Functional Peptides and Their Interactions (3rd Edition)

A special issue of Biomolecules (ISSN 2218-273X). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biophysics: Structure, Dynamics, and Function".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 539

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, London TW20 0EX, UK
Interests: molecular biomarkers for health monitoring and the early detection of cancers; antigenic epitopes; rational and structure-based engineering of functional polypeptides; analytical biochemistry and analytical methods development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, London TW20 0EX, UK
Interests: microbial genetics; vaccines; biologically active peptides; drug delivery; probiotics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are delighted to invite you to participate in a Special Issue of Biomolecules, entitled 'Functional Peptides and Their Interactions (3rd Edition)'. This Special Issue seeks original research articles, reviews and short communications exploring the discovery, and structural and functional characterization of naturally occurring and engineered peptides and small proteins, including hormones, signaling peptides, regulatory peptides, immunomodulatory peptides, toxins and antimicrobial peptides.

Functional and structural studies that fall within the scope of this Special Issue include peptide docking, peptide binding analyses, peptide pharmacodynamics, and peptide pharmacokinetics, as well as peptide profiling and peptidomics. We especially welcome papers focusing on the interactions of functional peptides with other biological molecules, peptide receptors, cells and tissues. The scope of this Special Issue includes applications of peptides and peptide-based preparations as vaccines, molecular therapeutics, biocatalysts and biomaterials.

'Functional Peptides and Their Interactions (3rd Edition)' provides a forum for the global peptide community to communicate the latest developments in functional peptide research at the molecular, cellular and systems levels. Please join us in sharing with the scientific community your discoveries and other advances in peptide research, peptide engineering, peptide biotechnology and peptide applications.

Dr. Mikhail Soloviev
Prof. Dr. Simon M. Cutting
Guest Editors

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. Biomolecules 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 2700 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

  • peptides
  • antimicrobial peptides
  • immunomodulatory peptides
  • neuropeptides
  • signaling peptides
  • regulatory peptides
  • cyclic peptides
  • peptidomics
  • peptide profiling
  • peptoids
  • peptide engineering
  • peptide docking
  • peptide therapeutics
  • peptide self-assembly
  • biomaterials
  • biocatalysts
  • small proteins

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 2390 KiB  
Article
Optimizing C-Type Natriuretic Peptide and Receptor Expression Analysis with Droplet Digital™ PCR: Advancing Biomarker Discovery for Brugada Syndrome?
by Manuela Cabiati, Federico Vozzi, Elisa Persiani, Marcello Piacenti, Andrea Rossi, Agnese Sgalippa, Antonella Cecchettini, Gianluca Solarino, Giulio Zucchelli, Lorenzo Mazzocchetti, Pasquale Notarstefano, Letizia Guiducci, Maria Aurora Morales and Silvia Del Ry
Biomolecules 2025, 15(6), 792; https://doi.org/10.3390/biom15060792 - 29 May 2025
Viewed by 295
Abstract
Brugada syndrome (BrS) is a cardiac disease associated with characteristic ECG abnormalities and a heightened risk of sudden cardiac death, especially in young individuals with structurally normal hearts. The primary aim of this study was to highlight, for the first time, the potential [...] Read more.
Brugada syndrome (BrS) is a cardiac disease associated with characteristic ECG abnormalities and a heightened risk of sudden cardiac death, especially in young individuals with structurally normal hearts. The primary aim of this study was to highlight, for the first time, the potential of using droplet digital PCR (ddPCR), a highly sensitive method, to detect C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) and its receptors, NPR-B and NPR-C, expression in BrS. Whole-blood samples from 12 subjects with type 1 BrS and 12 controls were analyzed. CNP expression was detectable and lower in BrS patients than in the controls, although not significantly. NPR-B and NPR-C expression was significantly reduced in the same patients (p ≤ 0.05). Strong correlations were observed between CNP and NPR-B (p = 0.01) and NPR-C (p < 0.0001), as well as between NPR-B and NPR-C (p = 0.0002). Body weight correlated with CNP (p = 0.02), NPR-B (p = 0.03), and NPR-C (p = 0.02); meanwhile, NPR-B expression was related to height (p = 0.05). This study is the first to analyze CNP expression and its specific receptors using ddPCR technology, showing for the first time their presence and activation in individuals with BrS. Although further research is needed to clarify CNP-related mechanisms, these findings offer a valuable starting point for exploring its role in BrS. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Peptides and Their Interactions (3rd Edition))
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