Special Issue "Marine Biotoxins: Novel Issues about Old Compounds"

Guest Editor
Prof. Dr. Gian Paolo Rossini
Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Via Campi 287, 41100 Modena, Italy
Website: http://ilo.unimo.it/Show/People.aspx?Action=Data&IdLanguage=1&IdUniversity=1&IdDepartment=18&IdPeople=657
E-Mail: gianpaolo.rossini@unimore.it
Phone: +39 059 205 5388
Fax: +39 059 205 5410
Interests: signal transduction; receptors; marine biotoxins; molecular mechanisms of toxicity; toxicity pathways; proteomics; biomarkers; functional methods of toxin detection; cell adhesion; cell proliferation; cell death; cell cultures

Dear Colleagues,

Human poisonings due to exposures to marine biotoxins have occurred in the past and represent naturally occurring events, that have been attracting an increasing interest from the scientific community.

The last ten years, in particular, have witnessed a growing body of knowledge on the chemistry, mechanisms of action, toxicity, ecology and distribution, as well as the health impact of marine biotoxins. Research efforts have led to a deeper understanding of many aspects of marine biotoxins and their impact on living organisms, while novel issues have been recognized. For instance, “new” toxin producers have been identified, and “old” ones are being characterized using molecular probes. The number of toxins isolated, chemically characterized and/or synthesized has increased, and new groups of biotoxins have been discovered. Likewise, the methodology for toxin detection has been continuously developed, providing both instrumental and bio-molecular options. Biochemical tools have been increasingly used to clarify the mechanisms of action of toxins, and the “omic” approaches have entered the biotoxin field. The toxicology of biotoxins has been advancing, taking into consideration the real conditions of human and animal exposure to these compounds.

It’s time to gather the information available on novel issues in marine biotoxins, to critically evaluate what we know and pinpoint the many unknowns, thereby providing a broad perspective to support the scientific community in its next efforts to understand and exploit the complexity of the chemistry and biology of marine biotoxins.

Prof. Dr. Gian Paolo Rossini
Guest Editor

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Marine Biotoxins: Novel Issues about Old Compounds in Marine Drugs

Submission

All papers should be submitted to toxins@mdpi.com with copy to the guest editor. To be published continuously until the deadline and papers will be listed together at the special websites.

Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. All papers are refereed through a peer review process. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for submitting papers are available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxins is an international peer-reviewed monthly journal published by MDPI.

Article Processing Charges (APC) for publication in this open access journal are waived for well-prepared manuscripts submitted by 30 June 2010. English correction or formatting fees of 250 CHF (Swiss Francs) will be charged in certain cases for those paper accepted for publication, that require extensive additional formatting and/or English corrections.

• toxin producers
• genomics
• toxin synthesis
• instrumental analysis
• biosensors
• functional assays
• mechanisms of action
• transcription profiles
• proteomics
• metabolomics
• combined toxicity