Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
9.0
4.9
Journals
IJMS
Special Issues
Neuroimaging Studies in Exploring the Molecular Mechanisms of Neurological Diseases
ijms-logo
Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for IJMS Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

Neuroimaging Studies in Exploring the Molecular Mechanisms of Neurological Diseases

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: 20 September 2026 | Viewed by 3583

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Ming-Chang Chiang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Life Science, College of Science and Engineering, Fu-Jen Catholic University, New Taipei City 242062, Taiwan
Interests: neuroscience; brain science; cognitive neuroscience; neuroimaging; PPARs; AMPK
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Recent advances in brain imaging have made significant progress in identifying biomarkers associated with various brain diseases. electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and positron emission tomography (PET) are critical in identifying diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, and epilepsy. It has attracted much attention due to its utility in biomarkers. 

Explore how neuroimaging reveals changes in brain connectivity, primarily through functional MRI and diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI). This is critical for conditions such as schizophrenia, depression, and autism, where abnormal network patterns could serve as diagnostic criteria or therapeutic targets. Artificial intelligence-driven analysis, particularly neuroimaging, physiological testing, and genetic analysis aims to enhance early detection, diagnosis, and monitoring of neurological diseases by combining phenotypic and genotypic testing. By linking specific genetic mutations with abnormal brain network patterns revealed by fMRI imaging and DTI, researchers can identify biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets for neurological disease and support precision medicine. 

Dr. Ming-Chang Chiang
Guest Editor

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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

  • neuroimaging
  • neurological diseases
  • brain imaging
  • biomarkers
  • functional connectivity
  • AI in neuroimaging

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

19 pages, 2479 KB  
Article
Sensitivity of Diffusion Tensor Imaging for Assessing Injury Severity in a Rat Model of Isolated Diffuse Axonal Injury: Comparison with Histology and Neurological Assessment
by Vladislav Zvenigorodsky, Benjamin F. Gruenbaum, Ilan Shelef, Dmitry Frank, Beatris Tsafarov, Shahar Negev, Vladimir Zeldetz, Abed N. Azab, Matthew Boyko and Alexander Zlotnik
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(15), 7333; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26157333 - 29 Jul 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1651
Abstract
Diffuse axonal brain injury (DAI) is a common, debilitating consequence of traumatic brain injury, yet its detection and severity grading remain challenging in clinical and experimental settings. This study evaluated the sensitivity of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), histology, and neurological severity scoring (NSS) [...] Read more.
Diffuse axonal brain injury (DAI) is a common, debilitating consequence of traumatic brain injury, yet its detection and severity grading remain challenging in clinical and experimental settings. This study evaluated the sensitivity of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), histology, and neurological severity scoring (NSS) in assessing injury severity in a rat model of isolated DAI. A rotational injury model induced mild, moderate, or severe DAI in male and female rats. Neurological deficits were assessed 48 h after injury via NSS. Magnetic resonance imaging, including DTI metrics, such as fractional anisotropy (FA), relative anisotropy (RA), axial diffusivity (AD), mean diffusivity (MD), and radial diffusivity (RD), was performed prior to tissue collection. Histological analysis used beta amyloid precursor protein immunohistochemistry. Sensitivity and variability of each method were compared across brain regions and the whole brain. Histology was the most sensitive method, requiring very small groups to detect differences. Anisotropy-based MRI metrics, especially whole-brain FA and RA, showed strong correlations with histology and NSS and demonstrated high sensitivity with low variability. NSS identified injury but required larger group sizes. Diffusivity-based MRI metrics, particularly RD, were less sensitive and more variable. Whole-brain FA and RA were the most sensitive MRI measures of DAI severity and were comparable to histology in moderate and severe groups. These findings support combining NSS and anisotropy-based DTI for non-terminal DAI assessment in preclinical studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Neuroimaging Studies in Exploring the Molecular Mechanisms of Neurological Diseases)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

20 pages, 1260 KB  
Review
Neuroimaging-Guided Insights into the Molecular and Network Mechanisms of Chronic Pain and Neuromodulation
by Chiahui Yen and Ming-Chang Chiang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(2), 1080; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27021080 - 21 Jan 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1290
Abstract
Chronic pain is a pervasive and debilitating condition that affects millions of individuals worldwide. Unlike acute pain, which serves a protective physiological role, chronic pain persists beyond routine tissue healing and often arises without a discernible peripheral cause. Accumulating evidence indicates that chronic [...] Read more.
Chronic pain is a pervasive and debilitating condition that affects millions of individuals worldwide. Unlike acute pain, which serves a protective physiological role, chronic pain persists beyond routine tissue healing and often arises without a discernible peripheral cause. Accumulating evidence indicates that chronic pain is not merely a symptom but a disorder of the central nervous system, underpinned by interacting molecular, neurochemical, and network-level alterations. Molecular neuroimaging using PET and MR spectroscopy has revealed dysregulated excitatory–inhibitory balance (glutamate/GABA), altered monoaminergic and opioidergic signaling, and neuroimmune activation (e.g., TSPO-indexed glial activation) in key pain-related regions such as the insula, anterior cingulate cortex, thalamus, and prefrontal cortex. Converging multimodal imaging—including functional MRI, diffusion MRI, and EEG/MEG—demonstrates aberrant activity and connectivity across the default mode, salience, and sensorimotor networks, alongside structural remodeling in cortical and subcortical circuits. Parallel advances in neuromodulation, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), deep brain stimulation (DBS), and emerging biomarker-guided closed-loop approaches, provide tools to perturb these maladaptive circuits and to test mechanistic hypotheses in vivo. This review integrates neuroimaging findings with molecular and systems-level mechanistic insights into chronic pain and its modulation, highlighting how imaging markers can link biochemical signatures to neural dynamics and guide precision pain management and individualized therapeutic strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Neuroimaging Studies in Exploring the Molecular Mechanisms of Neurological Diseases)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop