Neurodevelopmental, psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases together contribute a high global burden of morbidity and mortality yet insights into underlying mechanisms of etiology, therapeutic advances and changes to clinical practice remain limited. The development and application of cutting edge technologies and approaches, including disease models, multi-omics, data integration, and artificial intelligence, have advanced our understanding of disease risk and mechanisms underlying these complex brain disorders. Research efforts in this area are expanding our knowledge of the impact of genetic and genomic variation on neuronal function and networks, and are further contributing to novel insights into neuro-immune interactions highlighting their prominent role in disease etiology and how these offer new diagnostic and therapeutic opportunities for translation to the clinic.
To capture advances in this growing, multi-disciplinary area, Genome Medicine is pleased to present a special issue entitled ‘Dissecting the role of immune responses in complex brain disorders: translational and clinical insights', guest edited by Dr. Philip de Jager, from the Center for Translational & Computational Neuroimmunology and the Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain at Columbia University and Dr. Carlos Cruchaga, from the Neurogenomics and Informatics Center at Washington University.
This collection of articles has not been sponsored and articles will undergo the journal’s standard peer-review process. The Guest Editors declare that they have no competing interests. The Guest Editors serve an advisory role to guide the scope of the special issue and commissioned content; final editorial decisions lie with the Editor.