Intrinsically Disordered Proteins and Chronic Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

It is now increasingly evident that a large fraction of the human proteome comprises proteins, or regions within proteins that lack a 3D structure under physiological conditions, and are referred to as intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and intrinsically disordered protein regions (IDPRs), respectively. Despite their lack of a stable structure, IDPs/IDPRs are involved in regulation, signaling, and control, where binding to multiple partners and high-specificity/low-affinity interactions plays a crucial role. Furthermore, intrinsic disorder is a unique structural feature that enables IDPs/IDPRs to participate in, both, one-to-many and many-to-one signaling. Since they serve as general regulators of various cellular processes, IDPs/IDPRs themselves are tightly controlled. However, when overexpressed, miss-expressed, or dysregulated, IDPs/IDPRs are prone to engage in promiscuous, often unwanted interactions and, thus, may lead to the development of various pathological states.

This Special Issue of Biomolecules is dedicated to exploring the role of IDPs in various chronic diseases. The main goal is to compile articles that describe recent progress in elucidating the mechanisms by which IDPs cause variious human diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, amyloidoses, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, genetic diseases, to name just a few.

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