Neural plasticity can be defined as the continuous alteration of the neural pathways and synapses of the living brain in response to experience or injury. In the context of sensory deprivation since birth, the brain undergoes an anatomical reorganization whereby remodeled or increased connections from a remaining intact sense invade the deprived sensory cortex leading to cross-modal plasticity. This remodeling allows for the lost sensory function to be “compensated” for by another sensory input and is referred to as sensory substitution. The main goal of this special issue is to provide a timely overview on the anatomical, physiological, and behavioral changes that accompany sensory deprivation.

We take interest in manuscripts dealing with the concepts of cross-modal plasticity and sensory substitution in animal and human models following congenital or acquired sensory deprivation in the visual, auditory, or other domains. Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• Congenital or acquired blindness, deafness, phantom limbs, anosmia, and so forth
• Using state-of-the-art methodologies such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), magnetoencephalography (MEG), positron emission tomography (PET), functional connectivity analysis, MR spectroscopy (H-MRS), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and voxel-based-morphometry (VBM)
• Papers using traditional histological, biochemical, and behavioral techniques in animals are also welcome

We also invite contributions related to philosophical aspects of such cross-modal changes such as the nature of qualia in the sensory deprived brain.

Before submission authors should carefully read over the journal's Author Guidelines, which are located at http://www.hindawi.com/journals/np/guidelines/. Prospective authors should submit an electronic copy of their complete manuscript through the journal Manuscript Tracking System at http://mts.hindawi.com/ according to the following timetable: