Gene Regulatory Networks Controlling Secondary Metabolism in Plants: Computational Approaches and Mechanistic Insights
A special issue of Biomolecules (ISSN 2218-273X). This special issue belongs to the section "Cellular Biochemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 August 2021) | Viewed by 30322
Special Issue Editors
Interests: stilbenoids synthesis and trafficking; phenylpropanoids; metabolic engineering; plant cell culture; grapevine; elicitor signaling
Interests: grapevine functional genomics; transcriptional regulation of secondary metabolism; gene regulatory networks; quality of fruit; response to biotic stresses mediated by phenylpropanoids
Interests: phytopharmaceuticals; transcription factors; systems biology; multi-omics integration; gene regulatory networks; phenylpropanoids; isoprenoids; fleshy fruits; cannabinoids
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Plants produce a myriad of specialized (secondary) metabolites with a multitude of biological roles such as conferring light/UV protection, providing color patterns as visual aids for pollination or seed dispersal, regulating plant development, and being part of pathogen defense responses. Aside from these roles, specialized metabolites are of major interest for human nutrition and health. The major pathways of secondary metabolism are those producing isoprenoids, phenylpropanoids, alkaloids, and polyketides. The comprehension of their biosynthesis and regulation has acquired major advances mostly nurtured from reverse and forward genetics approaches in several plant species, which have given access to both structural and regulatory genes of these pathways. This knowledge has been particularly relevant for establishing strategies for breeding and altering metabolite content in crops or engineering plants used for biofuels. However, major advances have only been addressed for conserved pathways across the plant kingdom and those restricted to certain species have been somehow less studied. We also still lack information on how these pathways are precisely fine-tuned, how the metabolites are conjugated, transported and accumulated, or how different specialized metabolisms may compete for carbon-flux or uptake of primary metabolites. The understanding of these mechanisms should benefit from a multidisciplinary approach involving strong computational analyses of big data being currently generated. This Special Issue welcomes the submission of scientific articles focused on the deciphering of the fine regulation of specialized metabolism in different plant species by using different approaches, including the integration of multi-omics data. We especially welcome experimental studies proving mechanistic insights into how specialized metabolites are being tightly regulated, including compartmentalization. Studies in crops, model species, and plant cell culture models will be considered, as well as fully-computational studies not necessarily involving experimental activities. Reviews or Articles are also welcome.
Note: For experimental studies involving omics data analyses it is mandatory that they include at least three biological replicates.
Dr. Roque Bru-Martinez
Dr. Giulia Malacarne
Dr. José Tomás Matus
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.
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.