutics for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Many currently available antipsychotic therapeutics also act as either antagonists or agonists of different GPCRs. Therefore, GPCR-based drug development is spreading widely to regulate neurodegeneration and associated cognitive deficits through the modulation of canonical and noncanonical signals.
  • 1.7K
  • 20 May 2021
Topic Review
Melanoma Brain Metastases
Metastasis to the central nervous system (CNS) is a common occurrence for patients with advanced-stage melanoma, where up to 60% of all melanoma patients will develop brain metastasis during the progression of their disease .
  • 1.7K
  • 02 Apr 2024
Topic Review
Hp-NCL Network in Routing Encoding
Goal-directed navigation is a crucial behavior for the survival of animals, especially for the birds having extraordinary spatial navigation ability. In neural mechanism of the goal-directed behavior, especially involving the information encoding mechanism of the route, the hippocampus (Hp), nidopallium caudalle (NCL) and their local networks of the avian brain play important roles.
  • 1.7K
  • 09 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Huntington’s Disease Mechanisms
Huntington’s disease (HD), despite its extrinsic simplicity—only mutation in one gene underlies the pathogenesis—has no effective treatment today. Designing an anti-HD therapy that would eliminate etiology is a topical and relevant task of biomedicine.
  • 1.7K
  • 07 Dec 2023
Biography
Pedro Antonio Valdes-Sosa
Pedro Antonio Valdes-Sosa (born March 12, 1950 in Chicago , Illinois, United States ), is the General Vice-Director for Research of the Cuban Neurosciences Center, which he cofounded in 1990. He is also Member of the Editorial Boards of the following journals: Neuroimage,[1] Medicc,[2] Audiology and Neurotology,[3] PLosOne[4] Frontiers, Neuroimage and Brain Connectivity. His work includes statis
  • 1.7K
  • 07 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Neuropilin Related Pathological Conditions
Neuropilin 1 (NRP1) represents one of the two homologous neuropilins (NRP, splice variants of neuropilin 2 are the other) found in all vertebrates. It forms a transmembrane glycoprotein distributed in many human body tissues as a (co)receptor for a variety of different ligands.
  • 1.7K
  • 08 Oct 2022
Topic Review
The Role of TNF-α in Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that represents the most common cause of dementia in the elderly. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, a proinflammatory cytokine, has attracted attention due to its multifaceted and still not fully characterized role in AD and the fact that it could potentially represent a future therapeutic target. Indeed, TNF-α has many roles, not only in inflammation, but also in cell death and proliferation, and is crucial in maintaining CNS homeostasis. TNF-α is primarily produced by microglia, astrocytes, and neurons in response to various stimuli. Although TNF-α has a fundamental role in modulating excitotoxicity, neuroinflammation, blood-brain barrier permeability, regulation of oligodendrocyte survival, myelin formation and repair, its excessive or dysregulated production can have detrimental effects on neuronal health, contributing to the development of neurodegeneration.
  • 1.7K
  • 04 Jan 2024
Topic Review
Metal-Induced Mitochondrial Dysfunction
Metals are actively involved in multiple catalytic physiological activities. However, metal overload may result in neurotoxicity as it increases formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and elevates oxidative stress in the nervous system. Mitochondria are a key target of metal-induced toxicity, given their role in energy production. As the brain consumes a large amount of energy, mitochondrial dysfunction and the subsequent decrease in levels of ATP may significantly disrupt brain function, resulting in neuronal cell death and ensuing neurological disorders. 
  • 1.7K
  • 30 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Mechanism of Action of D2 Antagonist Antipsychotic Medications
Therapeutic intervention for schizophrenia relies on blockade of dopamine D2 receptors in the associative striatum; however, there is little evidence for baseline overdrive of the dopamine system. Instead, the dopamine system is in a hyper-responsive state due to excessive drive by the hippocampus. This causes more dopamine neurons to be in a spontaneously active, hyper-responsive state. Antipsychotic drugs alleviate this by causing depolarization block, or excessive depolarization-induced dopamine neuron inactivation. 
  • 1.7K
  • 10 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation
The syndromes of neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA) encompass a group of invalidating and progressive rare diseases that share the abnormal accumulation of iron in the basal ganglia. The onset of NBIA disorders ranges from infancy to adulthood. Main clinical signs are related to extrapyramidal features (dystonia, parkinsonism and choreoathetosis), and neuropsychiatric abnormalities. Ten NBIA forms are widely accepted to be caused by mutations in the genes PANK2, PLA2G6, WDR45, C19ORF12, FA2H, ATP13A2, COASY, FTL1, CP, and DCAF17. However, many patients remain without a genetic diagnosis, and therefore, there must be additional yet undiscovered NBIA genes. The genetic heterogeneity and the corresponding encoded proteins emphasize that several pathways are involved in NBIA syndromes: iron and lipid metabolism, mitochondrial dynamics, and autophagy. Moreover, for these forms as well as for many neurodegenerative conditions, mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are common mechanisms of disease.
  • 1.7K
  • 22 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Ly6c as New Marker of Mouse Blood Vessels
During our research we have observed that Ly6c, which is traditionally only used as a classic and non-classical monocyte / macrophage differentiating antigen, can be used as a new specific marker of the mouse vasculature and to assess qualitatively and quantitatively vascular changes in health and disease. Researchers believe that this innovative application of Ly6c immunodetection, which has shown three advantages (brighter signal, homogeneous staining and greater selectivity) compared to traditional vessel markers such as IB4 isolectin, will be of high interest to researchers in this field.
  • 1.6K
  • 28 Mar 2022
Topic Review
DNA-Repair Pathways: Links to Neurodegeneration
Genomic integrity is maintained by DNA repair and the DNA damage response (DDR). Defects in certain DNA repair genes give rise to many rare progressive neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), such as ocular motor ataxia, Huntington disease (HD), and spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA). A possible causative role for DNA damage and DNA repair in the pathogenesis of common, late-onset NDDs is less well established, although DDR defects are emerging as possible culprits in diseases like AD, PD, and ALS. Whether targeting DNA repair or the DDR may be developed into therapeutic options against NDDs remains to be clarified.
  • 1.6K
  • 18 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Paliperidone to Treat Psychotic Disorders
This is a comprehensive review of the literature regarding the use of paliperidone in the treatment of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. It covers the background and presentation of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder, as well as the mechanism of action and drug information for paliperidone. It covers the existing evidence of the use of paliperidone for the treatment of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. 
  • 1.6K
  • 05 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Diagnosis and Assessment of Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy
Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) manifests as the primary cause of spinal cord dysfunction and is non-traumatic, chronic and progressive in nature. Decompressive surgery is typically utilised to halt further disability and neurological dysfunction and as such, early diagnosis and assessment is a vital means of slowing the disease process. Currently, there exists a plethora of methods for diagnosing DCM, each with their own unique limitations. The limitations of current diagnostic techniques and some novel quantitative MRI (qMRI) techniques for assessing spinal cord integrity in DCM were described here.
  • 1.6K
  • 28 Oct 2022
  • Page
  • of
  • 54
Featured Entry Collections
>>

Featured Reprints

>>
Encyclopedia of Digital Society, Industry 5.0 and Smart City
Encyclopedia of Engineering
Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Encyclopedia of Medieval Royal Iconography
Academic Video Service
Feedback

Quick Survey

Encyclopedia MDPI is conducting a targeted survey to identify the specific barriers hindering efficient research. We invite you to spend 3 minutes defining the priorities for our next generation of structured knowledge tools.
Take Survey