Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) represent an increasing global health challenge, affecting millions of people worldwide and placing a significant burden on healthcare systems. Key molecular pathways of numerous NDs, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and prion diseases consist of the misfolding, aggregation, and accumulation of specific proteins in the brain preceding the clinical manifestation of symptoms. These proteins have been extensively investigated in clinical research studies
with the aim of identifying potential biomarkers for improving the diagnosis and prognosis of NDs.
Timely and accurate diagnosis of NDs is essential in clinical trials to evaluate novel therapeutic agents for NDs. Disease-specific biomarkers are useful for screening during trials and can also provide valuable insights into disease progression by tracking changes in pathological processes over time. Prognostic biomarkers may also serve as outcome measures to assess treatment efficacy, providing objective evidence of disease modification and enabling accurate predictions of disease trajectory. Laterally, the improvement of
clinical criteria, imaging, fluid-derived, and peripheral biomarkers have played a pivotal role in monitoring disease progression in NDs. However, currently used biomarkers for NDs still exhibit insufficient sensitivity and specificity, especially in their initial phases. The combination of ultrasensitive and innovative diagnostic tools (e.g., seeding amplification assays, omics technologies, biophysical and spectroscopic methods) coupled with the advances in artificial intelligence technology has the potential to effectively stratify patients
at early stages of disease and optimize the enrollment process of clinical trials.
This special issue aims to deepen research into the multifaceted role of biomarkers in NDs, encompassing different conditions like synucleinopathies, tauopathies, prion diseases, and other proteinopathies associated with dementia and cognitive impairment. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:
· Early detection and differential diagnosis: exploring innovative biomarkers to detect NDs in their initial stages and differentiate between various neurodegenerative conditions, thereby improving precision and specificity.
· Disease progression and prognostic biomarkers: examining the role of biomarkers in tracking disease progression, predicting clinical outcomes, and stratifying patients based on their prognostic profiles.
· Fluid-derived and peripheral biomarkers: assessing the validity and reliability of fluid-derived and/or peripheral biomarkers for screening, diagnostic, or prognostic purposes in NDs.
· Multi-Omics approaches: investigating combined methodologies incorporating genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and other omics data to unveil comprehensive biomarker profiles in the domain of NDs.
· Imaging biomarkers: advancements in neuroimaging techniques to provide structural, functional, and molecular biomarkers for NDs.
· Treatment response assessment: assessing the utility of biomarkers in evaluating the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions, including disease-modifying therapies and symptomatic treatments.
We invite original research articles, reviews, meta-analyses, case studies, and perspectives that offer valuable insights to the biomarkers field in NDs. Interdisciplinary studies that bridge the gap between clinical, translational, and basic research are especially encouraged.
Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) represent an increasing global health challenge, affecting millions of people worldwide and placing a significant burden on healthcare systems. Key molecular pathways of numerous NDs, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and prion diseases consist of the misfolding, aggregation, and accumulation of specific proteins in the brain preceding the clinical manifestation of symptoms. These proteins have been extensively investigated in clinical research studies
with the aim of identifying potential biomarkers for improving the diagnosis and prognosis of NDs.
Timely and accurate diagnosis of NDs is essential in clinical trials to evaluate novel therapeutic agents for NDs. Disease-specific biomarkers are useful for screening during trials and can also provide valuable insights into disease progression by tracking changes in pathological processes over time. Prognostic biomarkers may also serve as outcome measures to assess treatment efficacy, providing objective evidence of disease modification and enabling accurate predictions of disease trajectory. Laterally, the improvement of
clinical criteria, imaging, fluid-derived, and peripheral biomarkers have played a pivotal role in monitoring disease progression in NDs. However, currently used biomarkers for NDs still exhibit insufficient sensitivity and specificity, especially in their initial phases. The combination of ultrasensitive and innovative diagnostic tools (e.g., seeding amplification assays, omics technologies, biophysical and spectroscopic methods) coupled with the advances in artificial intelligence technology has the potential to effectively stratify patients
at early stages of disease and optimize the enrollment process of clinical trials.
This special issue aims to deepen research into the multifaceted role of biomarkers in NDs, encompassing different conditions like synucleinopathies, tauopathies, prion diseases, and other proteinopathies associated with dementia and cognitive impairment. Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:
· Early detection and differential diagnosis: exploring innovative biomarkers to detect NDs in their initial stages and differentiate between various neurodegenerative conditions, thereby improving precision and specificity.
· Disease progression and prognostic biomarkers: examining the role of biomarkers in tracking disease progression, predicting clinical outcomes, and stratifying patients based on their prognostic profiles.
· Fluid-derived and peripheral biomarkers: assessing the validity and reliability of fluid-derived and/or peripheral biomarkers for screening, diagnostic, or prognostic purposes in NDs.
· Multi-Omics approaches: investigating combined methodologies incorporating genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and other omics data to unveil comprehensive biomarker profiles in the domain of NDs.
· Imaging biomarkers: advancements in neuroimaging techniques to provide structural, functional, and molecular biomarkers for NDs.
· Treatment response assessment: assessing the utility of biomarkers in evaluating the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions, including disease-modifying therapies and symptomatic treatments.
We invite original research articles, reviews, meta-analyses, case studies, and perspectives that offer valuable insights to the biomarkers field in NDs. Interdisciplinary studies that bridge the gap between clinical, translational, and basic research are especially encouraged.