Preface

Bioinformatics uses computational methods and tools to analyze and produce

meaningful information from biological data. This discipline mainly comprises

studies in biology, computer science, and statistics. Bioinformatics of the brain

is the employment of computational methods to analyze and understand the

functioning of the brain with emphasis on its health and disease states. Re-

cent advancements in neuroimaging technologies and developments of high-

performance computers along with computer algorithms and tools provided

unprecedented finer analysis of brain functions to understand the operation

of cognitive processes and neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s Disease,

Parkinson’s Disease, and schizophrenia.

Our aim in bringing researchers in this field together to have this volume

is to review the contemporary research in this new and exciting field of bioin-

formatics of the brain to aid research studies in computational analysis of the

brain. To this end, we provide a thorough review of brain functions using com-

putational processes stressing the analysis of the brain during various diseases

and disorders. The detailed contents of each chapter are as follows.

The first chapter delves into the intricate workings, structure, and di-

verse neurological conditions that can affect an individual’s brain. It looks

at various neurological conditions under three headings. The first category

includes neurological diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, Parkin-

son’s, and Huntington’s. These illnesses produce excruciating symptoms and

pose significant challenges to patient care. Second, brain tumors—primary

and metastatic—often require radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery and pose

challenging diagnostic and therapeutic issues. Meningeal tumors, brain lym-

phomas, and gliomas represent a representative subset of the diverse spectrum

of brain cancers, and each one has unique therapeutic challenges. Third, the

intricate interplay between neurological and psychological phenomena is high-

lighted by neuropsychiatric disorders. These illnesses include major depressive

disorders, autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,

schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. Neuropsychological rehabilitation is cru-

cial to the treatment of different disorders because it highlights the complex

connection between the brain and behavior.

In reference to the neurodegenerative conditions covered in Chapter 1,

stem cell treatment is discussed in Chapter 2. Many advances in the bio-

logical sciences have been accelerated by stem cells, which have been the

subject of constant attention in recent years. Stem cells are excellent cel-

lular resources for research on molecular mechanisms, regenerative medicine,

xiii