Targeting Metabolic Vulnerabilities to Selectively Eliminate Cancer Cells
A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 March 2026 | Viewed by 6
Special Issue Editors
Interests: cytokines; electroporation; innate immunity; protein-protein interaction; 2D gel electrophoresis; primary cell culture; cells; cancer cells; confocal fluorescence microscopy; immunoblotting
Interests: oncology; combination chemotherapy; cancer stem cells; cellular plasticity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Cancer cells undergo significant biochemical and physiological changes in the process of acquiring malignancy. A wide array of signaling and metabolic pathways are modified to support the possibility of continuous and uncontrollable cell division. Multiple cancer-associated metabolic alterations have been described, including the well-known Warburg effect, elevated lactate production, increased glutamine metabolism, fatty acid synthesis, and reduced fatty acid oxidation. Metabolic reprogramming in cancer cells could be partially associated with altered epigenetic regulation of oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes through the processes of acetylation and methylation. While providing substantial benefits for rapidly dividing cancer cells by satisfying the increased demand in nutrients and modulating the metabolite content in the tumor microenvironment, metabolic reprogramming creates numerous vulnerabilities that can be targeted to selectively eliminate cancer cells without causing damage to non-cancerous ones.
This Special Issue of Cells will consider the potential of cancer-specific metabolic and physiological vulnerabilities in developing novel cancer treatment strategies. We welcome original research, comprehensive reviews and perspectives articles covering recent progress in strategies to exploit cancer cell vulnerabilities, provide enhanced therapeutics, and improve patient outcomes.
Dr. Nina Semenova
Dr. Juan Sebastián Yakisich
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. Cells is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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
- cancer cell metabolism
- cancer cell signaling pathways
- cancer epigenetic regulation
- nutrient deprivation
- tumor microenvironment
- chemotherapy
- chemoresistance
- radiotherapy
- cell death
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.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
