MacKenzie Georgina, Subramaniam Sumithra, Caldwell Lindsey J, Fitzgerald Denise, Harrison Neil A, Hong Soyon, Irani Sarosh R, Khandaker Golam M, Liston Adrian, Miron Veronique E, Mondelli Valeria, Morgan B Paul, Pariante Carmine, Shah Divya K, Taams Leonie S, Teeling Jessica L, Upthegrove Rachel
Wellcome Trust, London, NW1 2BE, UK.
UK Dementia Research Institute Headquarters, London, UK.
Wellcome Open Res. 2021 Jul 29;6:194. doi: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.16997.1. eCollection 2021.
Neuroimmunology in the broadest sense is the study of interactions between the nervous and the immune systems. These interactions play important roles in health from supporting neural development, homeostasis and plasticity to modifying behaviour. Neuroimmunology is increasingly recognised as a field with the potential to deliver a significant positive impact on human health and treatment for neurological and psychiatric disorders. Yet, translation to the clinic is hindered by fundamental knowledge gaps on the underlying mechanisms of action or the optimal timing of an intervention, and a lack of appropriate tools to visualise and modulate both systems. Here we propose ten key disease-agnostic research questions that, if addressed, could lead to significant progress within neuroimmunology in the short to medium term. We also discuss four cross-cutting themes to be considered when addressing each question: i) bi-directionality of neuroimmune interactions; ii) the biological context in which the questions are addressed (e.g. health vs disease vs across the lifespan); iii) tools and technologies required to fully answer the questions; and iv) translation into the clinic. We acknowledge that these ten questions cannot represent the full breadth of gaps in our understanding; rather they focus on areas which, if addressed, may have the most broad and immediate impacts. By defining these neuroimmunology priorities, we hope to unite existing and future research teams, who can make meaningful progress through a collaborative and cross-disciplinary effort.
从最广泛的意义上讲，神经免疫学是研究神经系统与免疫系统之间相互作用的学科。这些相互作用在健康中发挥着重要作用，从支持神经发育、内环境稳定和可塑性到影响行为。神经免疫学越来越被认为是一个有潜力对人类健康以及神经和精神疾病治疗产生重大积极影响的领域。然而，向临床转化受到阻碍，原因包括对潜在作用机制或干预最佳时机的基础知识空白，以及缺乏可视化和调节这两个系统的合适工具。在此，我们提出十个关键的与疾病无关的研究问题，如果得到解决，可能在短期到中期内推动神经免疫学取得重大进展。我们还讨论了在解决每个问题时需要考虑的四个贯穿各领域的主题：i）神经免疫相互作用的双向性；ii）解决问题时的生物学背景（例如健康与疾病与整个生命周期）；iii）全面回答问题所需的工具和技术；iv）向临床转化。我们承认这十个问题不能代表我们理解上的所有差距；相反，它们聚焦于那些如果得到解决可能产生最广泛和最直接影响的领域。通过确定这些神经免疫学优先事项，我们希望团结现有的和未来的研究团队，他们可以通过合作和跨学科的努力取得有意义的进展。
