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Advances in Research on Neurotransmitters
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Advances in Research on Neurotransmitters

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Neurobiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 December 2024 | Viewed by 4108

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Mario Manto

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Unité des Ataxies Cérébelleuses, Department of Neurology, Médiathèque Jean Jacquy, CHU-Charleroi, 6000 Charleroi, Belgium
2. Service des Neurosciences, University of Mons, 7000 Mons, Belgium
Interests: cerebellum; ataxias; movement disorders; neuroanatomy
Dr. Hiroshi Mitoma

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Medical Education Promotion Center, Tokyo Medical University, Tokyo 160-0023, Japan
Interests: neurophysiology; movement disorders; cerebellar diseases; immune-mediated cerebellar ataxias; cerebellar physiology; accelerometers; medical signal processing; gait analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Jing-Ning Zhu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
Interests: neural mechanisms of motor control and movement diseases; neural mechanisms of emotion regulation and mood disorders; neural circuit mechanisms and new prevention and treatment strategies for somatic-non-somatic response integration and somatic-non-somatic concurrent dysfunction

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Neurotransmitters have major functions both for the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Understanding how neurotransmitters impact on nervous functions has been the subject of numerous investigations in recent decades. New concepts and cutting-edge approaches have emerged. Neurotransmitters exert a multifaceted influence via multiple receptor subtypes and numerous intra- and inter-cellular cascades. A better understanding of the mechanisms involved in the modulation of synthesis and/or release of neurotransmitters may help researchers to elucidate the complexity of numerous interrelated pathways and develop novel therapies for diseases affecting the CNS and PNS, including depression, Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, pain or peripheral neuropathies. Studies of methods to enhance or decrease selectively neurotransmission may lead to manipulation of disease states and, ultimately, personalized approaches to treat neurological patients. Major targets under consideration include excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission, mitochondria, epigenetics, and the gut–brain axis.

Dr. Mario Manto
Dr. Hiroshi Mitoma
Prof. Dr. Jing-Ning Zhu
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. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. 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

  • neurotransmitter
  • GABA
  • glutamate
  • monoamines
  • dopamine
  • serotonin
  • norepinephrine
  • neuropeptides
  • nitric oxide
  • neurosteroids
  • stress
  • neurotrophins
  • epigenetics
  • gut–brain axis

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 4497 KiB  
Article
Localization of Catecholaminergic Neurofibers in Pregnant Cervix as a Possible Myometrial Pacemaker
by Antonio Malvasi, Giorgio Maria Baldini, Ettore Cicinelli, Edoardo Di Naro, Domenico Baldini, Alessandro Favilli, Paola Tiziana Quellari, Paola Sabbatini, Bernard Fioretti, Lorenzo E. Malgieri, Gianluca Raffaello Damiani, Miriam Dellino, Giuseppe Trojano and Andrea Tinelli
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(11), 5630; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25115630 - 22 May 2024
Viewed by 801
Abstract
In eutocic labor, the autonomic nervous system is dominated by the parasympathetic system, which ensures optimal blood flow to the uterus and placenta. This study is focused on the detection of the quantitative presence of catecholamine (C) neurofibers in the internal uterine orifice [...] Read more.
In eutocic labor, the autonomic nervous system is dominated by the parasympathetic system, which ensures optimal blood flow to the uterus and placenta. This study is focused on the detection of the quantitative presence of catecholamine (C) neurofibers in the internal uterine orifice (IUO) and in the lower uterine segment (LUS) of the pregnant uterus, which could play a role in labor and delivery. A total of 102 women were enrolled before their submission to a scheduled cesarean section (CS); patients showed a singleton fetus in a cephalic presentation outside labor. During CS, surgeons sampled two serial consecutive full-thickness sections 5 mm in depth (including the myometrial layer) on the LUS and two randomly selected samples of 5 mm depth from the IUO of the cervix. All histological samples were studied to quantify the distribution of A nerve fibers. The authors demonstrated a significant and notably higher concentration of A fibers in the IUO (46 ± 4.8) than in the LUS (21 ± 2.6), showing that the pregnant cervix has a greater concentration of A neurofibers than the at-term LUS. Pregnant women’s mechanosensitive pacemakers can operate normally when the body is in a physiological state, which permits normal uterine contractions and eutocic delivery. The increased frequency of C neurofibers in the cervix may influence the smooth muscle cell bundles’ activation, which could cause an aberrant mechano-sensitive pacemaker activation–deactivation cycle. Stressful circumstances (anxiety, tension, fetal head position) cause the sympathetic nervous system to become more active, working through these nerve fibers in the gravid cervix. They might interfere with the mechano-sensitive pacemakers, slowing down the uterine contractions and cervix ripening, which could result in dystocic labor. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Research on Neurotransmitters)
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16 pages, 1957 KiB  
Article
Astragaloside IV as a Memory-Enhancing Agent: In Silico Studies with In Vivo Analysis and Post Mortem ADME-Tox Profiling in Mice
by Katarzyna Stępnik, Wirginia Kukula-Koch, Anna Boguszewska-Czubara and Kinga Gawel
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(7), 4021; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25074021 - 4 Apr 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1044
Abstract
Many people around the world suffer from neurodegenerative diseases associated with cognitive impairment. As life expectancy increases, this number is steadily rising. Therefore, it is extremely important to search for new treatment strategies and to discover new substances with potential neuroprotective and/or cognition-enhancing [...] Read more.
Many people around the world suffer from neurodegenerative diseases associated with cognitive impairment. As life expectancy increases, this number is steadily rising. Therefore, it is extremely important to search for new treatment strategies and to discover new substances with potential neuroprotective and/or cognition-enhancing effects. This study focuses on investigating the potential of astragaloside IV (AIV), a triterpenoid saponin with proven acetylcholinesterase (AChE)-inhibiting activity naturally occurring in the root of Astragalus mongholicus, to attenuate memory impairment. Scopolamine (SCOP), an antagonist of muscarinic cholinergic receptors, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a trigger of neuroinflammation, were used to impair memory processes in the passive avoidance (PA) test in mice. This memory impairment in SCOP-treated mice was attenuated by prior intraperitoneal (ip) administration of AIV at a dose of 25 mg/kg. The attenuation of memory impairment by LPS was not observed. It can therefore be assumed that AIV does not reverse memory impairment by anti-inflammatory mechanisms, although this needs to be further verified. All doses of AIV tested did not affect baseline locomotor activity in mice. In the post mortem analysis by mass spectrometry of the body tissue of the mice, the highest content of AIV was found in the kidneys, then in the spleen and liver, and the lowest in the brain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Research on Neurotransmitters)
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Review

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19 pages, 966 KiB  
Review
Neuropeptides and Their Roles in the Cerebellum
by Zi-Hao Li, Bin Li, Xiao-Yang Zhang and Jing-Ning Zhu
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(4), 2332; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25042332 - 16 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1879
Abstract
Although more than 30 different types of neuropeptides have been identified in various cell types and circuits of the cerebellum, their unique functions in the cerebellum remain poorly understood. Given the nature of their diffuse distribution, peptidergic systems are generally assumed to exert [...] Read more.
Although more than 30 different types of neuropeptides have been identified in various cell types and circuits of the cerebellum, their unique functions in the cerebellum remain poorly understood. Given the nature of their diffuse distribution, peptidergic systems are generally assumed to exert a modulatory effect on the cerebellum via adaptively tuning neuronal excitability, synaptic transmission, and synaptic plasticity within cerebellar circuits. Moreover, cerebellar neuropeptides have also been revealed to be involved in the neurogenetic and developmental regulation of the developing cerebellum, including survival, migration, differentiation, and maturation of the Purkinje cells and granule cells in the cerebellar cortex. On the other hand, cerebellar neuropeptides hold a critical position in the pathophysiology and pathogenesis of many cerebellar-related motor and psychiatric disorders, such as cerebellar ataxias and autism. Over the past two decades, a growing body of evidence has indicated neuropeptides as potential therapeutic targets to ameliorate these diseases effectively. Therefore, this review focuses on eight cerebellar neuropeptides that have attracted more attention in recent years and have significant potential for clinical application associated with neurodegenerative and/or neuropsychiatric disorders, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor, corticotropin-releasing factor, angiotensin II, neuropeptide Y, orexin, thyrotropin-releasing hormone, oxytocin, and secretin, which may provide novel insights and a framework for our understanding of cerebellar-related disorders and have implications for novel treatments targeting neuropeptide systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Research on Neurotransmitters)
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