Electric Stimulation-Induced Neural Modulation

Electrical stimuli play a critical role to modulate neural activities, which provide the neural information for functional stability ranging from motor control to cognition in the brain. Various internal or external stresses, such as neurodegenerative diseases, end-organ damages, radiation exposures, etc., induce functional impairments, and their recoveries have limits under long period of time. To accelerate the recovery and overcome its limits, different types of electrical stimulation have been developed. The applied stimuli generate newly updated neural information, and it is delivered to the higher hierarchical brain areas through the neural networks. For the relayed transfer of the neural information, the synaptic responses are crucial to understand their modification via the synapse as well as the generated information by the stimulation. The synaptic responses also include their relevant neurotransmitters, receptors, and molecules for the altered neural information. Combining these changes at the synaptic level, the systemic and functional responses to electrical stimulation will be investigated to advance our technology, and reveal mechanisms that will contribute to clinical purposes.

This research topic aims to investigate the underlying mechanism of electrical stimulation based on the synaptic responses as well as any related functional responses to the stimulation. There are no limits with respect to the central function; for example, sensory neural information-based motor control, task-based memory, or behavior-based cognition. We welcome all studies using gene expression, stained molecular images, electrophysiological recordings, and behavioral responses in the animal models and clinical specimens. We also consider the investigations on the methodological improvements of the related studies, which can show an advanced approach for stimulations.

We accept submissions of original research articles and review papers addressing, but not limited to, the following subtopics:

- Mechanism of electrical stimulation in vivo
- Correlation between synaptic responses to electrical stimulation
- Correlation between central systemic responses to electrical stimulation
- Correlation between behavioral responses to electrical stimulation
- Clinical applications of electrical stimulation

Keywords: Neuromodulation, Electrical Stimulation, Synaptic Response, Neurotransmitter, Plasticity

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