Advances in Neural Mechanisms and Targeted Therapy for Psychiatric Diseases

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Psychiatric Diseases".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 August 2022) | Viewed by 8412

Special Issue Editors

Brain Health Institute, National Center for Mental Disorders, Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
Interests: neuromodulation; drug addiction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong Univierisity, Shanghai, China
Interests: neuroinflammation; neuroimmune regulation
National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and Department of Psy-chaitry, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
Interests: nruroplasticiy; stress-induced mental diseases
Guangdong-Hongkong-Macau Institute of CNS Regeneration, Ministry of Educa-tion CNS Regeneration Collaborative Joint Laboratory, Jinan University, Guang-zhou, China
Interests: cortical plasticity; learning and memory; non-pharmacologcial therapy
School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China
Interests: psychiatric diseases; neuropharmacology; stress neurobiology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Currently, psychiatric diseases lack effective treatment, and their precise mechanisms remain unclear.

The Special issue on “Advances in Neural Mechanisms and Targeted Therapy for Psychiatric Diseases” aims to present a collection of the latest advances in the field of psychiatric diseases and targeted therapies.

Authors are invited to submit cutting-edge research and reviews revealing the underpinning of psychiatric diseases, as well as targeted therapies, including genomic, transcriptomic, cellular and molecular, pathology, neuroimaging, behavior, and clinical research.

In particular, we aim to present advances in psychiatric diseases treatment that may have strong translational potential for clinical practice.

Prof. Dr. Tifei Yuan
Guest Editor

Dr. Yanxia Rao
Dr. Zhe Shi
Dr. Li Zhang
Dr. Ji Hu
Co-Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • psychiatric disease
  • neural mechanism
  • drug therapy
  • non-invasive therapy
  • technologies

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 5340 KiB  
Article
Identification and Characterization of Elevated Expression of Transferrin and Its Receptor TfR1 in Mouse Models of Depression
by Xin Chang, Mengxin Ma, Liping Chen, Zhihong Song, Zhe Zhao, Wei Shen, Huihui Jiang, Yan Wu, Ming Fan and Haitao Wu
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(10), 1267; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/brainsci12101267 - 20 Sep 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1711
Abstract
Depression has become one of the severe mental disorders threatening global human health. In this study, we first used the proteomics approach to obtain the differentially expressed proteins in the liver between naive control and chronic social defeat stress (CSDS) induced depressed mice. [...] Read more.
Depression has become one of the severe mental disorders threatening global human health. In this study, we first used the proteomics approach to obtain the differentially expressed proteins in the liver between naive control and chronic social defeat stress (CSDS) induced depressed mice. We have identified the upregulation of iron binding protein transferrin (TF) in the liver, the peripheral blood, and the brain in CSDS-exposed mice. Furthermore, bioinformatics analysis of the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database from various mouse models of depression revealed the significantly upregulated transcripts of TF and its receptor TfR1 in multiple brain regions in depressed mice. We also used the recombinant TF administration via the tail vein to detect its permeability through the blood-brain barrier (BBB). We demonstrated the permeability of peripheral TF into the brain through the BBB. Together, these results identified the elevated expression of TF and its receptor TfR1 in both peripheral liver and the central brain in CSDS-induced depressed mice, and peripheral administration of TF can be transported into the brain through the BBB. Therefore, our data provide a compelling information for understanding the potential role and mechanisms of the cross-talk between the liver and the brain in stress-induced depression. Full article
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9 pages, 1334 KiB  
Article
Intermittent Theta-Burst Stimulation Increases the Working Memory Capacity of Methamphetamine Addicts
by Yurong Sun, Huimin Wang and Yixuan Ku
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1212; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/brainsci12091212 - 08 Sep 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1342
Abstract
The present study aimed to explore the effect of intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) on visual working memory for people suffering from methamphetamine use disorder (MUD). Five sessions of iTBS were carried over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) or the vertex as a [...] Read more.
The present study aimed to explore the effect of intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) on visual working memory for people suffering from methamphetamine use disorder (MUD). Five sessions of iTBS were carried over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) or the vertex as a sham control, with each session in one day. Orientation free-recall tasks were conducted before the iTBS stimulation, after the first and fifth sessions of stimulation. Results showed that when compared with the sham group, a single session of iTBS over the left DLPFC improved participants’ working memory performance. Specifically, iTBS over the left DLPFC increased the working memory capacity and such effects enlarged with multiple sessions. The present finding suggested that iTBS over DLPFC could be a promising intervention method to enhance the cognitive function of addicts with MUD. Full article
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Review

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17 pages, 3162 KiB  
Review
The Significance of NLRP Inflammasome in Neuropsychiatric Disorders
by Yao Shen, Liyin Qian, Hu Luo, Xiaofang Li, Yuer Ruan, Runyue Fan, Zizhen Si, Yunpeng Chen, Longhui Li and Yu Liu
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(8), 1057; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/brainsci12081057 - 10 Aug 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2787
Abstract
The NLRP inflammasome is a multi-protein complex which mainly consists of the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain, leucine-rich repeat, and pyrin domain. Its activation is linked to microglial-mediated neuroinflammation and partial neuronal degeneration. Many neuropsychiatric illnesses have increased inflammatory responses as both a primary cause [...] Read more.
The NLRP inflammasome is a multi-protein complex which mainly consists of the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain, leucine-rich repeat, and pyrin domain. Its activation is linked to microglial-mediated neuroinflammation and partial neuronal degeneration. Many neuropsychiatric illnesses have increased inflammatory responses as both a primary cause and a defining feature. The NLRP inflammasome inhibition delays the progression and alleviates the deteriorating effects of neuroinflammation on several neuropsychiatric disorders. Evidence on the central effects of the NLRP inflammasome potentially provides the scientific base of a promising drug target for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders. This review elucidates the classification, composition, and functions of the NLRP inflammasomes. It also explores the underlying mechanisms of NLRP inflammasome activation and its divergent role in neuropsychiatric disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, depression, drug use disorders, and anxiety. Furthermore, we explore the treatment potential of the NLRP inflammasome inhibitors against these disorders. Full article
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Other

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7 pages, 664 KiB  
Perspective
Perceptually Visible but Emotionally Subliminal Stimuli to Improve Exposure Therapies
by Sergio Frumento, Angelo Gemignani and Danilo Menicucci
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(7), 867; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/brainsci12070867 - 30 Jun 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1649
Abstract
Subliminal stimuli are gaining growing interest due to their capability to induce desensitization to pathologically feared (e.g., phobic) pictures without inducing exaggerated emotional reactions. However, unresolved methodological issues cast significant doubt on the reliability of these findings and their interpretation. The studies most [...] Read more.
Subliminal stimuli are gaining growing interest due to their capability to induce desensitization to pathologically feared (e.g., phobic) pictures without inducing exaggerated emotional reactions. However, unresolved methodological issues cast significant doubt on the reliability of these findings and their interpretation. The studies most robustly assessing stimulus detection found that ~30% of the supposed-to-be-subliminal stimuli were, in fact, detected, suggesting that the beneficial effects attributed to subliminal stimuli may result from those actually seen. Nevertheless, a deeper analysis of the data underlying this misinterpretation unveils theoretical and clinical implications. Since the purpose of subliminal stimulation is to reduce the aversiveness of exposure therapies while maintaining their efficacy, researchers should measure the emotional relevance of supposed-to-be-subliminal stimuli that are, in fact, detected. A distinction is needed between perceptually- and emotionally-subliminal stimuli: the former is not consciously detected; the latter just fails to elicit emotional reactions. Emotionally-subliminal stimuli could represent an intermediate step of exposure in addition to those involving perceptually subliminal or supraliminal stimuli. Importantly, emotionally subliminal stimuli could make patients able to sustain a conscious exposure to feared stimuli without exaggeratedly reacting to them: if confirmed by empirical data, this unexpected disconfirmation of patients’ beliefs could pave the way for successful therapy while increasing their self-efficacy and compliance to treatment. Full article
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