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Biomedicines
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Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition)
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Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition)

A special issue of Biomedicines (ISSN 2227-9059). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular and Translational Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2025 | Viewed by 6265

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Letizia Polito

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences -DIMEC, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via San Giacomo 14, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Interests: immunotoxin; immunoconjugate; immunotargeting; plant toxins; ribosome-inactivating proteins
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Federica Falà

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences -DIMEC, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via San Giacomo 14, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Interests: cell signalling; immunotargeting; plant toxins
Dr. Riuko Ohashi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Division of Molecular and Diagnostic Pathology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, 1-757 Asahimachi-dori, Chuo-ku, Niigata 951-8510, Japan
Interests: renal cell carcinoma; pathology; molecular pathology; biomarkers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce a Special Issue entitled “Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition)” to celebrate and highlight the achievements of women in the development of new molecules and therapies for cancer research area.

For this Special Issue, we are seeking the submission of original research articles and comprehensive review papers from oncology-related fields, in particular regarding new therapeutic targets, therapeutic strategies, and research of biomedicines and biopharmaceutical products.

Dr. Letizia Polito
Dr. Federica Falà
Dr. Riuko Ohashi
Guest Editors

Women’s Special Issue Series

This Special Issue is part of Biomedicines's Women’s Special Issue Series, hosted by women editors for women researchers. The Series advocates the advancement of women in science. We invite contributions to the Special Issue whose lead authors identify as women. The submission of articles with all-women authorship is especially encouraged. However, we do welcome articles from all authors, irrespective of gender.

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomedicines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • antibody
  • biomedicines
  • biopharmaceutical products
  • cancer therapy
  • drug delivery
  • immunoconjugates
  • immunotoxins
  • immunotherapy
  • immunotargeting
  • nanodelivery
  • toxins

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1702 KiB  
Article
Effect of Gender on Patients with Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Treated with Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: A Real-World Study
by Teresa Calleja-Chucla, Patricia Cordeiro González, Alejandro Martínez Pradeda, Sonia Pértega-Díaz, Luis Margusino-Framiñán and Silvia Antolín Novoa
Biomedicines 2025, 13(2), 437; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13020437 - 11 Feb 2025
Viewed by 906
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the differences in overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) between men and women with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in second-line and later treatments. Methods: A retrospective, single-center observational study was conducted on patients [...] Read more.
Objective: To evaluate the differences in overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) between men and women with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in second-line and later treatments. Methods: A retrospective, single-center observational study was conducted on patients with advanced NSCLC treated with ICIs (nivolumab, pembrolizumab, and atezolizumab) from January 2015 to December 2019 (with follow-up until December 2021). Demographic, clinical, and treatment-related variables were collected. OSand PFSwere analyzed using the Kaplan–Meier method and compared between genders using the log-rank test.A multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed to adjust for confounders. Results: A total of 189 patients were included, and 47 (25%) were women. The most common histology was adenocarcinoma (61%). Women began treatment at a younger age (59.8 vs. 66 years, p < 0.001) and had higher rates of active smoking (46.8% vs. 38%, p = 0.001). The median OS was similar between men (9.5 months, 95% CI: 7.1–11.8) and women (9.2 months, 95% CI: 3.3–15.2; p = 0.382) while PFS was significantly higher in males (3.2 months, 95% CI: 2.5–4.0) than in females (2.1 months; 95% CI = 1.6–2.5) (p = 0.002).Women had higher rates of tumor cachexia (BMI < 20).Worse PFS was observed for women both in the <20 kg/m2 (median PFS: 1.8 vs. 2.7 months, p = 0.016) and 20–24.9 kg/m2 groups (median PFS: 2.2 vs. 3.3 months, p = 0.077), while in patients with a BMI >= 25 kg/m2, median OS was higher in women than in men (14.7 months vs. 10.1 months). Women had also a significantly worse PFS than men among those with a cumulative tobacco consumption of <30 packs-year (median PFS: 2.2 vs. 3.2, p = 0.038. In the multivariate analysis, the male sex was significantly associated with a better PFS(HR = 0.59; p = 0.009), without significant differences between sexes in OS (HR = 0.90; p = 0.618). Among the other variables analyzed, only an ECOG >= 2 was significantly associated with both worse OS (HR = 3.53; 95% CI = 1.93–6.47) and PFS (HR = 2.19; 95% CI = 1.23–3.89). Women who discontinued due to toxicity (n = 7) had a median OS of 41.4 months (95% CI: 14.7–68.1) after discontinuation, whereas men (n = 15) had a median OS of 8.8 months (95% CI: 6.9–10.8), (p = 0.045). Conclusions: Sex-based differences were observed in the ICI outcomes. Women had worse PFS, particularly with lower BMI and lower tobacco exposure, despite similar OS between sexes. Women discontinued ICIs due to toxicity earlier but showed longer OS after discontinuation. Poor ECOG status was linked to worse outcomes across all the patients. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition))
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Review

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21 pages, 1493 KiB  
Review
Role of the AIM2 Inflammasome in Cancer: Potential Therapeutic Strategies
by Chiara Colarusso, Michela Terlizzi, Simone Di Caprio, Anna Falanga, Emmanuel D’Andria, Roberta d’Emmanuele di Villa Bianca and Rosalinda Sorrentino
Biomedicines 2025, 13(2), 395; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13020395 - 6 Feb 2025
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Abstract
Absent in melanoma 2 (AIM2) is a member of the innate immune sensors that recognizes cytosolic nucleic acids, leading to inflammasome assembly. In recent years, several studies in the oncology field have highlighted the presence of cytoplasmic double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) following necrosis and/or [...] Read more.
Absent in melanoma 2 (AIM2) is a member of the innate immune sensors that recognizes cytosolic nucleic acids, leading to inflammasome assembly. In recent years, several studies in the oncology field have highlighted the presence of cytoplasmic double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) following necrosis and/or genomic instability, which is typical of malignant transformation. The recognition of dsDNA by the AIM2 inflammasome either in cancer cells or in immune cells can further exacerbate inflammatory processes on the basis of cancer progression. In this context, the role of AIM2 in cancer is still controversial in that some authors assume that AIM2 activation has pro-tumor activities, while others define it as anti-tumor. This discrepancy may be due to the nature of the cells where AIM2 is expressed or the histology of the tumor. This review aims to provide an overview of the controversial role of AIM2 in cancer, taking into consideration the pharmacological tools currently available to modulate AIM2 activity in cancer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition))
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23 pages, 2274 KiB  
Review
Anti-Drug Antibody Response to Therapeutic Antibodies and Potential Mitigation Strategies
by Erin L. Howard, Melanie M. Goens, Leonardo Susta, Ami Patel and Sarah K. Wootton
Biomedicines 2025, 13(2), 299; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13020299 - 26 Jan 2025
Viewed by 2606
Abstract
The development of anti-drug antibodies (ADAs) against therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) poses significant challenges in the efficacy and safety of these treatments. ADAs can lead to adverse immune reactions, reduced drug efficacy, and increased clearance of therapeutic antibodies. This paper reviews the formation [...] Read more.
The development of anti-drug antibodies (ADAs) against therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) poses significant challenges in the efficacy and safety of these treatments. ADAs can lead to adverse immune reactions, reduced drug efficacy, and increased clearance of therapeutic antibodies. This paper reviews the formation and mechanisms of ADAs, explores factors contributing to their development, and discusses potential strategies to mitigate ADA responses. Current and emerging strategies to reduce ADA formation include in silico and in vitro prediction tools, deimmunization techniques, antibody engineering, and various drug delivery methods. Additionally, novel approaches such as tolerogenic nanoparticles, oral tolerance, and in vivo delivery of therapeutic proteins via viral vectors and synthetic mRNA or DNA are explored. These strategies have the potential to enhance clinical outcomes of mAb therapies by minimizing immunogenicity and improving patient safety. Further research and innovation in this field are critical to overcoming the ongoing challenges of ADA responses in therapeutic antibody development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition))
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13 pages, 796 KiB  
Review
Conventional Chemotherapy and Inflammation: What Is the Role of the Inflammasome in the Tumor Microenvironment?
by Chiara Colarusso, Michela Terlizzi, Simone Di Caprio, Anna Falanga, Emmanuel D’Andria, Roberta d’Emmanuele di Villa Bianca and Rosalinda Sorrentino
Biomedicines 2025, 13(1), 203; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13010203 - 15 Jan 2025
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Abstract
The link between inflammation and cancer has been extensively studied over the years. While the inflammatory process can facilitate tumor establishment and progression, on the other hand, current clinical approaches aim to boost the immune system against the tumor mass. In this scenario, [...] Read more.
The link between inflammation and cancer has been extensively studied over the years. While the inflammatory process can facilitate tumor establishment and progression, on the other hand, current clinical approaches aim to boost the immune system against the tumor mass. In this scenario, the conventional chemotherapy has proven to induce immunogenic cell death in that the release of danger-associated alarmins can foster the cytotoxic immunity following the blockade of immune checkpoints. The release of alarmins can activate the inflammasome pathway. Thus, one of the questions is as follows: can conventional anti-tumor drugs lead to inflammasome activation? And if so, is the resulting effect anti- or pro-tumor? In this review, we provide an overview on the role of the inflammasome in cancer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Women’s Special Issue Series: Biomedicines (2nd Edition))
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