The “Neurodegenerative Diseases” Section aims to publish articles on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, multiple system atrophy, prion diseases, etc.

As all of the articles published in our journal are of an open access format, you have free and unlimited access to the full text. We welcome you to read our most highly cited papers published in 2021 listed below:

1. “Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers of Alzheimer’s Disease: Current Evidence and Future Perspectives”
by Donovan A. McGrowder, Fabian Miller, Kurt Vaz, Chukwuemeka Nwokocha, Cameil Wilson-Clarke, Melisa Anderson-Cross, Jabari Brown, Lennox Anderson-Jackson, Lowen Williams, Lyndon Latore et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 215; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020215
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/215

2. “One Year Trajectory of Caregiver Burden in Parkinson’s Disease and Analysis of Gender-Specific Aspects”
by Martin Klietz, Hannah von Eichel, Theresa Schnur, Selma Staege, Günter U. Höglinger, Florian Wegner and Stephanie Stiel
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 295; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030295
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/295

3. “Informal Caregiving in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS): A High Caregiver Burden and Drastic Consequences on Caregivers’ Lives”
by Pavel Schischlevskij, Isabell Cordts, René Günther, Benjamin Stolte, Daniel Zeller, Carsten Schröter, Ute Weyen, Martin Regensburger, Joachim Wolf, Ilka Schneider et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(6), 748; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060748
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/748

4. “Cerebrospinal Fluid α-Synuclein Species in Cognitive and Movements Disorders”
by Vasilios C. Constantinides, Nour K. Majbour, George P. Paraskevas, Ilham Abdi, Bared Safieh-Garabedian, Leonidas Stefanis, Omar M. El-Agnaf and Elisabeth Kapaki
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010119
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/119

5. “Blood Biomarkers in Frontotemporal Dementia: Review and Meta-Analysis”
by Sofia Ntymenou, Ioanna Tsantzali, Theodosis Kalamatianos, Konstantinos I. Voumvourakis, Elisabeth Kapaki, Georgios Tsivgoulis, George Stranjalis and George P. Paraskevas
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 244; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020244
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/244

6. “Proteomic Profile of Saliva in Parkinson’s Disease Patients: A Proof of Concept Study”
by Monika Figura, Ewa Sitkiewicz, Bianka Świderska, Łukasz Milanowski, Stanisław Szlufik, Dariusz Koziorowski and Andrzej Friedman
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 661; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050661
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/661

7. “Relationship Satisfaction in People with Parkinson’s Disease and Their Caregivers: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study”
by Johanne Heine, Hannah von Eichel, Selma Staege, Günter U. Höglinger, Florian Wegner and Martin Klietz
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(6), 822; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060822
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/822

8. “Informal Caregivers in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Multi-Centre, Exploratory Study of Burden and Difficulties”
by Éilís Conroy, Polly Kennedy, Mark Heverin, Iracema Leroi, Emily Mayberry, Anita Beelen, Theocharis Stavroulakis, Leonard H. van den Berg, Christopher J. McDermott, Orla Hardiman et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1094; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081094
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1094

9. “Understanding the Modulatory Effects of Cannabidiol on Alzheimer’s Disease”
by Yinyi Xiong and Chae-Seok Lim
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1211; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091211
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1211

10. “Analysis of Transition of Patients with Parkinson’s Disease into Institutional Care: A Retrospective Pilot Study”
by Ida Jensen, Emily Lescher, Stephanie Stiel, Florian Wegner, Günter Höglinger and Martin Klietz
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1470; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111470
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1470

11. “Connection Lost, MAM: Errors in ER–Mitochondria Connections in Neurodegenerative Diseases”
by Ashu Johri and Abhishek Chandra
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1437; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111437
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1437

12. “Another Perspective on Huntington’s Disease: Disease Burden in Family Members and Pre-Manifest HD When Compared to Genotype-Negative Participants from ENROLL-HD”
by Jannis Achenbach and Carsten Saft
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(12), 1621; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11121621
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/12/1621

13. “Predicting Conversion from MCI to AD Combining Multi-Modality Data and Based on Molecular Subtype”
by Hai-Tao Li, Shao-Xun Yuan, Jian-Sheng Wu, Yu Gu and Xiao Sun
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(6), 674; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060674
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/674

14. “Non-Immersive Virtual Reality to Improve Balance and Reduce Risk of Falls in People Diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease: A Systematic Review”
by Héctor García-López, Esteban Obrero-Gaitán, Adelaida María Castro-Sánchez, Inmaculada Carmen Lara-Palomo, Francisco Antonio Nieto-Escamez and Irene Cortés-Pérez
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1435; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111435
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1435

15. “A New NF-κB Inhibitor, MEDS-23, Reduces the Severity of Adverse Post-Ischemic Stroke Outcomes in Rats”
by Elina Rubin, Agnese C. Pippione, Matthew Boyko, Giacomo Einaudi, Stefano Sainas, Massimo Collino, Carlo Cifani, Marco L. Lolli, Naim Abu-Freha, Jacob Kaplanski et al.
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(1), 35; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12010035
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/12/1/35

16. “Genotyping and Plasma/Cerebrospinal Fluid Profiling of a Cohort of Frontotemporal Dementia–Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Patients”
by Mara Bourbouli, George P. Paraskevas, Mihail Rentzos, Lambros Mathioudakis, Vasiliki Zouvelou, Anastasia Bougea, Athanasios Tychalas, Vasilios K. Kimiskidis, Vasilios Constantinides, Spiros Zafeiris et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1239; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091239
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1239

17. “Caring for a Relative with Dementia: Determinants and Gender Differences of Caregiver Burden in the Rural Setting”
by Dagmar Schaffler-Schaden, Simon Krutter, Alexander Seymer, Roland Eßl-Maurer, Maria Flamm and Jürgen Osterbrink
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1511; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111511
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1511

18. “Unlike Brief Inhibition of Microglia Proliferation after Spinal Cord Injury, Long-Term Treatment Does Not Improve Motor Recovery”
by Gaëtan Poulen, Sylvain Bartolami, Harun N. Noristani, Florence E. Perrin and Yannick N. Gerber
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(12), 1643; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11121643
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/12/1643

19. “Psychological Impact of Parkinson Disease Delusions on Spouse Caregivers: A Qualitative Study”
by Caroline J. Deutsch, Noelle Robertson and Janis M. Miyasaki
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 871; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070871
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/871

20. “Early Spatial Memory Impairment in a Double Transgenic Model of Alzheimer’s Disease TgF-344 AD”
by Stephanie L. Proskauer Pena, Konstantinos Mallouppas, Andre M. G. Oliveira, Frantisek Zitricky, Athira Nataraj and Karel Jezek
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(10), 1300; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11101300
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/10/1300

The mission of the “Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience” Section is to publish cutting-edge original articles and critical reviews on the molecular and cellular basis of neurological disorders. In particular, the journal covers all aspects of molecular and cellular neuroscience, from genetic analyses of human populations to tissue culture and animal models of neurological disorders. Coverage includes experimental analyses of molecular and cellular events underpinning both developmental and adult plasticity mechanisms of the normal nervous system and occurring as a consequence of neurological dysfunction and in neuronal degeneration and repair.

As all of the articles published in our journal are of an open access format, you have free and unlimited access to the full text. We welcome you to read our most highly cited papers published in 2021 listed below:

1. “The Participation of Microglia in Neurogenesis: A Review”
by Diego R. Pérez-Rodríguez, Idoia Blanco-Luquin and Maite Mendioroz
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 658; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050658
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/658

2. “Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS): The Repeated Bout Effect and Chemotherapy-Induced Axonopathy May Help Explain the Dying-Back Mechanism in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Other Neurodegenerative Diseases”
by Balázs Sonkodi
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 108; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010108
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/108

3. “Sex Differences in Dopamine Receptors and Relevance to Neuropsychiatric Disorders”
by Olivia O. F. Williams, Madeleine Coppolino, Susan R. George and Melissa L. Perreault
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1199; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091199
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1199

4. “TREM2 Regulates High Glucose-Induced Microglial Inflammation via the NLRP3 Signaling Pathway”
by Yuan Li, Weihong Long, Menghan Gao, Fangtai Jiao, Zecai Chen, Mingyuan Liu and Lu Yu
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 896; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070896
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/896

5. “5-Aminoisoquinolinone, a PARP-1 Inhibitor, Ameliorates Immune Abnormalities through Upregulation of Anti-Inflammatory and Downregulation of Inflammatory Parameters in T Cells of BTBR Mouse Model of Autism”
by Khaled Alhosaini, Mushtaq A. Ansari, Ahmed Nadeem, Saleh A. Bakheet, Sabry M. Attia, Khalid Alhazzani, Thamer H. Albekairi, Haneen A. Al-Mazroua, Hafiz M. Mahmood and Sheikh F. Ahmad
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 249; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020249
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/249

6. “The Current Role of Dexmedetomidine as Neuroprotective Agent: An Updated Review”
by Zaara Liaquat, Xiaoying Xu, Prince Last Mudenda Zilundu, Rao Fu and Lihua Zhou
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 846; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070846
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/846

7. “Modelling Parkinson’s Disease: iPSCs towards Better Understanding of Human Pathology”
by Sahar Avazzadeh, Jara Maria Baena, Cameron Keighron, Yajaira Feller-Sanchez and Leo R. Quinlan
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 373; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030373
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/373

8. “Coenzyme a Biochemistry: From Neurodevelopment to Neurodegeneration”
by Luca Mignani, Barbara Gnutti, Daniela Zizioli and Dario Finazzi
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1031; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081031
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1031

9. “Role of Vitamin E and the Orexin System in Neuroprotection”
by Maria Ester La Torre, Ines Villano, Marcellino Monda, Antonietta Messina, Giuseppe Cibelli, Anna Valenzano, Daniela Pisanelli, Maria Antonietta Panaro, Nicola Tartaglia, Antonio Ambrosi et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1098; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081098
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1098

10. “Virtual Reality (VR)-Based Environmental Enrichment in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Mild Dementia”
by Waleed Riaz, Zain Yar Khan, Ali Jawaid and Suleman Shahid
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1103; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081103
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1103

11. “Exosomes as Emerging Biomarker Tools in Neurodegenerative and Neuropsychiatric Disorders—A Proteomics Perspective”
by Boby Mathew, M. Shahid Mansuri, Kenneth R. Williams and Angus C. Nairn
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 258; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020258
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/258

12. “Oxidative Stress and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Rat Offspring with Intrauterine Growth Restriction Induced by Reduced Uterine Perfusion”
by Marcelo E. Rains, Colin B. Muncie, Yi Pang, Lir-Wan Fan, Lu-Tai Tien and Norma B. Ojeda
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 78; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010078
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/78

13. “CSF Secretion Is Not Altered by NKCC1 Nor TRPV4 Antagonism in Healthy Rats”
by Steven W. Bothwell, Daniel Omileke, Adjanie Patabendige and Neil J. Spratt
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1117; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091117
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1117

14. “Prominent and Regressive Brain Developmental Disorders Associated with Nance-Horan Syndrome”
by Celeste Casto, Valeria Dipasquale, Ida Ceravolo, Antonella Gambadauro, Emanuela Aliberto, Karol Galletta, Francesca Granata, Giorgia Ceravolo, Emanuela Falzia, Antonella Riva et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1150; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091150
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1150

15. “Searching the Dark Genome for Alzheimer’s Disease Risk Variants”
by Rachel Raybould and Rebecca Sims
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 332; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030332
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/332

16. “Against the Resilience of High-Grade Gliomas: The Immunotherapeutic Approach (Part I)”
by Alice Giotta Lucifero and Sabino Luzzi
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 386; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030386
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/386

17. “Against the Resilience of High-Grade Gliomas: Gene Therapies (Part II)”
by Alice Giotta Lucifero and Sabino Luzzi
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 976; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11080976
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/976

18. “Development and Validation of a Long-Term 3D Glioblastoma Cell Culture in Alginate Microfibers as a Novel Bio-Mimicking Model System for Preclinical Drug Testing”
by Miodrag Dragoj, Jasmina Stojkovska, Tijana Stanković, Jelena Dinić, Ana Podolski-Renić, Bojana Obradović and Milica Pešić
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1025; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081025
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1025

19. “Shared Genetic Background between Parkinson’s Disease and Schizophrenia: A Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization Study”
by Kiwon Kim, Soyeon Kim, Woojae Myung, Injeong Shim, Hyewon Lee, Beomsu Kim, Sung Kweon Cho, Joohyun Yoon, Doh Kwan Kim and Hong-Hee Won
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1042; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081042
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1042

20. “Neuroprotective Potential of Mild Uncoupling in Mitochondria. Pros and Cons”
by Dmitry B. Zorov, Nadezda V. Andrianova, Valentina A. Babenko, Irina B. Pevzner, Vasily A. Popkov, Savva D. Zorov, Ljubava D. Zorova, Egor Yu. Plotnikov, Gennady T. Sukhikh and Denis N. Silachev
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1050; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081050
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/105

Conference: ATS (American Thoracic Society) Conference 2023
Date: 21–23 May 2023
Location: Washington DC, USA

MDPI will be attending ATS 2023 as an exhibitor; we welcome researchers from different backgrounds to visit and share their latest ideas with us.

This conference has been organized by the American Thoracic Society, and it will showcase the latest advances and discoveries in respiratory science, patient care and global respiratory health. At the conference, specialists will share and discuss the latest research and its applications to clinical, basic, and translational science in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• JCM;
• Medicina;
• Clinics and Practice;
• JPM;
• Cancers;
• Medicines;
• Healthcare;
• Metabolites;
• Children;
• Brain Sciences.

If you are planning to attend this conference, please do not hesitate to talk with us online. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person at booth #2606, and answering any questions that you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://conference.thoracic.org/.

The “Developmental Neuroscience” Section aims to publish articles identifying the mechanisms of neurodevelopmental processes, both normal and causing aberrant development leading to neurological disorders, from gestation through adolescence that set the foundation of the adult configuration. The scope of this Section includes a broad multidisciplinary approach to understanding clinical and basic aspects of neurodevelopment; as such, behavioral, cognitive, molecular, genetic, epigenetic, and imaging studies are particularly welcome.

As all of the articles published in our journal are of an open access format, readers have free and unlimited access to the full text. We welcome you to read our most highly cited papers published in 2021, listed below:

1. “Psychological Impact of COVID-19 Outbreak on Families of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Typically Developing Peers: An Online Survey”
by Annalisa Levante, Serena Petrocchi, Federica Bianco, Ilaria Castelli, Costanza Colombi, Roberto Keller, Antonio Narzisi, Gabriele Masi and Flavia Lecciso
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(6), 808; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070900
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/808

2. “Effects of COVID-19 Lockdown on the Emotional and Behavioral Profiles of Preschool Italian Children with and without Familial Risk for Neurodevelopmental Disorders”
by Chiara Cantiani, Chiara Dondena, Elena Capelli, Elena M. Riboldi, Massimo Molteni and Valentina Riva
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(4), 477; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11040477
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/4/477

3. “A Neurodevelopment Approach for a Transitional Model of Early Onset Schizophrenia”
by Domenico De Berardis, Sergio De Filippis, Gabriele Masi, Stefano Vicari and Alessandro Zuddas
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 275; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020275
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/275

4. “Unveiling the Mysteries of Dyslexia—Lessons Learned from the Prospective Jyväskylä Longitudinal Study of Dyslexia”
by Kaisa Lohvansuu, Minna Torppa, Timo Ahonen, Kenneth Eklund, Jarmo A. Hämäläinen, Paavo H. T. Leppänen and Heikki Lyytinen
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(4), 427; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11040427
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/4/427

5. “Effects of Cognitive Training Programs on Executive Function in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review”
by Angela Pasqualotto, Noemi Mazzoni, Arianna Bentenuto, Anna Mulè, Francesco Benso and Paola Venuti
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(10), 1280; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11101280
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/10/1280

6. “Molecular Genetics of Microcephaly Primary Hereditary: An Overview”
by Nikistratos Siskos, Electra Stylianopoulou, Georgios Skavdis and Maria E. Grigoriou
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 581; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050581
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/581

7. “Developmental Language Disorder and Autism: Commonalities and Differences on Language”
by Natasa Georgiou and George Spanoudis
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 589; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050589
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/589

8. “A Systematic Review on the Impact of the Social Confinement on People with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Their Caregivers during the COVID-19 Pandemic”
by Yurena Alonso-Esteban, María Fernanda López-Ramón, Verónica Moreno-Campos, Esperanza Navarro-Pardo and Francisco Alcantud-Marín
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1389; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111389
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1389

9. “Evolution of the Autism Literature and the Influence of Parents: A Scientific Mapping in Web of Science”
by Noemí Carmona-Serrano, Antonio-José Moreno-Guerrero, José-Antonio Marín-Marín and Jesús López-Belmonte
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 74; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010074
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/74

10. “Exome Sequencing in 200 Intellectual Disability/Autistic Patients: New Candidates and Atypical Presentations”
by Floriana Valentino, Lucia Pia Bruno, Gabriella Doddato, Annarita Giliberti, Rossella Tita, Sara Resciniti, Chiara Fallerini, Mirella Bruttini, Caterina Lo Rizzo, Maria Antonietta Mencarelli et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 936; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070936
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/936

11. “Outcome of Community-Based Early Intervention and Rehabilitation for Children with Cerebral Palsy in Rural Bangladesh: A Quasi-Experimental Study”
by Tasneem Karim, Mohammad Muhit, Israt Jahan, Claire Galea, Catherine Morgan, Hayley Smithers-Sheedy, Nadia Badawi and Gulam Khandaker
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1189; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091189
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1189

12. “Parental Stress and Disability in Offspring: A Snapshot during the COVID-19 Pandemic”
by Martina Siracusano, Assia Riccioni, Leonardo Emberti Gialloreti, Eugenia Segatori, Lucrezia Arturi, Michelangelo Vasta, Maria Cristina Porfirio, Monica Terribili, Cinzia Galasso and Luigi Mazzone
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1040; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081040
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1040

13. “Predictors of Rehabilitation Service Utilisation among Children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC): Findings from the Global LMIC CP Register”
by Mahmudul Hassan Al Imam, Israt Jahan, Mohammad Muhit, Denny Hardianto, Francis Laryea, Amir Banjara Chhetri, Hayley Smithers-Sheedy, Sarah McIntyre, Nadia Badawi and Gulam Khandaker
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 848; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070848
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/848

14. “Age of Diagnosis, Fidelity and Acceptability of an Early Diagnosis Clinic for Cerebral Palsy: A Single Site Implementation Study”
by Anna te Velde, Esther Tantsis, Iona Novak, Nadia Badawi, Jane Berry, Prue Golland, Johanna Korkalainen, Robyn McMurdo, Ronda Shehata and Catherine Morgan
Brain Sci. 2022, 11(8), 1074; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081074
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1074

15. “A Multidisciplinary Telerehabilitation Approach for Supporting Social Interaction in Autism Spectrum Disorder Families: An Italian Digital Platform in Response to COVID-19”
by Ersilia Vallefuoco, Giulia Purpura, Giovanna Gison, Andrea Bonifacio, Luca Tagliabue, Fiorenza Broggi, Goffredo Scuccimarra, Alessandro Pepino and Renata Nacinovich
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1404; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111404
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1404

16. “Parenting Stress and Social Style in Mothers and Fathers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Cross-Cultural Investigation in Italy and Japan”
by Michele Giannotti, Sophia Marlene Bonatti, Sanae Tanaka, Haruyuki Kojima and Simona de Falco
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1419; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111419
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1419

17. “Dynamic Functional Network Connectivity Changes Associated with fMRI Neurofeedback of Right Premotor Cortex”
by Zhiying Long, Zhaoxi Guo, Zhitao Guo, Hang Zhang and Li Yao
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 582; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050582
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/582

18. “Executive Function, Working Memory, and Verbal Fluency in Relation to Non-Verbal Intelligence in Greek-Speaking School-Age Children with Developmental Language Disorder”
by Asimina M. Ralli, Elisavet Chrysochoou, Petros Roussos, Kleopatra Diakogiorgi, Panagiota Dimitropoulou and Diamanto Filippatou
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 604; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050604
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/604

19. “Savouring as an Intervention to Decrease Negative Affect in Anxious Mothers of Children with Autism and Neurotypical Children”
by Ariel S. Pereira, Atiqah Azhari, Chloe A. Hong, Gerin E. Gaskin, Jessica L. Borelli and Gianluca Esposito
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 652; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050652
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/652

20. “Caregivers’ Burden of School-Aged Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Implications for Family-Centred Care”
by Giulia Purpura, Luca Tagliabue, Stefania Petri, Francesco Cerroni, Andrea Mazzarini and Renata Nacinovich
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 875; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070875
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/875

The “Behavioral Neuroscience” Section reports advances in our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying behavior. This Section publishes articles with major insights into the neural mechanisms of animal and human behavior, from early development to senescence, and welcomes articles studying the interplay between behavior and its neurobiological basis, from behavioral to neurophysiological and neuroimaging studies.

As all of the articles published in our journal are of an open access format, you have free and unlimited access to the full text. We welcome you to read our most highly cited papers published in 2021 listed below:

1. “Quantitative Evaluation of Task-Induced Neurological Outcome after Stroke”
by Iqram Hussain and Se-Jin Park
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 900; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070900
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/900

2. “Biological Functions of Rat Ultrasonic Vocalizations, Arousal Mechanisms, and Call Initiation”
by Stefan M Brudzynski
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 605; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050605
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/605

3. “Theoretical Models of Consciousness: A Scoping Review”
by Davide Sattin, Francesca Giulia Magnani, Laura Bartesaghi, Milena Caputo, Andrea Veronica Fittipaldo, Martina Cacciatore, Mario Picozzi and Matilde Leonardi
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 535; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050535
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/535

4. “The Differential Impact of COVID-19 Lockdown on Sleep Quality, Insomnia, Depression, Stress, and Anxiety among Late Adolescents and Elderly in Italy”
by Giulia Amicucci, Federico Salfi, Aurora D’Atri, Lorenzo Viselli and Michele Ferrara
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(10), 1336; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11101336
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/10/1336

5. “Safinamide Improves Non-Motor Symptoms Burden in Parkinson’s Disease: An Open-Label Prospective Study”
by Diego Santos García, Carmen Labandeira Guerra, Rosa Yáñez Baña, Maria Icíar Cimas Hernando, Iria Cabo López, Jose Manuel Paz Gonález, Maria Gemma Alonso Losada, María José González Palmás and Cristina Martínez Miró
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 316; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030316
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/316

6. “Opposing Association of Situational and Chronic Loneliness with Interpersonal Distance”
by Nira Saporta, Dirk Scheele, Jana Lieberz, Fine Stuhr-Wulff, René Hurlemann and Simone G. Shamay-Tsoory
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1135; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091135
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1135

7. “From Affordances to Abstract Words: The Flexibility of Sensorimotor Grounding”
by Claudia Mazzuca, Chiara Fini, Arthur Henri Michalland, Ilenia Falcinelli, Federico Da Rold, Luca Tummolini and Anna M. Borghi
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(10), 1304; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11101304
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/10/1304

8. “Differential Alterations in Resting State Functional Connectivity Associated with Depressive Symptoms and Early Life Adversity”
by Eleonora Fadel, Heinz Boeker, Matti Gaertner, Andre Richter, Birgit Kleim, Erich Seifritz, Simone Grimm and Laura M. Wade-Bohleber
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(5), 591; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11050591
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/591

9. “Changes in Sleep Patterns and Disorders in Children and Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders and Autism Spectrum Disorders during the COVID-19 Lockdown”
by Oliviero Bruni, Maria Breda, Raffaele Ferri and Maria Grazia Melegari
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1139; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091139
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1139

10. “Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Cognitive Decline: A Review of Potential Vulnerability and Protective Factors”
by Julie Legault, Cynthia Thompson, Marie-Ève Martineau-Dussault, Claire André, Andrée-Ann Baril, Guillermo Martinez Villar, Julie Carrier and Nadia Gosselin
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(6), 706; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060706
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/706

11. “Neurophysiological Aspects of REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD): A Narrative Review”
by Michela Figorilli, Giuseppe Lanza, Patrizia Congiu, Rosamaria Lecca, Elisa Casaglia, Maria P. Mogavero, Monica Puligheddu and Raffaele Ferri
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(12), 1588; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11121588
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/12/1588

12. “Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Covert Versus Overt Processing of Happy, Fearful and Sad Facial Expressions”
by Antonio Maffei, Jennifer Goertzen, Fern Jaspers-Fayer, Killian Kleffner, Paola Sessa and Mario Liotti
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(7), 942; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070942
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/7/942

13. “Sleep in Normal Aging, Homeostatic and Circadian Regulation and Vulnerability to Sleep Deprivation”
by Jacques Taillard, Claude Gronfier, Stéphanie Bioulac, Pierre Philip and Patricia Sagaspe
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(8), 1003; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081003
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1003

14. “Biological and Acoustic Sex Differences in Rat Ultrasonic Vocalization”
by Charles Lenell, Courtney K. Broadfoot, Nicole E. Schaen-Heacock and Michelle R. Ciucci
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(4), 459; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11040459
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/4/459

15. “Effects of a Cognitive-Motor Training on Anticipatory Brain Functions and Sport Performance in Semi-Elite Basketball Players”
by Stefania Lucia, Valentina Bianco, Luca Boccacci and Francesco Di Russo
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(1), 68; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12010068
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/12/1/68

16. “Adjunctive Approaches to Aphasia Rehabilitation: A Review on Efficacy and Safety”
by Chiara Picano, Agnese Quadrini, Francesca Pisano and Paola Marangolo
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010041
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/41

17. “Persistence of the Effects of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Sleep: A Longitudinal Study”
by Maurizio Gorgoni, Serena Scarpelli, Anastasia Mangiaruga, Valentina Alfonsi, Maria R. Bonsignore, Francesco Fanfulla, Luigi Ferini-Strambi, Lino Nobili, Giuseppe Plazzi, Luigi De Gennaro et al.
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1520; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111520
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1520

18. “Creating a Theoretical Framework to Underpin Discourse Assessment and Intervention in Aphasia”
by Lucy Dipper, Jane Marshall, Mary Boyle, Deborah Hersh, Nicola Botting and Madeline Cruice
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 183; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020183
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/183

19. “Phytochemical Analysis, In Vitro Anticholinesterase, Antioxidant Activity and In Vivo Nootropic Effect of Ferula ammoniacum (Dorema ammoniacum) D. Don. in Scopolamine-Induced Memory Impairment in Mice”
by Nausheen Nazir, Mohammad Nisar, Muhammad Zahoor, Faheem Uddin, Saeed Ullah, Riaz Ullah, Siddique Akber Ansari, Hafiz Majid Mahmood, Ahmed Bari and Abdulrehman Alobaid
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 259; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020259
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/259

20. “The Effect of Maternal Immune Activation on Social Play-Induced Ultrasonic Vocalization in Rats”
by Kinga Gzielo, Agnieszka Potasiewicz, Ewa Litwa, Diana Piotrowska, Piotr Popik and Agnieszka Nikiforuk
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 344; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030344
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/344

On 7 April 2023—World Health Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) will observe its 75th anniversary. In 1948, countries of the world came together and founded the WHO to promote health, keep the world safe, and serve the vulnerable, so that everyone, everywhere, can attain the highest level of health and well-being. The WHO’s 75th anniversary is an opportunity to look back at public health successes that have improved quality of life over the last seven decades. It is also an opportunity to motivate action to tackle the health challenges of today and tomorrow. In order to encourage everyone to understand health and pay attention to health, we have also curated a list of publications on topics related to universal health coverage, healthy diet, and mental health. We also want to remind everyone that all research published in MDPI journals is available in an open access format, allowing practitioners, policy makers, and people around the world to access the latest scientific knowledge to build upon and share. Although we still have a long way to go to achieve universal health, this day also provides an opportunity to celebrate the progress made and inspire further action toward a more just and equitable world. Join us on a journey at MDPI to achieve Health for All.

• The Antioxidant Potential of the Mediterranean Diet as a Predictor of Weight Loss after a Very Low-Calorie Ketogenic Diet (VLCKD) in Women with Overweight and Obesity

  Antioxidants 2023, 12(1), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox12010018

• Effectiveness of Non-Contact Dietary Coaching in Adults with Diabetes or Prediabetes Using a Continuous Glucose Monitoring Device: A Randomized Controlled Trial

  Healthcare 2023, 11(2), 252; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11020252

• The Association between Advanced Liver Fibrosis and Mortality Is Modified by Dietary Quality among Korean Adults: Results from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey with Mortality Data

  Nutrients 2023, 15(6), 1501; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15061501

• Physical Exercise and Diet: Regulation of Gut Microbiota to Prevent and Treat Metabolic Disorders to Maintain Health

  Nutrients 2023, 15(6), 1539; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15061539

• Modelling and Prediction of the Spread of COVID-19 in Cameroon and Assessing the Governmental Measures (March–September 2020)

  COVID 2021, 1(3), 622-644; https://doi.org/10.3390/covid1030052

• SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Health Care Workers of Trieste (North-Eastern Italy), 1 October 2020–7 February 2022: Occupational Risk and the Impact of the Omicron Variant

  Viruses 2022, 14(8), 1663; https://doi.org/10.3390/v14081663

• Vaccination Coverage during Childhood and Adolescence among Undergraduate Health Science Students in Greece

  Children 2022, 9(10), 1553; https://doi.org/10.3390/children9101553

• Determinants of Equity in Coverage of Measles-Containing Vaccines in Wales, UK, during the Elimination Era

  Vaccines 2023, 11(3), 680; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines11030680

• Sex Differences in Substance Use, Prevalence, Pharmacological Therapy, and Mental Health in Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

  Brain Sci. 2022, 12(5), 590; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12050590

• Impact on Students of the Act–Belong–Commit Mentally Healthy Schools Framework

  Children 2023, 10(3), 548; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10030548

• Psychological Health and Drugs: Data-Driven Discovery of Causes, Treatments, Effects, and Abuses

  Toxics 2023, 11(3), 287; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11030287

• Characterizing Touch Discrimination Impairment from Pooled Stroke Samples Using the Tactile Discrimination Test: Updated Criteria for Interpretation and Brief Test Version for Use in Clinical Practice Settings

  Brain Sci. 2023, 13(4), 533; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13040533

In order to commemorate World Autism Awareness Day 2023, MDPI is launching a special webinar to encourage researchers to join together, take action, and highlight how the exchange of findings facilitates efforts to raise awareness about autism.

Over the past decade, major progress has been made towards increasing access to education generally, as well as for persons with autism specifically. 

The webinar aims to encourage connections and collaboration among autism researchers and the international Open Access community to help improve the lives of those with autism.

We are very much looking forward to seeing you at the MDPI World Autism Awareness Day Webinar 2023.

Conference Secretariat: Ms. Shun Li 
Date and time: 2 April 2023, 11:00 p.m. CEST
Register now for free:

This is a free webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the webinar. Registrations with academic institutional email addresses will be prioritized.

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will let you know when the recording is available to watch.

Webinar Chairs and Keynote Speakers:

• Dr. James Brasic, Section of High Resolution Brain Positron Emission Tomography Imaging, Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, The Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA, Section Board Member of Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425), Guest Editor of IJMS (ISSN: 1422-0067)
• Dr. Kazuhito Toyooka, Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, 2900 Queen Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19129, USA, Section Board Member of Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425), Guest Editor of IJMS (ISSN: 1422-0067)
• Dr. Richard E. Frye, Autism Discovery and Treatment Foundation, Phoenix AZ, Editorial Board Member of JPM (ISSN: 2075-4426)

Program:

Relevant Special Issues:

Behavioral Sciences
"Training and Education in Children with Autism"
Edited by: Alessandro Frolli, Angelo Rega and Maria Carla Ricci
Submission deadline: 30 June 2023

Biomolecules
"Glutamate and Glutamate Receptors in Health and Diseases"
Edited by: Jolanta H. Kotlińska and Marta Marszalek-Grabska
Submission deadline: 30 September 2023

Brain Sciences
"Sexuality in Autism Spectrum Disorders: Past, Present and Innovative Perspectives"
Edited by: Rocco Salvatore Calabrò and Giovanni Pioggia
Submission deadline: 25 July 2023

Cells
"Molecular Genetics of Neuropsychiatric Diseases"
Edited by: Yingwei Mao and Xin Tang
Submission deadline: 8 March 2024

CIMB
"Neuropathology: From Molecular Mechanisms to Therapeutic Solutions"
Edited by: Wenqiang Fan and Xingping Qin
Submission deadline: 31 July 2023

Disabilities
"Technology for People with Disabilities: Opportunities and Challenges"
Edited by: Angelo Rega and Alessandro Frolli
Submission deadline: 30 June 2023

Genes
"Genes, Phenotypes and Molecular Mechanisms for Personalized Medicine in Autism"
Edited by: M. E. Suzanne Lewis
Submission deadline: 20 June 2023

IJERPH
"Research on Autism in Children"
Edited by: Andrey Vyshedskiy
Submission deadline: 31 August 2023

JPM
"A Personalized Medicine Approach to the Diagnosis and Management of Autism Spectrum Disorder: Beyond Genetic Syndromes"
Edited by: Richard E. Frye, Richard G. Boles, Daniel Rossignol and Shannon Rose
Submission deadline: 10 June 2023

Life
"Steroid Hormones, Oxidative Stress, Mitochondrial Dysfunction Unsolving the Enigma of Autism?"
Edited by: Benedikt Andreas Gasser and Markus G. Mohaupt
Submission deadline:31 July 2023

Medicina
"Atypical Autism: Causes, Diagnosis, and Current Treatment"
Edited by: Rekha Jagadapillai
Submission deadline: 15 October 2023

Molecules
"Bioactive Lipids and Cannabinoids, Key Players in Neuropsychiatric Disorders and Beyond"
Edited by: Giuseppe Di Giovanni and Mauro Maccarrone
Submission deadline: 31 August 2023

NeuroSci
"Disorders of Cognition and Behavior"
Edited by: Satwant Kumar
Submission deadline: 30 April 2023

Nutrients
"Effects of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids on Brain Metabolism and Neurodevelopment"
Edited by: Dhavamani Sugasini
Submission deadline: 20 July 2023

Pathophysiology
"Neurodegenerative Diseases: Advances in Understanding Mechanisms and Development of Therapies"
Edited by: Shao-bin Wang and Zhongshan Cheng
Submission deadline: 30 June 2023

Pharmaceuticals
"Drug Treatment For Autism"
Edited by: Maryam Ardalan
Submission deadline: 31 May 2023

Sci
"Feature Papers—Multidisciplinary Sciences 2023"
Edited by: Claus Jacob and Ahmad Yaman Abdin
Submission deadline: 31 December 2023

Technologies
"Machine Learning Methods for Bio-Medical Image and Signal Processing: Recent Advances"
Edited by: Lipo Wang
Submission deadline: 15 November 2023

Toxics
"Association of Environmental Exposures with Mental and Cognitive Health"
Edited by: Hicran Altug, Tamara Schikowski and Rachel Tham
Submission deadline: 5 April 2023

The articles below have been selected as 2022 Issue Cover papers by the Editorial Office of Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425). These articles came from multiple fields within neuroscience, including hypnosis, Multiple Sclerosis, space perception, empathy, migraine, inhibition response, Schizophrenia, artificial neural network model, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Alzheimer’s Disease, aneurysms, depression. We hope these papers can provide insights and references for scholars in these fields.

The articles below have been selected as the 2021 Issue Cover papers by the Editorial Office of Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425). These articles came from multiple fields within the scope of neurosciences, including multiple sclerosis, neurodegenerative biomarkers, post-stroke motor recovery, autism, nTMS application, nutrition and cognition, COVID-19 effect, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), muscle motor performance, and music’s effect on the brain. We hope they can provide insights and references for scholars in these fields.

As a leading open access publisher, MDPI provides scholars with a high-quality and rich academic exchange platform by continuously expanding into new and exciting research areas.

In December 2022, MDPI launched five new journals, covering multiple subjects such as life sciences, biology, medicine and pharmacology, social sciences and humanities. These new journals are being edited by established scholars across the world.

If you are interested in creating more open access journals with us to publish cutting-edge research, please send your journal proposal application to newjournal-committee@mdpi.com.

MDPI is pleased to announce that we now display the co-authors’ email addresses in addition to the corresponding author’s email address on the webpage of published papers, protected by Captcha. For more information about this change, please visit the journal’s instructions for authors page. 

We believe this change will facilitate academic discussions and advance our cause of open science and research. The corresponding authors are responsible for communicating with their co-authors and indicating in our system (https://susy.mdpi.com/) if co-authors would prefer for their email addresses not to be displayed.

On 9 February 2023, Clarivate, a global leader in providing trusted insights and analytics, added the Preprint Citation Index to the Web of Science platform, streamlining the research process by allowing researchers to locate and link to preprints alongside other trusted content in the database.

The Preprint Citation Index will act as a bridge to connect cutting-edge preprints with peer-reviewed journal articles published within the Web of Science Core Collection. Alerts can be easily set to monitor new research across several repositories and authors will also be able to include preprints on their Web of Science Research Profile to more accurately display their various research outputs.

As of its launch, the Preprint Citation Index will provide nearly two million preprints from various repositories, including MDPI’s own Preprints.org.

MDPI's Preprints Platform – Preprints.org

To advance Open Science and the fast dissemination of research, MDPI offers researchers a free multidisciplinary preprint platform. Preprints.org accepts submissions from all research areas and offers authors high visibility, permanent archiving, article-level Metrics and immediately citable content by assigning a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) to all preprints.

During submission to any MDPI journal, authors have the option to share their research as a preprint. After an initial screening, the manuscript is available online in 48 hours or less. Once online, preprints can be downloaded, shared, commented on, and cited, providing authors maximum visibility.

We invite you to join the ranks of the over 100k researchers using Preprints.org and share your research.

For more information, please visit Preprints.org.

1. “Current Therapeutic Strategies for Glioblastoma”
   by Julien Rossignol, Bhairavi Srinageshwar and Gary L. Dunbar
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10010015
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/1/15
2. “Lemur Tyrosine Kinase 2 (LMTK2) Level Inversely Correlates with Phospho-Tau in Neuropathological Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease”
   by János Bencze, Máté Szarka, Viktor Bencs, Renáta Nóra Szabó, László V. Módis, Dag Aarsland and Tibor Hortobágyi
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(2), 68; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10020068
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/2/68
3. “Electroencephalogram (EEG) Alpha Power as a Marker of Visuospatial Attention Orienting and Suppression in Normoxia and Hypoxia. An Exploratory Study”
   by Alberto Zani, Clara Tumminelli and Alice Mado Proverbio
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(3), 140; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10030140
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/3/140
4. “Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals Abnormal Expression of Prion Disease Gene Pathway in Brains from Patients with Autism Spectrum Disorders”
   by Salvo Danilo Lombardo, Giuseppe Battaglia, Maria Cristina Petralia, Katia Mangano, Maria Sofia Basile, Valeria Bruno, Paolo Fagone, Rita Bella, Ferdinando Nicoletti and Eugenio Cavalli
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(4), 200; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10040200
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/4/200
5. “Effect of the Type and Number of Adverse Childhood Experiences and the Timing of Adverse Experiences on Clinical Outcomes in Individuals with Bipolar Disorder”
   by Young-Min Park, Tatyana Shekhtman and John R. Kelsoe
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(5), 254; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10050254
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/5/254
6. “Recent Advances in Antigen-Specific Immunotherapies for the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis”
   by Olga Kammona and Costas Kiparissides
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 333; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060333
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/333
7. “Neurodevelopmental Consequences of Pediatric Cancer and Its Treatment: The Role of Sleep”
   by Maria Paola Mogavero, Oliviero Bruni, Lourdes M. DelRosso and Raffaele Ferri
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(7), 411; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10070411
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/7/411
8. “Grammatical Comprehension in Italian Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder”
   by Jessica Barsotti, Gloria Mangani, Roberta Nencioli, Lucia Pfanner, Raffaella Tancredi, Angela Cosenza, Gianluca Sesso, Antonio Narzisi, Filippo Muratori, Paola Cipriani et al.
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(8), 510; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10080510
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/8/510
9. “Using Plasma Autoantibodies of Central Nervous System Proteins to Distinguish Veterans with Gulf War Illness from Healthy and Symptomatic Controls”
   by Mohamed B. Abou-Donia, Elizabeth S. Lapadula, Maxine H. Krengel, Emily Quinn, Jessica LeClair,
   Joseph Massaro, Lisa A. Conboy, Efi Kokkotou, Maria Abreu, Nancy G. Klimas et al.
   Brain Sci. 2020, 10(9), 610; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10090610
   Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/9/610
10. “Cognitive Training Deep Dive: The Impact of Child, Training Behavior and Environmental Factors within a Controlled Trial of Cogmed for Fragile X Syndrome”
    by Haleigh Scott, Danielle J. Harvey, Yueju Li, Yingratana A. McLennan, Cindy K. Johnston, Ryan Shickman, Joseph Piven, Julie B. Schweitzer and David Hessl
    Brain Sci. 2020, 10(10), 671; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10100671
    Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/10/671
11. “Pharmacological Modulators of Tau Aggregation and Spreading”
    by Antonio Dominguez-Meijide, Eftychia Vasili and Tiago Fleming Outeiro
    Brain Sci. 2020, 10(11), 858; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10110858
    Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/11/858
12. “Dysregulated Wnt Signalling in the Alzheimer’s Brain”
    by Nozie D. Aghaizu, Hanqing Jin and Paul J. Whiting
    Brain Sci. 2020, 10(12), 902; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10120902
    Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/12/902

We are pleased to announce the launch of a new initiative—the MDPI Special Issue Mentor Program.

This program will enable early career researchers (who must hold a Ph.D. in a related field) to experience editing a Special Issue in MDPI journals, under the mentorship of our experienced Editorial Board Members or other experienced scientists. The mentor program will provide an excellent opportunity for early career scientists to gain editorial experience, and to cultivate their ability to edit scientific research.

The mentee’s responsibilities include:

• Proposing a Special Issue title and assisting the mentor in preparing a summary (around 200–400 words) and 3–10 keywords describing the background, importance, and goal of the Issue;
• Writing a brief promotion plan for the Special Issue;
• Preparing a list of scholars who may be interested in the Issue and personally e-mailing invitations on behalf of Guest Editors;
• Writing an editorial for the online Special Issue together with the mentor.

The mentor’s responsibilities include:

• Conducting a final check before the Special Issue is published online;
• Performing editorial control of the Special Issue and quality control of the publications, both of which must be carried out in a timely manner;
• Providing suggestions to younger scholars if they have any doubts or concerns regarding submissions;
• Organizing video calls with young scholars and the Editorial Office regularly to discuss problems and improvement suggestions for the Special Issue;
• Making and submitting decisions regarding submissions with the assistance of mentees.

Certificates and awards:
After the Special Issue closes, the Editorial Office will provide official certificates for all the mentors and early career researchers.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please send your Special Issue proposal to the Editorial Office of a journal you choose, and we will discuss the process (i.e., mentor collaboration, Special Issue topic feasibility analysis, etc.) in further detail. The full list of MDPI journals is as follows: https://www.mdpi.com/about/journals.

In addition to the new Special Issue Mentor Program, we will continue to welcome all Special Issue proposals focusing on hot research topics.

MDPI has just become the first open access (OA) publisher to reach the milestone of one million articles published. That is one million articles freely available to all, to circulate and build upon! We are proud to share this special moment with the global scientific community.

This landmark has been reached thanks to the immeasurable support of more than 600,000 expert reviewers, 66,000 editorial board members and 6700 hard-working colleagues across MDPI’s global offices.

Within more than 25 years of publishing, our journals received 2.1 million manuscripts and generated 4.6 million peer review reports to get to one million papers published.

Reaching the milestone of one million articles published reinforces our mission to remove any existing barriers and to make scientific research accessible to all. Since its inception, MDPI’s goal has been to create reliable processes to make science open. This is a path towards facilitating the dissemination of novel insights in scientific communities.

Regular feedback from authors and reviewers shows that our service is greatly appreciated and needed. At the same time, the feedback helps us identify areas for further improvement.

As it stands, a significant share of published research findings remain closed access. More than half of the content published with the most well-known legacy publishers stays behind a paywall, and that is not including articles published in hybrid OA journals, or made available months or years after publication.

A new policy announced by the US administration in August 2022 requires that, as of January 2026, all US federally funded research be made freely and immediately available after publication. While the new policy does not mandate articles be published under an open access license, it is aligned with the open access movement in removing all barriers to research. Similarly, some of the most advanced research institutions in the world intend to have all funded research articles published in open access by 2025.

MDPI is proud to be the leading agent of the transition to open access.

"Thanks a Million" to all the contributors!

Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425) is recruiting Editors-in-Chief for the following three Sections:

• “Neuroscience of Pain”;
• “Neuro-Oncology”;
• “Neurotology and Neuro-ophthalmology”.

As a Section Editor-in-Chief, you would have the following responsibilities:

• Making decisions on whether a manuscript can be accepted or not based on the reports that we collect;
• Checking and approving potential Special Issues in the Section, suggesting special topics or editing a Special Issue on a topic related to your research interests when it is convenient for you;
• Recommending Section Board Members to join and contribute to editorial work;
• Promoting the journal and increasing its visibility at related academic conferences;
• Advising on journal development.

If you are interested in becoming a Section Editor-in-Chief for one of the three Sections of Brain Sciences, please send us your full academic CV and a short cover letter detailing your interest in and suitability for the position. If you would like to recommend potential candidates or request further information, please contact the Brain Sciences Editorial Office at brainsci@mdpi.com. We look forward to working with you in the future.

We are pleased to announce that the website of the MDPI Sustainability Foundation has been revamped! For the past couple of months, our UX UI team and front-end developers have been working hard to launch the website in time for the opening of the Sustainability Awards nominations.

The website is not the only thing that has had a remodeling. Indeed, the format of the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award (ESLA) has been updated. ESLA is now a competition open to individual researchers or start-ups founded by researchers under the age of 35. Nominee applications will go through 2 rounds of selection until the final 3 are decided. The finalists will then be invited to give pitch presentations during the Award Ceremony to win either first place (10,000 USD) or runner-up (2 x 5000 USD).

The World Sustainability Award, on the other hand, remains the same: a total prize money of 100,000 USD is up for grabs by senior individual researchers or groups of researchers from the international research community.

Nominations for both the World Sustainability Award and the Emerging Sustainability Leader award are now open! Check out our new website for more information on how to nominate.

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Yang Zhang has been appointed Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience” Section in Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425).

Name: Prof. Dr. Yang Zhang
Email: zhanglab@umn.edu
Affiliation: Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences & Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Homepage: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yang-Zhang-57
Research keywords: auditory neuroscience; social neuroscience; speech and voice perception; music perception; neurolinguistics; computational modeling; hearing loss; autism spectrum disorder; schizophrenia

Prof. Dr. Yang Zhang is a full professor of the Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences and Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. He obtained his Ph.D. in speech and hearing sciences from the University of Washington, Seattle (advisor: Dr. Patricia K. Kuhl) and received training in electrophysiology and brain imaging research, including magnetoencephalography, at the Basic Research Laboratories of Nippon Telephone and Telegraph Corporation and Tokyo Denki University in Japan (team leader: Dr. Toshiaki Imada). He was awarded the Early Career Researcher Prize in 2010 by the Developmental Science journal and currently leads an international interdisciplinary team to study speech and language with an emphasis on the social, cognitive, and affective foundations that help build up the human mind and shape interpersonal communication.

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Yang Zhang, who shared his vision for the journal with us, as well as his views of the research area and Open Access publishing:

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to take the role as its Section Editor-in-Chief?
   Brain Sciences is one of the fastest-growing open access, international journals in neuroscience. It has repeatedly attracted emerging and influential scientists and scholars in related disciplines to publish their high-quality research articles. In my own experience as a contributor, reviewer, and editor, I found the editorial staff to be highly efficient, responsive, respectful, and professional. The peer reviews that I received for my manuscripts were fast, rigorous, and constructive. In return, I have served as a reviewer and handling editor—a position that recognizes the reviewers' and editors' time and effort by providing a discount voucher towards their submissions—for the journal dozens of times. Over the past decade, Brain Sciences has established itself as a high-quality SCI journal that is recognized by the Web of Science and is recommended by the popular free online journal selector website https://jane.biosemantics.org/. In comparison with many other journals that promised the time to first decision to be within a month but often failed to deliver, Brain Sciences has successfully developed a database of reliable peer reviewers and a conscientious editorial staff that take the timeline of the reviewing process very seriously. I am impressed by the journal's rising impact factor over the years and its broad coverage in basic, clinical, and translational neuroscience research, as well as its democratic openness to sharing the editorial responsibility with the scientific community and its diversity/inclusiveness of international authorship and readership. Ultimately, the responsibility for ensuring scientific rigor, accountability, and constructive criticism in the peer-review system comes down to the editors and the volunteer reviewers who care greatly about the substance and quality of the journal. In this regard, I am glad to accept the invitation to play an important role in strengthening and promoting the journal.
2. What is your vision for the Section?
   The "Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience" Section is devoted to basic, clinical, and translational studies on all behavioral, system, neural circuit, single-cell, cellular, and genetic levels, including in animal models. Neuroimaging, pharmacological perturbation, and neuromodulation methods hold great promise to provide a better understanding of basic social, cognitive, and affective processes in terms of how these processes interact and develop in neurotypical individuals and how they may break down to account for the various mental and physical health problems in psychiatric disorders. The Section welcomes original and review submissions that identify biomarkers linking behavioral symptoms with anatomical and functional brain imaging results in conjunction with etiological, epidemiological, and clinical manifestations of psychiatric conditions such as autism, schizophrenia, depression, affective disorders, and Alzheimer's disease.
3. What does the future of this field of research look like?
   As a researcher specializing in neurolinguistics in the field of speech, language, and hearing sciences, I have become increasingly aware of the limitations of the trichotomies of some influential theoretical frameworks that treat language, emotion, and cognition as independent modules without much attention to the social and cultural context of speech communication and human interaction. In the years to come, it will take multidisciplinary efforts to develop theories and models to guide our scientific neurobehavioral endeavors to further understand the connections and mutual influences of the cognitive, affective, and linguistic processes in the larger socio-cultural context of human communication and development.
4. What do you think of the development of Open Access in the publishing field?
   Open Access journals have witnessed increasing success and influence in every academic field. More and more traditional subscription-based journals have started to accept and incorporate the Open Access model. Instead of asking the general public and any potential readers or their affiliated institutions to pay for access, the Open Access model eliminates this barrier to the dissemination of information and scientific discoveries. While challenges still remain in strengthening the administrative, financial, and ethical practices and standards of Open Access publishing, more and more governmental and private funding agencies are now supportive of publishing in Open Access journals. I believe the transitional efforts to open science and Open Access will ultimately prevail and become the dominant force in the publishing field.

We wish Prof. Dr. Yang Zhang every success in his new position, and we look forward to his contributions to the journal.

1. “Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation from a Neurological Perspective”
   by Paprocka, J.; Jezela-Stanek, A.; Tylki-Szymańska, A. and Grunewald, S.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010088
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/88
2. “Extremely Low-Frequency Magnetic Field as a Stress Factor—Really Detrimental?—Insight into Literature from the Last Decade”
   by Klimek, A. and Rogalska, J.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 174; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020174
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/174
3. “Oxidative Dysregulation in Early Life Stress and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Comprehensive Review”
   by Karanikas, E.; Daskalakis, N. P. and Agorastos, A.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(6), 723; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060723
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/723
4. “Relationship between Cognitive Functions and Sport-Specific Physical Performance in Youth Volleyball Players”
   by Trecroci, A.; Duca, M.; Cavaggioni, L.; Rossi, A.; Scurati, R.; Longo, S.; Merati, G.; Alberti, G. and Formenti, D.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020227
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/227
5. “Use of Super Paramagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles as Drug Carriers in Brain and Ear: State of the Art and Challenges”
   by Guigou, C.; Lalande, A.; Millot, N.; Belharet, K. and Bozorg Grayeli, A.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020227
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/358
6. “The Effects of 10 Hz and 20 Hz tACS in Network Integration and Segregation in Chronic Stroke: A Graph Theoretical fMRI Study”
   by Chen, C.; Yuan, K.; Chu, W.C.-w. and Tong, R. K.-y.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(3), 377; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030377
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/377
7. “Influence of Increasing Task Complexity and Use of Informational Assistance Systems on Mental Workload”
   by Bläsing, D. and Bornewasser, M.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 102; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010102
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/102
8. “The Mammalian Locus Coeruleus Complex—Consistencies and Variances in Nuclear Organization”
   by Manger, P. R. and Eschenko, O.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(11), 1486; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11111486
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/11/1486
9. “Modulation of Synaptic Plasticity by Vibratory Training in Young and Old Mice”
   by Cariati, I.; Bonanni, R.; Pallone, G.; Annino, G.; Tancredi, V. and D’Arcangelo, G.
   Brain Sci. 2021, 11(1), 82; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010082
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/82
10. “Melatonin: From Neurobiology to Treatment”
    by Biggio, G.; Biggio, F.; Talani, G.; Mostallino, M. C.; Aguglia, A.; Aguglia, E. and Palagini, L.
    Brain Sci. 2021, 11(9), 1121; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091121
    Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1121

1. “Long-Lasting Cognitive Abnormalities after COVID-19”
   by Ferrucci, R.; Dini, M.; Groppo, E.; Rosci, C.; Reitano, M. R.; Bai, F.; Poletti, B.; Brugnera, A.; Silani, V.; D’Arminio Monforte, A. and Priori, A.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(2), 235; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020235
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/235
2. “Summary of over Fifty Years with Brain-Computer Interfaces—A Review”
   by Kawala-Sterniuk, A.; Browarska, N.; Al-Bakri, A.; Pelc, M.; Zygarlicki, J.; Sidikova, M.; Martinek, R. and Gorzelanczyk, E. J.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(1), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010043
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/43
3. “Post-Acute COVID-19 Symptoms, a Potential Link with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A 6-Month Survey in a Mexican Cohort”
   by González-Hermosillo, J. A.; Martínez-López, J. P.; Carrillo-Lampón, S. A.; Ruiz-Ojeda, D.; Herrera-Ramírez, S.; Amezcua-Guerra, L. M. and Martínez-Alvarado, M. d. R.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(6), 760; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060760
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/6/760
4. “Systemic Inflammatory Response Index and Futile Recanalization in Patients with Ischemic Stroke Undergoing Endovascular Treatment”
   by Lattanzi, S.; Norata, D.; Divani, A. A.; Di Napoli, M.; Broggi, S.; Rocchi, C.; Ortega-Gutierrez, S.; Mansueto, G. and Silvestrini, M.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(9), 1164; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091164
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1164
5. “Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte, Platelet-to-Lymphocyte and Monocyte-to-Lymphocyte Ratio in Bipolar Disorder”
   by Fusar-Poli, L.; Natale, A.; Amerio, A.; Cimpoesu, P.; Grimaldi Filioli, P.; Aguglia, E.; Amore, M.; Serafini, G. and Aguglia, A.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(1), 58; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010058
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/1/58
6. “Comparison of Brain Activation Patterns during Olfactory Stimuli between Recovered COVID-19 Patients and Healthy Controls: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) Study”
   by Ho, R. C.; Sharma, V. K.; Tan, B. Y. Q.; Ng, A. Y. Y.; Lui, Y.-S.; Husain, S. F.; Ho, C. S.; Tran, B. X.; Pham, Q.-H.; McIntyre, R. S. and Chan, A. C. Y.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(8), 968; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11080968
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/968
7. “Psychological and Emotional Effects of Digital Technology on Children in COVID-19 Pandemic”
   by Limone, P. and Toto, G. A.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(9), 1126; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11091126
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/9/1126
8. “The Use and Impact of Cognitive Enhancers among University Students: A Systematic Review”
   by Sharif, S.; Guirguis, A.; Fergus, S. and Schifano, F.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(3), 355; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11030355
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/3/355
9. “Long-Term Brain Disorders in Post Covid-19 Neurological Syndrome (PCNS) Patient”
   by Nuzzo, D.; Cambula, G.; Bacile, I.; Rizzo, M.; Galia, M.; Mangiapane, P.; Picone, P.; Giacomazza, D. and Scalisi, L.
   Brain Sci.2021, 11(4), 454; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11040454
   Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/4/454
10. “Fecal Transplant and Bifidobacterium Treatments Modulate Gut Clostridium Bacteria and Rescue Social Impairment and Hippocampal BDNF Expression in a Rodent Model of Autism”
    by Abuaish, S.; Al-Otaibi, N. M.; Abujamel, T. S.; Alzahrani, S. A.; Alotaibi, S. M.; AlShawakir, Y. A.; Aabed, K. and El-Ansary, A.
    Brain Sci.2021, 11(8), 1038; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11081038
    Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/8/1038

Peer Review Week began 19 September 2022 under the theme of “Research Integrity: Creating and Supporting Trust in Research”. Through various blog articles, podcast, and webinar, we discussed this crucial subject throughout the week, celebrating the essential role peer review plays in maintaining research quality.

To begin, we held a Webinar on the topic. Professor Peter W. Choate and Dr. Emmanuel Obeng-Gyasi joined Dr. Ioana Craciun, one of MDPI’s scientific officers, for an in-depth discussion.

We invite you to view the event recording:

During the week, the MDPI Blog in a series articles highlighted how good Peer Review safeguards research integrity. The following topics were covered:

• Peer Review Week 2022
• Research Integrity
• What We’ve Learned About Peer Review Reports
• 4 Steps to the Perfect Peer Review Report
• How to Write the Perfect Peer Review Report: An Interview
• Inviting Great Peer Reviewers

In a new edition of Insight Faster, an MDPI podcast, we were delighted to talk to the co-chairs of the Peer Review Week committee, Jayashree Rajagopalan (Senior Manager of Global Community Engagement for CACTUS) and Danielle Padula (Head of Marketing and Community Development at Scholastica) to get their take on this year’s event and its related topics.

You can find the Podcast here.

We hope you enjoy the contents!

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman has been appointed Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Educational Neuroscience” Section in Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425).

Name: Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman
Email: g.leisman@welfare.haifa.ac.il
Affiliations: 1. Movement and Cognition Laboratory, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences Haifa University, Haifa, Israel; 2. Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Institute for Neurology and Neurosurgery, University of the Medical Sciences of Havana, Havana, Cuba
Homepage: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9975-7331
Research keywords: developmental neuroscience; computational neuroscience; cognitive neuroscience; fetal cognition; neuroplasticity; consciousness; neuroeducation hunter

Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman is a full professor and a research fellow at the University of Haifa in Israel and a professor of restorative neurology at the University of Medical Sciences in Havana, Cuba. He studies the relation between movement and cognition development, examining the mechanisms of self-organizing systems in the brain when applied to fetal, neonatal, infant, and childhood development of sensation/perception, memory, cognition, consciousness, death, autism, movement, and gait. He was one of the first to identify functional disconnectivities in the brain. He has been involved in the promotion of consciousness as a scientifically tractable problem since the early 1970s, and has been particularly influential in arguing that a fundamental understanding of consciousness can be approached using the modern tools of neurobiology and mechanisms of theoretical physics. Together with Dr. Paul Koch, he developed the biomedical applications of continuum theory. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine (UK) and was elected Fellow of the Association for Psychological Sciences in 1990, a Senior Member of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society in 1986, and a Life Fellow of the International Association for Functional Neurology & Rehabilitation in 2010, in addition to receiving its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011. He has published hundreds of papers and texts in the fields of neurosciences, developmental sciences, cognitive science, biomedical engineering, and in the systems sciences literature.

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman, who shared his vision for the journal with us, as well as his views of the research area and open access publishing:

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to take the role as its Section Editor-in-Chief?
Brain Sciences is an open access journal that has been publishing high-standard research for about ten years. It is during this period of time that the journal has obtained high visibility through it being indexed in PubMed Scopus, Web of Sciences and other databases. The review processes are swift and effective. For example, in one paper that has been through the review process, the reviewer’s critique was significantly longer than the paper itself. It is for this and other reasons that the journal’s impact factor has steadily risen. Secondly, the diversity of the journal’s coverage is extensive. This is a factor important to me in particular as it is my intention to parlay the knowledge base in cognitive neuroscience, developmental cognitive neuroscience, human factors, experimental psychology, occupational and physical therapy, systems theory, neurology, rehabilitation sciences, industrial engineering, production management and operations research as well as many other not so obvious applications and to translate that knowledge base into practical translations in the education of neurotypical, impaired, aging and elderly learners. There is a saying, “The day is short and the work much.” So, another appeal of the Brain Sciences is its rapid publication coupled with its copious review process.

2. What is your vision for the Section?
It is astounding that the central model for knowledge acquisition within the educational system is, even today, the “talking head” while the student sits. What an embarrassment, given the huge literature in the cognitive neurosciences providing us with many alternatives. For example, we know that movement influences cognition and vice versa. Strong connections exist between movement, physical education, breaks, recess, energizing activities, and improved cognition. Movement can be an efficient cognitive approach to reinforce learning, improve memory and retrieval, and enhance learner motivation and morale.

Perhaps that is the reason that we have not effected change in public policy towards school-aged children, and why people are still required to retire in their sixties when we know that movement, social engagement and cognitive stimulation will reduce health care costs significantly in both the developing and developed world, is because we are busy doing what we have always done. We do not change when the data and evidence require it. There seems to be a disconnection between the world of science and public policy in this arena.

In times of shrinking financial resources, educators, health officials, government policymakers and employers must make difficult choices. In the school system, do dance, theater, recess, and physical education belong in the curriculum? Are they frills or fundamentals? What does brain research tell us about the relationship between the body and cognitive function? If movement and learning are connected, we should expect evidence to support the idea.

I see the Section “Educational Neurosciences” growing its board for inclusion of disciplines and research that directly or even indirectly affect the individual’s capacity to learn, retain, and apply what has been learned. I plan to develop Special Issues that focus on poorly understood application areas in educational neuroscience. I also see the Section “Educational Neurosciences” becoming the go-to interdisciplinary source for burgeoning theory and applications to the classroom and out-of-the-classroom learning and instructions. I plan for the journal to become integrally involved in university program development as well as form linkages with professional organizations pushing forward with the same vision and agenda.

3. What does the future of this field of research look like?
Cognitive neuroscience has made many strides over the past eighty years and the application to classroom-based instruction offers the possibility of a fundamental sea change in how the educational product is delivered and acquired. Recent advances in cognitive neuroscience have produced fundamental changes in how we understand nervous system structure and function as applied to thinking, cognition, memory, brain organization and behavior, and much more than previously thought. We now know that simplistic left-right differences and cerebral asymmetries are less important in understanding classroom learning but more multifaceted brain network, applications to instruction and external means of altering brain chemistry and neuroplasticity to facilitate learning have led to newly developed concepts and findings that have not found their way into the classroom, in teacher training and in educational policy.

We require the advancement of innovative models to better understand activities that can importantly affect motivation, learning, and memory as well as evaluation methodologies that can observe, study and assess these functions. We are slowly realizing that there exists a significant intersection between the problems of psychological, sociological, and educational processes and those of neurobiology, biochemistry, and neurophysiology, with the possibility of reciprocal assistance. Neuroscience has influenced school-based activity in various ways. For example, it has provided us with a better understanding of the nature of dyslexia and has offered insights into how diverse variables such as attention, sleep, relationships and anxiety can affect educational outcomes. Many difficulties exist in actualizing cognitive neuroscience applied to the classroom. Principally the various disciplines have different end goals such as prescriptive vs. descriptive or fact vs. solution oriented. Additionally, the neurosciences have been measuring effects in milliseconds to minutes whereas education has been more concerned with changes measured in days, weeks, and years. What is therefore necessary is the creation of a common language integrating what we know, what we have yet to learn, and mechanisms of translation to practice in the same way that the ancient Greeks required a common language for workers from various parts of the Greek world to understand each other in order to build “The Glory that was Greece and the grandeur that was Rome.” Plainly, we need to find a common language for education, learning, and study.

4. What do you think of the development of open access in the publishing field?
Science is paid for largely by governments and the results and applications of sciences, therefore, are owned by those who fund it – the people. Article 19 of the Declaration of human rights clearly states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” I think it is quite clear that the dissemination of information, including scientific ones, demands free access by the public and Creative Commons speaks directly to that. I see open access as a human right.

The editorial team warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Gerry Leisman in his role as Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Educational Neuroscience” Section, and we look forward to his leading Brain Sciences to achieve more milestones.

MDPI will be attending ASHG 2022, held in Los Angeles, USA, from 25 to 29 October 2022.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Genes;
• JPM;
• Biomedicines;
• Biomolecules;
• Cardiogenetics;
• Cancers;
• Brain Science;
• Symmetry;
• Diagnostics;
• Metabolites;
• Cells;
• Biology;
• Humans;
• DNA.

If you plan on attending this conference, feel free to stop by our booth: #1844. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person to answer any questions you may have.

For more information about the conference, please see the following link:

https://www.ashg.org/meetings/2022-annual-meeting/.

We are pleased to announce the list of the top 10 cited papers published in 2020 and 2021 in Brain Sciences (Brain Sci., ISSN: 2076-3425):

1. “Psychosocial and Behavioral Impact of COVID-19 in Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Online Parent Survey”
by Marco Colizzi, Elena Sironi, Federico Antonini, Marco Luigi Ciceri, Chiara Bovo and Leonardo Zoccante
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 341; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060341
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/341

2. “Epidemiology of Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Review of Worldwide Prevalence Estimates Since 2014”
by Flavia Chiarotti and Aldina Venerosi
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(5), 274; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10050274
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/5/274

3. “Long-Lasting Cognitive Abnormalities after COVID-19”
by Roberta Ferrucci, Michelangelo Dini, Elisabetta Groppo, Chiara Rosci, Maria Rita Reitano, Francesca Bai, Barbara Poletti, Agostino Brugnera, Vincenzo Silani, Antonella D’Arminio Monforte and Alberto Priori
Brain Sci. 2021, 11(2), 235; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020235
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/2/235

4. “A Deep Siamese Convolution Neural Network for Multi-Class Classification of Alzheimer Disease”
by Atif Mehmood, Muazzam Maqsood, Muzaffar Bashir and Yang Shuyuan
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(2), 84; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10020084
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/2/84

5. “Management of Neuroinflammatory Responses to AAV-Mediated Gene Therapies for Neurodegenerative Diseases”
by Barbara A. Perez, Alison Shutterly, Ying Kai Chan, Barry J. Byrne and Manuela Corti
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(2), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10020119
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/2/119

6. “The Effects of the Early Start Denver Model for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis”
by Elizabeth A. Fuller, Kelsey Oliver, Sarah F. Vejnoska and Sally J. Rogers
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 368; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060368
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/368

7. “Probiotics Alleviate the Progressive Deterioration of Motor Functions in a Mouse Model of Parkinson’s Disease”
by Tsung-Hsun Hsieh, Chi-Wei Kuo, Kai-Hsuan Hsieh, Meng-Jyh Shieh, Chih-Wei Peng, Yen-Chien Chen, Ying-Ling Chang, Ying-Zu Huang, Chih-Chung Chen, Pi-Kai Chang, Kai-Yun Chen and Hsin-Yung Chen
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(4), 206; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10040206
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/4/206

8. “Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio and Symptomatic Hemorrhagic Transformation in Ischemic Stroke Patients Undergoing Revascularization”
by Milena Świtońska, Natalia Piekuś-Słomka, Artur Słomka, Paweł Sokal, Ewa Żekanowska and Simona Lattanzi
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(11), 771; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10110771
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/11/771

9. “Cholesterol and Alzheimer’s Disease Risk: A Meta-Meta-Analysis”
by Olalla Sáiz-Vazquez, Alicia Puente-Martínez, Silvia Ubillos-Landa, Joaquín Pacheco-Bonrostro and Javier Santabárbara
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(6), 386; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060386
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/6/386

10. “Do Post-Translational Modifications Influence Protein Aggregation in Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Systematic Review”
by Larissa-Nele Schaffert and Wayne G. Carter
Brain Sci. 2020, 10(4), 232; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10040232
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/10/4/232

Further details about the top 10 cited papers can be found at the following link:
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/brainsci/stats.

Brain Sciences Editorial Office

The 2021 citation metrics have been released in the Journal Citation Reports (JCR), and we’re pleased to announce the following results for MDPI journals:

For more information on Impact Factors and what it means to index academic journals, please visit our related blog posts.

* Journals given their first Impact Factor in 2022

Source: 2021 Journal Impact Factors, Journal Citation Reports ^TM (Clarivate, 2022)

The 2021 citation metrics have been officially released in Scopus!

We are pleased to announce that 182 MDPI journals are included, of which:

● 21 journals received their first CiteScore.
● 85% of journals increased their CiteScore from 2020.
● 155 journals (85%) ranked above average, in at least one category.

The following 65 MDPI journals (36%) ranked among the top 25% of journals, in at least one category:

Source: 2021 CiteScores™ (Elsevier)

In order to acknowledge our reviewers, who so generously dedicate their time to reviewing papers and demonstrate diligence, professionalism, and timeliness when reviewing manuscripts, MDPI journals regularly offer outstanding reviewer awards to scholars who participate in the peer-review process.

We are proud to recognize winners for the year 2021 in the “Biology & Life Sciences” category for their outstanding contributions among extensive competition by presenting them with an Outstanding Reviewer Award.

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the winners on their achievement.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Biology:

• Enrico Vito Perrino, CIHEAM, Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari, Italy
• Dhirendra Kumar, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, USA
• Carlos A. Viegas, Univesity of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal
• Yuri Shavrukov, Flinders University, Australia
• Bipin Gaihre, Mayo Clinic, USA

Brain Sciences:

• Craig D. Workman, University of Iowa, USA
• Vivian Ciaramitaro, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA
• Yang Zhang, University of Minnesota, USA

Cells:

• Bonam Srinivasa Reddy, Université de Paris, France
• Homma Takujiro, Yamagata University, Japan
• Hwang, In Koo, Seoul National University, South Korea
• Kobeissy Firas, University of Florida, USA
• Rebelo, Sandra, University of Aveiro, Portugal

Diversity:

• Günter Gollmann, University of Vienna, Austria
• Stephan Koblmüller, University of Graz, Austria
• Emiliano Mori, Istituto di Ricerca sugli Ecosistemi Terrestri, Italy

Horticulturae:

• Joshua D. Klein, Agricultural Research Organization—The Volcani Center, Israel
• Ana Cristina S Figueiredo, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal

Insects:

• Carmelo Peter Bonsignore, Università Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria, Italy
• Klaus H. Hoffmann, University of Bayreuth, Germany
• Ivan Milosavljević, University of California, USA

Metabolites:

• Remigiusz Bachor, University of Wrocław, Poland
• Nguyen Phuoc Long, Inje University College of Medicine, South Korea
• Chi Chen, University of Minnesota, USA

Nutrients:

• Jadwiga Hamułka, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland
• Grace Campbell, University of Sydney, Australia
• Nicholas Norwitz, Harvard Medical School, USA
• Stefan Kabisch, Charité University Hospital Berlin, Germany
• Luis Rodrigo, University of Oviedo, Spain

Veterinary Sciences:

• Carlos Viegas, Univesity of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal
• Arvind Sharma, The University of Queensland, Australia

MDPI’s Young Investigator Awards recognize promising junior researchers, acknowledge their contributions, and enhance communication among scientists. We are proud to present the 2021 winners in the “Biology & Life Sciences” category. The winners were selected by the journals’ editors.

We warmly congratulate the awarded young investigators for their outstanding contributions.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Agriculture:

• Carlos Guzmán, University of Cordoba, Spain

Animals:

• Katharina Hohlbaum, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany

Cells:

• Uri Ben-David, Tel Aviv University, Israel

Diversity:

• Enrico Lunghi, Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, China

Foods:

• Guodong Zhang, University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA

Horticulturae:

• Luke Bell, Temperate Horticulture, University of Reading, UK

International Journal of Molecular Sciences:

• Alessandro D’Urso, University of Catania, Italy.
• Apostolos Zaravinos, University of Cyprus, Cyprus
• Cesar de la Fuente-Nunez, University of Pennsylvania, USA
• Maria Teresa Caccamo, Messina University, Italy
• Tiziana Bonifacino, University of Genoa, Italy

Journal of Fungi:

• Federico Baltar, University of Vienna, Austria
• Rebecca Drummond, University of Birmingham, UK
• Miriam Oses-Ruiz, Public University of Navarre, Spain

Life:

• João Pedro da Silva Machado Lobo, University of Porto, Portugal
• Vincenzo Russo, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Italy

Metabolites:

• Gabriele Rocchetti, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Italy

Nutrients:

• Fiona Lavelle, Queen's University Belfast, UK
• Matthew Snelson, Monash University, Australia

Pathogens:

• Si Ming Man, Australian National University, Australia
• Jasper Fuk-Woo Chan, University of Hong Kong, China

Plants:

• Stefania Sut, University of Padova, Italy
• Mohamed Ahmed El-Esawi, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt

Vaccines:

• Nicholas M. Provine, University of Oxford, UK

Viruses:

• Nicholas S. Heaton, Duke University, USA

We are proud to recognize the winners of MDPI’s 2021 Travel Awards in the “Biology & Life Sciences” category for their outstanding presentations and to present them with the prize.

MDPI journals regularly offer travel awards to encourage talented junior scientists to present their latest research at academic conferences in specific fields, which helps to increase their influence.

The winners mentioned below were carefully selected by the journal editors based on an outline of their research and the work to be presented at an academic conference.

We would like to warmly congratulate the winners of 2021 Travel Awards and wish them the greatest success with their future research endeavors. MDPI will continue to enhance communication among scientists.

Agriculture:

• Zahra Bitarafan, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), Norway
• Nikolaos Tsoulias, Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB), Germany

Fermentation:

• Michela Verni, University of Bari, Italy
• Philipp Demling, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

Horticulturae:

• Jagveer Singh, Punjab Agricultural University, India
• Ibrar Hussain, State University of Londrina, Brazil

Microorganisms:

• Francis Muchaamba, University of Zurich, Switzerland

Methods and Protocols:

• Tanja Eisemann, SBP Medical Discovery Institute, USA

Nutrients:

• Mrinalini Dey, National Institute for Health Research, UK
• Ben Kirk, University of Melbourne, Australia
• Kirrilly Pursey, University of Newcastle, Australia
• Dieuwertje Kok, Wageningen University, the Netherlands
• Hanna Huber, University of Bonn, Germany
• Marlene Lages, University of Porto, Portugal
• Zohra S. Lassi, University of Adelaide, Australia
• Rik Olde Engberink, Amsterdam University Medicial Center, the Netherlands
• Sarah Warkentin, University of Porto (ISPUP), Portugal
• Álvaro Hernáez, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Norway
• Leila Abdelhamid, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Tech, USA
• Maria Michela Cesare, University of Siena, Italy
• Kaisa Hiippala, University of Helsinki, Finland

Pathogens:

• Vanessa Silva, University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Portugal
• Hejun Liu, Scripps Research Institute, USA
• Tomokazu Tamura, Princeton University, USA

Toxins:

• Cecilie Knudsen, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark
• Laura Biessy, Cawthron Institute, New Zealand
• Marcelo Mendes Rabelo, University of Florida, USA

Vaccines:

• Hee Chun Chung, Seoul National University, South Korea
• Alejandro Marin Lopez, Yale University, USA

The purpose of our Best Paper Awards is to promote and recognize the most impactful contributions published within MDPI journals.

The editors of each journal carefully selected reviews and research papers through a rigorous judging process based on criteria such as the scientific merit, overall impact, and the quality of presentation of the papers published in the journal last year.

We are honored to present the winners in the subject areas of “Biology & Life Sciences”, who were selected amongst extensive competition, and congratulate the authors for their outstanding scientific publications.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Animals:

• “Effects of Dietary Betaine on Growth Performance, Digestive Function, Carcass Traitsand Meat Quality in Indigenous Yellow-Feathered Broilers under Long-Term Heat Stress”

by Wenchao Liu, Yilin Yuan, Chenyu Sun, Balamuralikrishnan Balasubramanian, Zhihui Zhao and Lilong An

Animals 2019, 9(8), 506, doi 10.3390/ani9080506

• “The Ethics of Human–Animal Relationships and Public Discourse: A Case Study of Lions Bred for Their Bones”

by Peter Coals, Dawn Burnham, Andrew Loveridge, David W. Macdonald, Michael ’t Sas-Rolfes, Vivienne L. Williams and John A. Vucetich

Animals 2019, 9(2), 52; doi 10.3390/ani9020052

• “The Potential Role of Insects as Feed: A Multi-Perspective Review”

by Giovanni Sogari, Mario Amato, Ilaria Biasato, Silvana Chiesa and Laura Gasco

Animals 2019, 9(4), 119; doi 10.3390/ani9040119

Antibodies:

• “Antibody Structure and Function: The Basis for Engineering Therapeutics”

by Mark L. Chiu; Dennis R. Goulet; Alexey Teplyakov and Gary L. Gilliland

Antibodies 2019, 8(4), 55; doi 10.3390/antib8040055

Antioxidants:

• “Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Flavanones from Glycyrrhiza glabra L. (licorice) Leaf Phytocomplexes: Identification of Licoflavanone as a Modulator of NF-kB/MAPK Pathway”

by Luca Frattaruolo, Gabriele Carullo, Matteo Brindisi, Sarah Mazzotta, Luca Bellissimo, Vittoria Rago, Rosita Curcio, Vincenza Dolce, Francesca Aiello and Anna Rita Cappello

Antioxidants 2019, 8(6), 186; doi 10.3390/antiox8060186

• “LC-ESI-QTOF/MS Characterisation of Phenolic Acids and Flavonoids in Polyphenol-Rich Fruits and Vegetables and Their Potential Antioxidant Activities”

by Chunhe Gu, Kate Howell, Frank R. Dunshea and Hafiz A. R. Suleria

Antioxidants 2019, 8(9), 405; doi 10.3390/antiox8090405

• “Nutritional Value, Chemical Composition and Cytotoxic Properties of Common Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) in Relation to Harvesting Stage and Plant Part”

by Spyridon A. Petropoulos, Ângela Fernandes, Maria Inês Dias, Ioannis B. Vasilakoglou, Konstantinos Petrotos, Lillian Barros and Isabel C. F. R. Ferreira

Antioxidants 2019, 8(8), 293; doi 10.3390/antiox8080293

• “A Comprehensive Review on Lipid Oxidation in Meat and Meat Products”

by Rubén Domínguez, Mirian Pateiro, Mohammed Gagaoua, Francisco J. Barba, Wangang Zhang and José M. Lorenzo

Antioxidants 2019, 8(10), 429; doi 10.3390/antiox8100429

Biology:

• “The Mammalian Circadian Timing System and the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus as Its Pacemaker”

by Michael H. Hastings, Elizabeth S. Maywood and Marco Brancaccio

Biology 2019, 8(1), 13; doi 10.3390/biology8010013

• “Combined Effects of Acute Temperature Change and Elevated pCO₂ on the Metabolic Rates and Hypoxia Tolerances of Clearnose Skate (Rostaraja eglanteria), Summer Flounder (Paralichthys dentatus), and Thorny Skate (Amblyraja radiata)”

by Gail D. Schwieterman, Daniel P. Crear, Brooke N. Anderson, Danielle R. Lavoie, James A. Sulikowski, Peter G. Bushnell and Richard W. Brill

Biology 2019, 8(3), 56; doi 10.3390/biology8030056

Biomolecules:

• “Flagella-Driven Motility of Bacteria”

by Shuichi Nakamura and Tohru Minamino

Biomolecules 2019, 9(7), 279; doi 10.3390/biom9070279

• “Systematic FTIR Spectroscopy Study of the Secondary Structure Changes in Human Serum Albumin under Various Denaturation Conditions”

by Dmitrii Usoltsev, Vera Sitnikovaandrey Kajava and Mayya Uspenskaya

Biomolecules 2019, 9(8), 359; doi 10.3390/biom9080359

• “Quantification of Fecal Short Chain Fatty Acids by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry—Investigation of Pre-Analytic Stability”

by Gerhard Liebisch, Josef Ecker, Sebastian Roth, Sabine Schweizer, Veronika Öttl, Hans-Frieder Schött, Hongsup Yoon, Dirk Haller, Ernst Holler, Ralph Burkhardt and Silke Matysik

Biomolecules 2019, 9(4), 121; doi 10.3390/biom9040121

• “Cytotoxicity of Dendrimers”

by Anna Janaszewska, Joanna Lazniewska, Przemysław Trzepiński, Monika Marcinkowska and Barbara Klajnert-Maculewicz

Biomolecules 2019, 9(8), 330; doi 10.3390/biom9080330

Cells:

• “Combined Inhibition of TGF-β Signaling and the PD-L1 Immune Checkpoint Is Differentially Effective in Tumor Models”

by Heng Sheng Sow, Jiang Ren, Marcel Camps, Ferry Ossendorp and Peter ten Dijke

Cells 2019, 8(4), 320; doi 10.3390/cells8040320

• “Exosome Treatment Enhances Anti-Inflammatory M2 Macrophages and Reduces Inflammation-Induced Pyroptosis in Doxorubicin-Induced Cardiomyopathy”

by Dinender K. Singla, Taylor A. Johnson and Zahra Tavakoli Dargani

Cells 2019, 8(10), 1224; doi 10.3390/cells8101224

• “Overview of Extracellular Vesicles, Their Origin, Composition, Purpose, and Methods for Exosome Isolation and Analysis”

by Laura M. Doyle and Michael Zhuo Wang

Cells 2019, 8(7), 727; doi 10.3390/cells8070727

• “Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Regenerative Medicine”

by Yu Han, Xuezhou Li, Yanbo Zhang, Yuping Han, Fei Chang and Jianxun Ding

Cells 2019, 8(8), 886; doi 10.3390/cells8080886

Genes:

• “A High-Quality De novo Genome Assembly from a Single Mosquito Using PacBio Sequencing”

by Sarah B. Kingan, Haynes Heaton, Juliana Cudini, Christine C. Lambert, Primo Baybayan, Brendan D. Galvin, Richard Durbin, Jonas Korlach and Mara K. N. Lawniczak

Genes 2019, 10(1), 62; doi 10.3390/genes10010062

• “Eukaryotic 5-methylcytosine (m⁵C) RNA Methyltransferases: Mechanisms, Cellular Functions, and Links to Disease”

by Katherine E Bohnsack, Claudia Höbartner and Markus T Bohnsack

Genes 2019, 10(2), 102; doi 10.3390/genes10020102

• “Tree Lab: Portable Genomics for Early Detection of Plant Viruses and Pests in Sub-Saharan Africa”

by Laura M. Boykin, Peter Sseruwagi, Titus Alicai, Elijah Ateka, Ibrahim Umar Mohammed, Jo-Ann L. Stanton, Charles Kayuki, Deogratius Mark, Tarcisius Fute, Joel Erasto, Hilda Bachwenkizi, Brenda Muga, Naomi Mumo, Jenniffer Mwangi, Phillip Abidrabo, Geoffrey Okao-Okuja, Geresemu Omuut, Jacinta Akol, Hellen B. Apio, Francis Osingada, Monica A. Kehoe, David Eccles, Anders Savill, Stephen Lamb, Tonny Kinene, Christopher B. Rawle, Abishek Muralidhar, Kirsty Mayall, Fred Tairo and Joseph Ndunguru

Genes 2019, 10(9), 632; doi 10.3390/genes10090632

• “Transcription Factors Associated with Abiotic and Biotic Stress Tolerance and Their Potential for Crops Improvement”

by Elamin Hafiz Baillo, Roy Njoroge Kimotho, Zhengbin Zhang and Ping Xu

Genes 2019, 10(10), 771; doi 10.3390/genes10100771

Horticulturae:

• “Recent Advances in Hormonal Regulation and Cross-Talk during Non-Climacteric Fruit Development and Ripening”

by Lida Fuentes, Carlos R. Figueroa and Monika Valdenegro

Horticulturae 2019, 5(2), 45; doi 10.3390/horticulturae5020045

• “Evaluation of Two Wild Populations of Hedge Mustard (Sisymbrium officinale (L.) Scop.) as a Potential Leafy Vegetable”

by Marta Guarise, Gigliola Borgonovo, Angela Bassoli and Antonio Ferrante

Horticulturae 2019, 5(1), 13; doi 10.3390/horticulturae5010013

Insects:

• “Olfactory Preference of Drosophila suzukii Shifts between Fruit and Fermentation Cues over the Season: Effects of Physiological Status”

by Rik Clymans, Vincent Van Kerckvoorde, Eva Bangels, Wannes Akkermans, Ammar Alhmedi, Patrick De Clercq, Tim Beliën and Dany bylemans

Insects 2019, 10(7), 200; doi 10.3390/insects10070200

• “Telenomus remus, a Candidate Parasitoid for the Biological Control of Spodoptera frugiperda in Africa, is already Present on the Continent”

by Marc Kenis, Hannalene du Plessis, Johnnie Van den Berg, Malick Niango Ba, Georg Goergen, Koffi Eric Kwadjo, Ibrahim Baoua, Tadele Tefera, Alan Buddie, Giovanni Cafà, Lisa Offord, Ivan Rwomushana and Andrew Polaszek

Insects 2019, 10(4), 92; doi 10.3390/insects10040092

• “Symbiotic Plant Biomass Decomposition in Fungus-Growing Termites”

by Rafael R. da Costa, Haofu Hu, Hongjie Li and Michael Poulsen

Insects 2019, 10(4), 87; doi 10.3390/insects10040087

International Journal of Molecular Sciences:

• “Aging, Melatonin, and the Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Networks”

by Rüdiger Hardeland

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(5), 1223; doi 10.3390/ijms20051223

• “Causative Links between Protein Aggregation and Oxidative Stress: A Review”

by Elise Lévy, Nadine El Banna, Dorothée Baïlle, Amélie Heneman-Masurel, Sandrine Truchet, Human Rezaei, Meng-Er Huang, Vincent Béringue, Davy Martin and Laurence Vernis

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(16), 3896; doi 10.3390/ijms20163896

• “Immunobiology of Atherosclerosis: A Complex Net of Interactions”

by Beatriz Herrero-Fernandez, Raquel Gomez-Bris, Beatriz Somovilla-Crespo and Jose Maria Gonzalez-Granado

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(21), 5293; doi 10.3390/ijms20215293

• “Development of a Gut-on-a-Chip Model for High Throughput Disease Modeling and Drug Discovery”

by Claudia Beaurivage, Elena Naumovska, Yee Xiang Chang, Edo D. Elstak, Arnaud Nicolas, Heidi Wouters, Guido van Moolenbroek, Henriëtte L. Lanz, Sebastiaan J. Trietsch, Jos Joore, Paul Vulto, Richard A.J. Janssen, Kai S. Erdmann, Jan Stallen and Dorota Kurek

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(22), 5661; doi 10.3390/ijms20225661

• “Triple-Negative Breast Cancer with High Levels of Annexin A1 Expression Is Associated with Mast Cell Infiltration, Inflammationand Angiogenesis”

by Maiko Okano, Masanori Oshi, Ali Linsk Butash, Eriko Katsuta, Kazunoshin Tachibana, Katsuharu Saito, Hirokazu Okayama, Xuan Peng, Li Yan, Koji Kono, Toru Ohtake and Kazuaki Takabe

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(17), 4197; doi 10.3390/ijms20174197

• “CGRP Induces Differential Regulation of Cytokines from Satellite Glial Cells in Trigeminal Ganglia and Orofacial Nociception”

by Shaista Afroz, Rieko Arakaki, Takuma Iwasa, Masamitsu Oshima, Maki Hosoki, Miho Inoue, Otto Baba, Yoshihiro Okayama and Yoshizo Matsuka

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(3), 711; doi 10.3390/ijms20030711

Life:

• “Characterization of Resistance in Gram-Negative Urinary Isolates Using Existing and Novel Indicators of Clinical Relevance: A 10-Year Data Analysis”

by Márió Gajdács, Zoltán Bátori, Marianna Ábrók, Andrea Lázár and Katalin Burián

Life 2020, 10(2), 16; doi 10.3390/life10020016

• “Neuroprotection or Neurotoxicity of Illicit Drugs on Parkinson’s Disease”

by Carla Ferreira, Catarina Almeida, Sandra Tenreiro and Alexandre Quintas

Life 2020, 10(6), 86; doi 10.3390/life10060086

Nutrients:

• “Gut Microbiome: Profound Implications for Diet and Disease”

by Ronald D. Hills, Benjamin A. Pontefract, Hillary R. Mishcon, Cody A. Black, Steven C. Sutton and Cory R. Theberge

Nutrients 2019, 11(7), 1613; doi 10.3390/nu11071613

• “Vitamin C Can Shorten the Length of Stay in the ICU: A Meta-Analysis”

by Harri Hemilä and Elizabeth Chalker

Nutrients 2019, 11(4), 708; doi 10.3390/nu11040708

• “Early Time-Restricted Feeding Improves 24-Hour Glucose Levels and Affects Markers of the Circadian Clock, Aging, and Autophagy in Humans”

by Humaira Jamshed, Robbie A. Beyl, Deborah L. Della Manna, Eddy S. Yang, Eric Ravussin and Courtney M. Peterson

Nutrients 2019, 11(6), 1234; doi 10.3390/nu11061234

Pathogens:

• “Alteration of Gut Microbiota in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): Cause or Consequence? IBD Treatment Targeting the Gut Microbiome”

by Israr Kha, Naeem Ullah, Lajia Zha, Yanrui Bai, Ashiq Khan, Tang Zhao, Tuanjie Che and Chunjiang Zhang

Pathogens 2019, 8(3), 126; doi 10.3390/pathogens8030126

• “Candida albicans Interactions with Mucosal Surfaces during Health and Disease”

by Spyridoula-Angeliki Nikou,Nessim Kichik, Rhys Brown, Nicole O. Ponde, Jemima Ho, Julian R. Naglik and Jonathan P. Richardson

Pathogens 2019, 8(2), 53; doi 10.3390/pathogens8020053

• “Bacteriophages in Natural and Artificial Environments”

by Steven Batinovic, Flavia Wassef, Sarah A. Knowler, Daniel T.F. Rice, Cassandra R. Stanton, Jayson Rose, Joseph Tucci, Tadashi Nittami, Antony Vinh, Grant R. Drummond, Christopher G. Sobey, Hiu Tat Chan, Robert J. Seviour, Steve Petrovski and Ashley E. Franks

Pathogens 2019, 8(3), 100; doi 10.3390/pathogens8030100

Plants:

• “Plant Disease Detection and Classification by Deep Learning”

by Muhammad Hammad Saleem, Johan Potgieter and Khalid Mahmood Arif 

Plants 2019, 8(11), 468; doi 10.3390/plants8110468

• “Involvement of Phenolic Acids in Short-Term Adaptation to Salinity Stress is Species-Specific among Brassicaceae”

by Ida Linić, Dunja Šamec, Jiří Grúz, Valerija Vujčić Bok, Miroslav Strnad and Branka Salopek-Sondi

Plants 2019, 8(6), 155; doi 10.3390/plants8060155

• “Isoform-Specific NO Synthesis by Arabidopsis thaliana Nitrate Reductase”

by Marie Agatha Mohn, Besarta Thaqi and Katrin Fischer-Schrader

Plants 2019, 8(3), 67; doi 10.3390/plants8030067

• “GWAS for Starch-Related Parameters in Japonica Rice (Oryza sativa L.)”

by Chiara Biselliandrea Volante, Francesca Desiderio, Alessandro Tondelli, Alberto Gianinetti, Franca Finocchiaro, Federica Taddei, Laura Gazza, Daniela Sgrulletta, Luigi Cattivelli and Giampiero Valè

Plants 2019, 8(8), 292; doi 10.3390/plants8080292

Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425) is an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal on neuroscience. It has been covered by leading indexing services, including Scopus, SCIE (Web of Science), PubMed, PMC, etc. The 2020 Impact Factor was 3.394. The aims and scope of the journal can be found at the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/brainsci/about.

The Brain Sciences editorial team is pleased to announce this open call for Special Issue proposals, which offers a group of authors the opportunity to work on an interconnected set of papers on an innovative topic. Special Issues are led by Guest Editors who are experts in the subject and oversee the editorial process for papers.

Proposals for Special Issues should be sent to the Editorial Office (brainsci@mdpi.com) or via the website: https://www.mdpi.com/journalproposal/sendproposalspecialissue/brainsci.

Information to be provided in a proposal:

• A 150–200-word summary that clearly states the significance, novelty, technical advancement, and adherence to the scope of the journal of the proposed topic;
• A list of 5–10 keywords on the topic;
• A brief resume of proposed Guest Editors, together with their information (title, name, email, affiliation, personal website, keywords of interests);
• A proposed submission deadline (a Special Issue will usually be open for submissions for 6–8 months);
• A list of at least 20 potential contributors or a list of 8 planned papers.

As a Guest Editor, you would be responsible for:

• Inviting papers from your peers to be published in your Special Issue;
• Checking the suitability of abstracts/manuscripts submitted to the Special Issue;
• Making pre-check decisions regarding whether to send a new submission to peer review;
• Making final decisions regarding whether to accept or reject a paper based on peer-review outcomes.

As a Guest Editor, you would have the following privileges:

• A recognition certificate as a Guest Editor of Brain Sciences;
• The opportunity to publish one paper free of charge in your Special Issue;
• The ability to invite high-quality papers to be published in your Special Issue free of charge or with certain discounts;
• A printed book version of your Special Issue if at least 10 accepted manuscripts are published after full peer review.

Editorial Office’s responsibility:

The Editorial Office will set up the Special Issue website, arrange promotional material, assist with paper invitations, and take care of the administrative tasks associated with peer review, including inviting reviewers, collecting reports, contacting authors, and arranging professional production before publication.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Editorial Office (brainsci@mdpi.com) if you are interested and would like further details and clarifications.

We look forward to receiving your proposals.

Brain Sciences Editorial Office

Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425) is recruiting Editors-in-Chief for the following fourteen Sections:

• “Sensory and Motor Neuroscience”;
• “Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience”;
• “Neurorehabilitation”;
• “Neurodegenerative Diseases”;
• “Educational Neuroscience”;
• “Neuropharmacology”;
• “Neuroscience of Pain”;
• “Neuro-oncology”;
• “Neurotology and Neuro-ophthalmology”;
• “Neural Control of Peripheral Function”;
• “Neuroenergetics Nutrition and Brain Health”;
• “Neurosurgery and Neuroanatomy”;
• “Neuropathology”;
• “Neurovirology”.

As a Section Editor-in-Chief, you would have the following responsibilities:

• Making decisions on whether a manuscript can be accepted or not based on the reports that we collect;
• Checking and approving potential Special Issues in the Section, suggesting special topics or editing a Special Issue on a topic related to your research interests when it is convenient for you;
• Recommending Section Board Members to join and contribute to editorial work;
• Promoting the journal and increasing its visibility at related academic conferences;
• Advising on journal development.

We are delighted to welcome the following recognized researchers, who recently joined the Editorial Board of Brain Sciences (ISSN: 2076-3425):

• Prof. Dr. Antoni Rodriguez-Fornells;
• Prof. Dr. Jaime Kulisevsky;
• Dr. Matthew J. Hoptman;
• Dr. Lijian Yang.

We wish them every success in developing the journal.

Further details concerning the Editorial Board can be found at: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/brainsci/editors.

It is our great honor to congratulate the Editorial Board Members and Editors in MDPI's journals who have been distinguished as 2021 Highly Cited Researchers by Clarivate, according to Web of Science data. We herewith express our gratitude for the immense impact the named researchers continue to make on scientific progress and on our journals' development.

Clarivate's annual list of Highly Cited Researchers^TM identifies the most highly cited scientists for the past decade. Their impactful papers are among the top 1 per cent in the citation distribution of one or more of 22 fields analyzed in the "Essential Science Indicators", distinguishing them as hugely influential among their peers.

The full list of 2021 Highly Cited Researchers  can be accessed at the following webpage in the Web of Science^TM https://recognition.webofscience.com/awards/highly-cited/2021/.

--- Highly Cited Researchers (HCR) is a Clarivate product.

Academic editors play a crucial role in leading our journals and ensuring that each article undergoes a robust and timely peer-review. With the launch of Topics this year and addition of Topic Editors to our family of academic editors, we decided it would be a good time to restructure our academic boards, thus providing more clarity and support for each role. MDPI is pleased to announce the launch of a new position—Topical Advisory Panel Member, that will replace the previous position of Topics Board Member. The Topical Advisory Panel will be comprised of early career researchers eager to gain experience in editorial work.

The main responsibility of the new members of the Topical Advisory Panel is to regularly provide support to Guest Editors, Topic Editors, and Section Board Members. The responsibilities of the Topical Advisory Panel are available here: https://www.mdpi.com/editors.

Each year, the members’ performances are evaluated, and outstanding members are promoted to the Editorial Board by the Editor-in-Chief.

To qualify as a Topical Advisory Panel Member, applicants must:

• Have expertise and experience in the field related to the journal;
• Have received a Ph.D. in the last 10 years, approximately;
• Have at least 6-8 published papers in the last 5 years as first author or corresponding author;
• Currently hold an independent research position in academia or a government institute.

If you are interested in this role, please contact the editorial office by email.

We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Founded in 1996, MDPI was one of the first fully Open Access publisher. Over 25 years MDPI has grown to become the largest Open Access publisher globally, publishing over 160,000 articles across more than 350 journals in 2020. At the core, MDPI was founded in response to a pressing need of fast publication and inclusion. The scholar was set at the centre of the publication process for the first time. Acting as a service provider, rather than a product provider, MDPI exists to help scientists achive their objective to disseminate research results. At MDPI, we believe scientists deserve a better service from the publishing world.

The International Open Access Week (Open Access Week), founded by the SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition) Alliance and student partners in 2008, has been successfully running for 13 years. As an advocate and pioneer of open access publishing, MDPI actively responds to the call of International Open Access Week. This year’s theme of “It Matters How We Open Knowledge: Building Structural Equity” highlights the Recommendation’s call for equitable participation from all authors and readers.

For the last 25 years, MDPI has been committed to disseminating open research. Here is a video showing MDPI’s Commitment to Equity, Inclusion and Diversity for More than 25 Years.

International Open Access Week is an important opportunity to catalyze new conversations, create connections across and between communities that can facilitate this co-design, and advance progress in the building of more equitable foundations for opening knowledge—discussions and actions that need to be continued, year in and year out. MDPI has always aimed to provide professional and efficient publishing services to scholars around the world.

Our mission is to make scientific research accessible to everyone; this year, we interview and hold discussions with open science ambassadors on how to build an equal and inclusive environment for open science. Academic editors help us collaborate with more institutions to advocate for open access ideas.

Read our anniversary blog post: "Sharing 'Collective Human Knowledge': The Benefits of Open Access Publication"

Besides this, our scientific community is a key driver of our success and MDPI’s remarkable growth. Despite the pandemic, we have prepared online conferences and workshops to gather scholars from different communities.

The Basel Sustainable Publishing online forum provides an equal opportunity for stakeholders and researchers from multi-cultural environments to exchange ideas and eliminate barriers to participation.

Conference date: 25 October 2021, online
Conference website: https://bspf2021.sciforum.net/
Main topics: MDPI discusses the current dilemma of open access science from various perspectives such as governments, libraries, and publishers, and related measures on how to change the status quo of discrimination from a global perspective.

We aim to support equality, inclusion, diversity, and accessibility in scholarly communications. We collaborate with universities and key laboratories and have scholarly communications with researchers, teachers, and students on open access workshops.

• 25 October 2021
  Energies journal and Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

• 28 October 2021
  Machines journal and State Key Laboratory of Traction Power, Southwest Jiaotong University

• 29 October 2021
  Processes journal and Beijing Institute of Technology

• 29 October 2021
  Coatings journal and Wuhan University of Technology

MDPI is committed to providing open access and high-quality publishing services for scholars and promoting rapid dissemination of academic achievements. We hope to promote the practices and policies of open access publishing and diversify the dissemination of academic achievements.

Rigorous peer-review is the cornerstone of high-quality academic publishing. Over 369,916 scholars served as reviewers for MDPI journals in 2020. We are extremely appreciative of all those who made a contribution to the editorial process in this capacity. At the beginning of every year, journal editorial offices publish a list of all reviewers’ names to express our gratitude. In addition, this year, the MDPI Top Reviewer Award was announced, to recognize the very best reviewers for their expertise and dedication, and their high-quality, and timely review reports. We are pleased to announce the following winners of the 2020 MDPI Top Reviewer Award:

• Adriana Burlea-Schiopoiu;
• Alban Kuriqi;
• Álvaro González-Vila;
• Alessandro Alaimo;
• Alexey Beskopylny;
• Alexander Yu Churyumov;
• Alberto Fernández-Isabel;
• Andrea Mastinu;
• Antonios N. Papadopoulos;
• Anton Rassõlkin;
• Antonio Humberto Hamad Minervino;
• Arkadiusz Matwijczuk;
• Artur Słomka;
• Baojie He;
• Bartłomiej Potaniec;
• Bojan Đurin;
• Camilo Arturo Rodriguez Diaz;
• Carmelo Maria Musarella;
• Chiachung Chen;
• Chiman Kwan;
• Cristian Busu;
• Danil Pimenov;
• Dan-Cristian Dabija;
• Delfín Ortega-Sánchez;
• Demetrio Antonio Zema;
• Denis Butusov;
• Elena Lucchi;
• Gaurab Dutta;
• Livia Anastasiu;
• M. R. Safaei.

For more information about how to become a reviewer of MDPI journals, please see: www.mdpi.com/reviewers.

UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. In 2020 the SDG Publishers Compact was launched, aimed to inspire publishers and accelerate progress to achieve the 17 goals by 2030. Members of the programme are committed to support the publication of materials that will promote and inspire actions towards SDGs.

MDPI is an eager advocate of SDGs and has already been supporting the programme by creating Special Issues and publishing a series of books on SDGs prior to joining the Compact in 2021. MDPI's Sustainability Foundation initiated the World Sustainability Awards in 2016. We fully support UN's goals to promote sustainable actions that make the world a better place for all and, as part of its commitment, we will focus our actions on SDG10: Reduced Inequalities whilst promoting all 17 SDGs. For more details, please visit the programme’s website: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sdg-publishers-compact/.

Joining this initiative was a unanimous decision. MDPI has in its core values the dissemination of science for all, breaking the wall between research access and under-represented members of the scientific community and the general population. To support this initiative further and continue to support under-represented scientists, MDPI will take a series of actions that will be announced once ready.

The first action MDPI takes is to nominate Dr. Liliane Auwerter as the coordinator of the programme. Dr. Auwerter studied Environmental Process Technology (UTFPR, Brazil), obtained her MSc degree in Water and Environmental Engineering (University of Surrey, UK) and in 2020 completed her PhD in self-healing low-friction materials for water transport (Imperial College London, UK), always focusing on diverse scientific projects that would potentially bring sustainability to industrial processes. As a student in Brazil, she engaged in volunteering activities focused on environmental education and took part in the Millennial Development Goals meetings held at the university.

For more information, please contact:
Dr. Liliane Auwerter
Scientific Officer
liliane.auwerter@mdpi.com

This serves to announce to our valued authors based in Japan that value-added tax, or consumption tax will now be imposed on article processing fees and other service fees for all papers submitted, or resubmitted (assigned new paper IDs), effective from 15 August 2021. The change is in accordance with the Japanese "Act for Partial Revision of the Income Tax Act and Other Acts" (Act No. 9 of 2015), which includes a revision of consumption taxation on cross-border supplies of services such as digital content distribution.

For additional information from the National Tax Agency please see here ("Cross-border supplies of electronic services").

Contact: Setsuko Nishihara, MDPI Tokyo

The 2020 citation metrics have been officially released in the Journal Citation Reports (JCR)!

We are pleased to announce that 85 MDPI journals are included, of which:

• 10 journals received their first impact factor
• 96% of journals increased their impact factor from 2019
• 32 journals (38%) ranked among the top 25% of journals, in at least one category