Targeting the Sphingolipid Metabolic Pathway: Promotion from Benchwarmer to the Starting Lineup—a Themed Issue in Memory of Drs. Lina Obeid and Mark Kester

Dear Colleagues,

We have lost two dear friends, colleagues, and mentors in the past few years. The passing of Drs. Lina Obeid and Mark Kester remind us all to cherish each moment with our families, friends, and colleagues. In their honor, I invite you to submit a manuscript to this Special Issue of Cancers entitled “Targeting the Sphingolipid Metabolic Pathway: Promotion from Benchwarmer to the Starting Lineup—a Themed Issue in Memory of Drs. Lina Obeid and Mark Kester”.

The title is an homage to a review that Christopher Gault and Lina Obeid published 12 years ago: “Still Benched on Its Way to the Bedside: Sphingosine Kinase 1 as an Emerging Target in Cancer Chemotherapy”. In this review, they noted the considerable challenges in trying to develop clinically relevant therapeutic strategies targeting sphingosine kinase 1. Looking at the broader sphingolipid field 12 years later, we have seen some successes—for example, fingolimod and ozanimod for relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis, opaganib for cancer and COVID-19, and nanoliposomal ceramides for cancer. There are also a number of areas of study with great therapeutic potential in the future. I feel that now is a good time for all of us to reflect on and to highlight the strides we have made in development of therapeutic strategies targeting the sphingolipid metabolic pathways in the fight against cancer.

This Special Issue is designed to assemble important studies in the area of targeted therapies directed toward sphingolipid metabolizing enzymes as anticancer strategies, either as standalone therapies, novel combinatorial therapies, or as adjuvants to existing therapies.  I am sure that I am not alone in my feeling that it was an honor to know both Lina and Mark. I am pleased to invite you to submit an article to this Special Issue as an acknowledgment of their dedication and leadership.  

Dr. Jeremy A. Hengst
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 communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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