Announcements

MDPI will attend ESCMID Global 2025, which will take place in Vienna, Austria, from 11 April to 15 April 2025.

ESCMID Global is the largest international meeting of its kind, and it plays a pivotal role in bringing together the global scientific community to exchange knowledge, share insights, and collaborate on cutting-edge research. Last year, the conference attracted 18,599 registered participants and received more than 7,800 abstract submissions from more than 129 countries. This overwhelming response underscores the ongoing growth of the ESCMID Global community and its leadership role in the field of infections. The submissions covered a wide range of topics and allowed for the curation of an outstanding and diverse programme that showcased the latest research and innovations from leading experts in the field.

The following MDPI journals will be represented at the conference:

• JCM;
• Antibiotics;
• Diagnostics;
• Venereology;
• TropicalMed;
• Diseases;
• IJMS;
• Life;
• JPM;
• Reports;
• Medicines;
• Vaccines;
• Infectious Disease Reports;
• Clinics and Practice;
• BioMed;
• Therapeutics.

If you are planning on attending this conference, please do not hesitate to stop by our booth, K40, and start a conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person and answering any questions that you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://www.escmid.org/congress-events/escmid-global/vienna-2025/.

Conference: 5th SPLC-CRS Young Scientists Meeting
Organization: The Spanish Portuguese Local Chapter of the Controlled Release Society
Date: 30–31 January 2025
Place: Institut Químic de Sarrià (IQS), Barcelona, Spain

MDPI journals are excited to participate as exhibitors at the 5th SPLC-CRS Young Scientists Meeting, hosted at the Institut Químic de Sarrià (IQS), Barcelona, Spain, from 30 to 31 January 2025. CRS Young Scientists are a diverse group of people who are typically students and early career scientists in academia or industry under the age of 45 and within 15 years of their first publication in the science, technology, and innovation of delivery of bioactives.

The 5th SPLC-CRS Young Scientists Meeting will cover topics on delivery systems and other platforms that allow the controlled release of drugs. The conference will feature an exciting program, including invited talks from renowned speakers, short Young Scientist oral communications from selected abstracts, workshops, poster sessions and speed talks.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Antibiotics;
• Pharmaceuticals;
• Biomedicines;
• Journal of Personalized Medicine.

If you will be attending this conference, please feel free to start a conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person and answering any questions you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://meeting2025.splc-crs.org/.

Conference: 17th European Conference on Fungal Genetics (ECFG17)
Place: Convention Centre Dublin, Ireland
Date: 2–5 March 2025

We are excited to announce that MDPI journals will participate, as exhibitors, in the 17th European Conference on Fungal Genetics (ECFG17), from 2 to 5 March 2025. The city of Dublin will welcome over 1,000 participants to this prestigious biennial event, bringing together leading researchers, academics, and professionals in the field of fungal genetics from around the globe. The conference aims to foster collaboration, share cutting-edge research, and promote advancements in the study of fungi and their genetic aspects.

Main conference topics:

• Biodiversity and Molecular Taxonomy;
• Evolution;
• Cell Biology and Development;
• Genome Function and Epigenetics;
• Metabolism and Metabolites;
• Sensing and Signaling;
• Molecular Tools and Synthetic Biology;
• Fungal interactions (Pathogens and Symbionts);
• Antifungal compounds;
• Fungal Biotechnology.

The following MDPI journals will be represented at the conference:

• JoF;
• Genes;
• Epigenomes;
• Biology;
• Life;
• Pathogens;
• CIMB;
• Applied Biosciences;
• Metabolites;
• Antibiotics;
• IJMS;
• MPs.

If you are planning to attend the above conference, please feel free to start a conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person and answering any questions that you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://ecfg17.org/.

More than 100 German universities and research institutions have entered into a national agreement with MDPI. The publication agreement negotiated by ZB MED comes into effect on 1 January 2025 and is valid until the end of 2026. Joining the consortium is still possible until the beginning of 2025. We are delighted by the high level of interest this agreement has already garnered, reflecting the strong demand for accessible and cost-effective open access publishing solutions among German research institutions.

This new cooperation aims to make scientific gold open access publishing more affordable and less administratively burdensome for researchers in Germany. The agreement includes substantial discounts on article processing charges (APCs) for corresponding authors from participating institutions. It offers flexible payment options, including centralized invoicing or individual payment of fees by researchers or their institutions. Additionally, the agreement features a flat-fee model that enables institutions to precisely plan expenses and optimize their library budgets.

"MDPI can look back on over a decade of successful partnerships with German research institutions," says Peter Roth, MDPI Head of Publishing. "The new agreement marks another milestone in the long-standing co-operation between MDPI and the German scientific community. It emphasizes our commitment to developing up-to-date and inventive solutions for the diverse needs of scientific institutions to promote open research for the benefit of researchers."

Petra Labriga, Head of Strategic License Management at ZB MED, highlighted the agreement's significance: "As one of the world's leading Gold OA publishers, MDPI plays a central role in the German publishing landscape. We are particularly pleased that we were able to achieve considerable potential cost savings for scientific institutions and their authors at a national level through our negotiations."

The partnership reflects a common goal of advancing the idea of open access and supporting researchers in making their scientific excellence internationally visible.

"We would like to thank the ZB MED consortium team for their excellent collaboration," added Adrian Stefan Zamfir, MDPI Institutional Partnership Manager for the DACH region. "We are delighted that this agreement will give even more researchers in Germany access to our tried-and-tested and reliable publication platform."

Franziska Fischer (right), Commercial Director at ZB MED, an Peter Roth (left), Head of Publishing at MDPI, celebrate the signing of the new national open access agreement between MDPI and the ZB MED Consortium.

More Information

• Conditions and participation opportunities (German): Link
• Frequently asked questions (German): Link

Contact

• ZB MED: Team Konsortiallizenzen (konsortiallizenzen@zbmed.de) - Website
  MDPI: Adrian Stefan Zamfir, Institutional Partnership Manager (zamfir@mdpi.com)
  
  

About ZB MED

ZB MED - Information Centre for Life Sciences is an infrastructure and research centre for life science information and data. Its aim is to support and strengthen research for people and the environment: from medicine to biodiversity and environmental protection.

The work of ZB MED is orientated towards the strategic guidelines:

• Research + Networking: We conduct research together with the regionally, nationally, European and globally networked research community.
• Data science: We enable data analyses and generate new knowledge through research.
• Access to information: We provide sustainable access to information, literature and data as a central information infrastructure.
• Open + FAIR: We promote open and reproducible science in line with open science and FAIR principles.
• Knowledge and skills transfer: We actively impart knowledge, competences and skills.

More information at www.zbmed.de.

About MDPI

Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, MDPI is one of the world's leading open access publishers with a current portfolio of more than 440 journals in all scientific disciplines. MDPI‘s goal is to advance open science worldwide through greater transparency, efficiency and collaboration. To date, more than 3.7 million researchers have published their results in MDPI journals. The editorial process is overseen by a large network of dedicated reviewers and editors and supported by more than 6500 MDPI employees. MDPI currently works with over 800 academic institutions and 180 scientific societies worldwide, which benefit from a wide range of MDPI services and products.

We are pleased to announce a series of updates to our template, aimed at improving the readability and overall aesthetics of our publications. These changes have been meticulously designed to enhance the user experience and ensure consistency across all our publications. The updated template will be available for download from the Instructions for Authors page.

The following updates will be applied to articles published in the 2025 volumes, starting on 24 December 2024:

• Main text: The line spacing has been increased to improve the readability of publications;
• Header and footer: The link to the journal website will be removed, as a hyperlink has been integrated into the journal logo. Additionally, the DOI link will be moved from the left-hand side to the right-hand side, and both the header and footer will be slightly raised to achieve a better balance;
• Left information bar: The information provided here has been rearranged for better organization; the CC-BY logo will be removed;
• Font size: The font size used for the abstract, keywords, and first-level headings will be increased.

Furthermore, MDPI journals will continue to use article numbers. This approach enables us to maintain a rapid and efficient production process by being able to define pagination as soon as a paper is accepted.

We hope that the new version of the template will provide users with a better experience and make the process more convenient.

Please contact production@mdpi.com if you have any questions or suggestions.

To develop different research areas and continue to attract high-quality papers, Antibiotics (ISSN: 2079-6382) is recruiting a Section Editor-in-Chief for the Section “Antibiotics in Animal Health”.

The main responsibilities of the Section Editor-in-Chief include the following:

• Supervising the quality of new submissions for their Section;
• Acting as or recommending a Guest Editor for a Special Issue on a topic related to their research interests;
• Providing conference/society cooperation recommendations.

This position is open to experts on related aspects of antibiotics. To apply for this position, recommend potential candidates, or request further information, please contact the Antibiotics Editorial Office (antibiotics@mdpi.com) or the Managing Editor, Ms. Monica He (monica.he@mdpi.com).

Antibiotics is an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal published online by MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. We encourage scientists to publish their experimental and theoretical results in as much detail as possible on topics including, but not limited to, pharmacodynamics, antibiotic uses, antimicrobial stewardship, antibiotic resistance, and novel antimicrobial agents. The journal has been indexed by the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE: Web of Science), Scopus, and other databases. Citations are available on PubMed, while full texts are archived in PubMed Central. The Impact Factor for Antibiotics (2023) is 4.3, ranking Q1 in the “Pharmacology & Pharmacy” category and Q1 in the “Infectious Diseases” category.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the 685 Editorial Board Members of our journals – from 39 different countries and territories – who have been recognized as Highly Cited Researchers for 2024 by Clarivate. This distinction highlights their exceptional scientific achievements and significant contributions, which transcend academic boundaries to advance global knowledge, sustainability, security, and well-being.

Clarivate's annual Highly Cited Researcher™ list identifies the most influential scientists of the past decade, whose work has had a profound and widespread impact across various scientific and social science disciplines. Their impactful papers rank among the top 1% by citations in one or more of the 21 fields analyzed within the "Essential Science Indicators," marking them as leaders in their respective domains.

"Highly Cited Researchers have demonstrated significant and broad influence in their field(s) of research," according to Clarivate. In 2024, a total of 6,886 Highly Cited Researcher designations were awarded to 6,636 individuals.

The following is a list of MDPI's Editorial Board Members named Highly Cited Researchers in 2024. We congratulate them for their achievement and their contributions to advancing knowledge in their respective fields.

The world is facing an important challenge regarding the fight against multi-drug-resistant microorganisms. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), infection by microorganisms resistant to available antibiotics and antimicrobials may lead to millions of deaths every year by 2050 if advances are not made.

Various molecules have been explored as potential replacements and/or adjuvants to conventional antimicrobials. Among them, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) and other antimicrobial polymers seem very promising due to their membranolytic activity, leading to fast and selective killing and limiting the development of resistance. In addition, in contrast with conventional antibiotics, AMPs possess additional activities (including antiviral, antifungal, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and/or wound healing activities), making them able to potentially fight many human diseases. Indeed, many AMPs have already been used in medicine or tested in clinical trials.

The urgency to find a new antimicrobial treatment has also led to the characterization of hundreds of natural or synthetic molecules and the repurposing of molecules that were not initially identified as antimicrobial ones.

The objective of the webinar series “Structural Aspects of Antimicrobial Peptides and Antimicrobials” is to present and discuss important findings regarding the structure–activity relationship (SAR) of antimicrobial molecules, including not only AMPs but also other natural, synthetic, or repurposed antimicrobial compounds.

Date: 3 December 2024 at 2:00 p.m. CET | 10:00 a.m. Brazil | 9:00 p.m. CST Asia
Webinar ID: 812 9184 0835
Website: https://sciforum.net/event/Antibiotics-8

Register now for free!

Program:

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the webinar. Registrations with academic institutional email addresses will be prioritized.

Unable to attend? Register anyway and we will let you know when the recording is available to watch.

Webinar Chair and Keynote Speakers:

• Marc Maresca, Institut des Sciences Moléculaires de Marseille (ISM2) – BiosCiences – UMR 7313 CNRS Aix Marseille Université, France;
• Sylvie Rebuffat, Laboratoire Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (MNHN), Paris, France;
• Octavio Luiz Franco, ¹ Center for Proteomics and Biochemical Analysis, Postgraduate Program in Genomic Sciences and Biotechnology, Catholic University of Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil; ² Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, S-Inova Biotech, Dom Bosco Catholic University, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil.

Relevant Topical Collection:
“Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Structural Aspects of AMPs and Antimicrobials”
Collection Editors: Michael Conlo, Marc Maresca, Bong-Jin Lee and Aurélie Tasiemski

In order to further enhance the international influence of the journal Antibiotics (ISSN: ISSN 2079-6382), promote the academic exchange of young scientists, and support the Editorial Board with additional expertise, Antibiotics is inviting interested and eligible early career researchers to apply for Early Career Editorial Board (ECEB) membership.

Recruitment:
A total of 200 Early Career Editorial Board Members are planned to be recruited. Early Career Editorial Board (ECEB) members will hold the position for two years with the possibility of renewal for a second term.

Application Eligibility:

• Completed their doctorate/Ph.D. degree in the past 10 years (considering exceptions for career interruptions, including medical and family leave);
• Evidence of significant research achievements in all aspects of antibiotics;
• Willingness to dedicate their time to the development of the journal with passion and enthusiasm;
• Researchers that are active and engaged in their community (e.g., experienced at presenting at academic conferences or involved in professional organizations).

Benefits of being an Early Career Editorial Board Member:

• A certificate of appointment as an Early Career Editorial Board Member will be provided;
• The achievements of Early Career Editorial Board Members are publicized on journal media platforms to improve academic visibility;
• An opportunity to be promoted to Editorial Board Member based on contributions;
• The journal will regularly acknowledge those who participated in the peer-review process on the journal website;
• Opportunities to participate in or host annual meetings and online seminars organized by the Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial Board Members.

Responsibilities of an Early Career Editorial Board Member:

• Publicizing and promoting the journal at academic conferences and among peers;
• Selecting high-quality articles and preparing bilingual media content for promotion;
• Reviewing at least four manuscripts per year;
• Providing input on any new initiatives of journal development;
• Inviting submissions from local and overseas world-leading scientists in respective research fields.

Applications:
Please fill in the application form here.

Please send the application form and your academic resume to antibiotics@mdpi.com with the subject of “Antibiotics Early Career Editorial Board Application + Name + Institute + Research Expertise”.

Application deadline: 31 December 2025.

Selection Process and Announcement
The selection process: initial screening of application materials → selection by the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board Members → email notification → issuing a certificate of appointment.

The selection will be made within one month of the application deadline, and the results will be announced on the journal website.