Long Noncoding RNAs in Drug Metabolism and Human Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

Recent advancements in genomic related techniques have provided a remarkable avenue via which to explore the vast noncoding portion of the genome, which constitutes over 98% of the entire human genome. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), characterized by a length exceeding 200 nucleotides, have emerged as key players in gene expression regulation and have been found to participate in various critical biological processes, such as development, metabolism, and disease pathogenesis.

Drug metabolism is a critical step in pharmacokinetics, and ultimately affects the bioavailability, efficacy, and toxicity of administrated drugs. Multiple factors have been reported to contribute to the process of drug metabolism, and lncRNAs are one of the most recently discovered factors. LncRNAs have exhibited the ability to interact with transcription factors and epigenetic modifiers, exerting regulatory control over genes involved in drug metabolism, including enzymes and transporters. Understanding how lncRNAs affect drug metabolism could be beneficial in predicting drug responses, optimizing drug dosing, and developing personalized therapeutic approaches.

Moreover, lncRNAs have emerged as regulatory factors in the understanding of disease mechanisms, diagnosis, prognosis, and potential therapeutic interventions. Investigating lncRNAs has illuminated the complex molecular mechanisms underlying the development of various human diseases, including cancer. LncRNAs also exhibit specific expression patterns in several diseases, making them promising biomarkers for the early detection and diagnosis of these diseases. LncRNAs also represent a novel therapeutic target for drug discovery, and could be targeted by small molecules or nucleic acid-based therapeutics and thus regulated.

In summary, studying lncRNAs in drug metabolism and human disease has provided valuable insights into pharmacokinetics, personalized medication, disease diagnosis, and the mechanisms of diseases. The field holds great promise regarding its ability to enhance drug development and disease control in the future.

Dr. Liming Chen
Guest Editor

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.

• lncRNA
• P450
• drug transporter
• liver
• cancer
• biomarker