Microbiota and Brain Development Mechanisms, Trajectories, and Neurodevelopmental Diversity
Submission Deadline: 30 Apr 2027
Guest Editors
Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
Interests: Professor Amedeo Amedei is a Full Professor of Immunology whose research is focused on the mechanisms linking immune regulation, inflammation, and disease. His scientific interests center on cancer immunology and the pivotal role of the microbiota–immunity axis in inflammation-associated conditions, including autoimmune diseases, cancer, and neurodegenerative disorders. In parallel, he investigates the impact of emerging environmental stressors, particularly micro- and nanoplastics, on human health, with a focus on their effects on immune responses, inflammatory pathways, and host–microbiota homeostasis. Through an integrative and translational approach, his research aims to identify immune and environmental determinants of disease susceptibility and progression, opening new perspectives for prevention and targeted interventions.
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Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
Interests: Dr. Elena Niccolai is a Researcher at the Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence. Her scientific activity is centered on the microbiome–immunity axis as a fundamental regulator of host homeostasis and disease. Building on her background in immunology and immune responses in gastrointestinal tumors, she investigates how signals derived from the tissue microenvironment and the gut microbiome shape human T-cell function and immune modulation. A major focus of her research is understanding how microbiota-driven immune mechanisms influence neuroinflammatory processes and contribute to the onset and progression of neurological and neurodegenerative disorders, including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Through an integrative approach, her work aims to elucidate immune–microbial pathways linking peripheral immunity to brain development, function, and vulnerability.
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Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
Interests: neuroinflammation; intestinal inflammation; mast cells; probiotics
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Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Brain development emerges from tightly regulated neurobiological processes that integrate genetic programs with environmental inputs across critical developmental windows. Increasing evidence indicates that gut microbiota–brain interactions contribute to brain maturation by modulating key neural mechanisms, including neurogenesis, synaptic pruning and plasticity, myelination, and the establishment of functional neural circuits. This Special Issue focuses on how gut microbiota shape neurodevelopment through mechanistic pathways, including both neurodevelopmental diversity and dysbiosis/pathogenic mechanisms that influence CNS structure, function, and connectivity.
We mainly encourage contributions that move beyond associative findings to elucidate causal and mechanistic links between gut microbiota signals and neurodevelopmental trajectories, with a focus on neuroscience. Topics of interest include microbiota-derived metabolites, immune and inflammatory mediators, and neuroendocrine signaling, especially when dysbiosis or pathogenic mechanisms are linked to neural outcomes. Studies addressing sensitive periods of brain vulnerability, gut–brain axis signaling at the neural and molecular level, and mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodivergent phenotypes are especially welcome.
Original Research, as well as narrative and systematic reviews, are invited. Integrative approaches that position the microbiota within the broader exposome—such as nutrition, environmental exposures, and early-life events—are encouraged when they provide mechanistic insight into neural development and functional outcomes. By framing gut microbiota–brain interactions in the context of neurodevelopmental diversity and dysbiosis/pathogenic mechanisms, this Special Issue aims to advance a neuroscience-centered understanding of brain development, variability, and plasticity, fostering novel perspectives for early intervention, prevention strategies, and personalized neurodevelopmental medicine.
Prof. Amedeo Amedei, Dr. Elena Niccolai and Prof. Giovanna Traina
Guest Editors
Keywords
- neurodevelopment
- microbiome
- gut–brain axis
- neural circuit formation
- neuroplasticity
- glial function
- microbiome-derived metabolites
Manuscript Submission Information
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