The association between radiation dermatitis severity and social integration among patients with head and neck cancer undergoing radiotherapy: Statistical mediation by mood states.

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs), including Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and related disorders, representing a growing global health crisis driven by population aging and the lack of broadly effective disease-modifying therapies (, ). These conditions share core pathological features—such as oxidative stress, chronic neuroinflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, impaired proteostasis, synaptic loss, and epigenetic dysregulation—that progressively erode neuronal integrity and cognitive function. While pharmacological options remain largely palliative, increasing evidence positions dietary nutrients and bioactive compounds as accessible, multi-target interventions capable of influencing disease onset and progression by modulating cellular and molecular pathways (–). The Research Topic “” brings together cutting-edge preclinical, translational, and clinical insights into how specific bioactive compounds and dietary patterns can attenuate the mechanisms underlying these diseases and disorders. Bridging molecular neuroscience with nutritional strategies, it provides a timely platform for exploring prevention and adjunctive care. This Research Topic of contributions—including original mechanistic studies, pilot trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and opinion pieces—offers a coherent framework that underscores the relevance of plant-derived polyphenols, organosulfur compounds, spices, and whole-diet patterns. Across these articles, several interconnected themes emerge: antioxidant restoration, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory balance, mitochondrial and synaptic protection, epigenetic regulation, and nutrigenomic effects. The Research Topic consistently acknowledges key translational challenges such as bioavailability and inter-individual variability. Antioxidant defense and redox homeostasis are foundational themes. demonstrated that bound polyphenolic fractions from residues exhibit superior free-radical scavenging capacity and, in HO-challenged PC12 cells, significantly increase SOD and CAT activities while reducing ROS and MDA levels by downregulating the stress-related genes and . Similarly, showed that a standardized bilberry () extract rich in anthocyanins provides robust antioxidant activity across multiple assays, upregulates BDNF, and protects SH-SY5Y neurons from oxidative insult. Extending these findings , found that elephant black garlic extract, enriched in unique sulfur metabolites, preserves mitochondrial membrane potential, ATP production, and Mitofusin-1 expression while restoring synaptic proteins SV2 and PSD-95 and spontaneous calcium signaling in hippocampal slices and neurons exposed to soluble Aβ. Together, these studies illustrate how sustained-release or synergistic bioactives can effectively counteract the redox imbalance central to ND progression.