Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
8.1
4.9
Journals
IJMS
Special Issues
MicroRNAs as Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets in Human Diseases
ijms-logo
Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for IJMS Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

MicroRNAs as Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets in Human Diseases

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pathology, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2025 | Viewed by 453

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Elena V. Bichenkova

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Oxford Rd., Manchester M13 9PT, UK
Interests: design and fabrication of supramolecular functional biomaterials with controlled chemical and biological properties by working at the interface between synthetic, analytical, physical and computational chemistry with structural and chemical biology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Highly conserved endogenous, small non-coding microRNAs (miRNAs) regulate gene expression by modulating translational efficacy of their target mRNAs, thus affecting cellular functions, such as cell growth, division, differentiation, metabolism, neuronal gene expression, muscle differentiation and stem cell division. Distinctive profiles of miRNA expression are often associated with different pathological conditions ranging from neurodegenerative, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases to cancer. The dysregulation in the miRNA expression may impact the normal functioning of cells, thus leading to development of various human diseases. Unique expression profiles of different miRNAs not only make them ideal biomarkers for diagnostic and prognostic purposes, but also offer the opportunity to explore this information for therapeutic purposes by exploiting them as biological targets or novel therapeutic tools.

In this Special Issue we are interested in all aspects of microRNA sequences that are relevant to (i) their applications in the diagnosis of human diseases, or to (ii) innovative therapeutic strategies, including (but not restricted to) therapeutic knockdown of pathogenic microRNAs, or miRNA mimetics for microRNA replacement therapy.

For this Special Issue, we invite manuscripts addressing one or several of the following aspects:

  1. Disease-related specific miRNAs expression patterns for early detection of human diseases
  2. Implication of miRNA in drug resistance
  3. Use of miRNAs as prognostic markers to predict patient’s response to therapy
  4. New strategies for fabrication of innovative diagnostics tools for robust, precise and reliable detection of microRNA expression profiles
  5. Therapeutic modulation of microRNAs using selective inhibition of miRNA function
  6. Use of microRNA replacement for therapeutics treatment
  7. Experimental evidence of substantial transformative potential of microRNA-based therapies

Dr. Elena V. Bichenkova
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. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. 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

  • microRNA biomarkers
  • diagnostic profiling
  • expression patterns
  • miRNA therapeutics
  • antimiRs
  • miRNA mimics
  • hybridisation
  • sequence-specificity
  • miRNA knockdown

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 policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

18 pages, 3497 KiB  
Article
Key Amniotic Fluid miRNAs as Promising Target Molecules for the Antenatal Prevention of Pulmonary Hypoplasia Associated with Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia
by Angelika V. Timofeeva, Ivan S. Fedorov, Yuri I. Naberezhnev, Nana K. Tetruashvili and Gennady T. Sukhikh
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(8), 3872; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26083872 - 19 Apr 2025
Viewed by 180
Abstract
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) remains associated with high morbidity and mortality, primarily due to pulmonary hypoplasia and hypertension. Current antenatal diagnostic methods, such as ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), are unable to assess the severity of defects in lung and pulmonary vascular [...] Read more.
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) remains associated with high morbidity and mortality, primarily due to pulmonary hypoplasia and hypertension. Current antenatal diagnostic methods, such as ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), are unable to assess the severity of defects in lung and pulmonary vascular structures, which are critical determinants of the diverse phenotypes of CDH. Aberrant epigenetic regulation of lung development during gestation is believed to play a significant role in the pathogenesis of CDH. In this study, we aimed to identify miRNA patterns in amniotic fluid capable of categorizing CDH-fetuses for the personalized selection of effective treatment strategies at the antenatal and/or postnatal stages. Using deep sequencing and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), we identified a set of miRNAs—miR-485-3p, miR-320b, miR-320a-3p, miR-221-3p, miR-200b-3p, miR-100-5p, miR-92a-3p, miR-30c-5p, miR-26a-5p, and let-7c-5p—whose reduced expression in amniotic fluid at 19–24 weeks of gestation allowed us to categorize fetuses with CDH into two distinct groups: one significantly different from the control group (non-CDH) and the other closely resembling it. Notably, no significant correlations were found between the content of these miRNAs in amniotic fluid and severity of lung hypoplasia assessed by ultrasound or MRI. However, there was significant positive correlation between the level of each of the miRNAs with that of miR-200b-3p, whose role in ensuring proper bronchopulmonary tissue structure during prenatal development—as well as its therapeutic potential for CDH-associated hypoplastic lungs—has been previously demonstrated. These findings lay the groundwork for the future development of genetically engineered drug formulations designed for antenatal endotracheal administration to correct abnormal miRNA levels in lung tissue and mitigate the progression of pulmonary hypoplasia and hypertension in CDH-fetuses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue MicroRNAs as Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets in Human Diseases)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

12 pages, 1071 KiB  
Article
Plasma Levels of MicroRNA Let-7c-5p May Predict Risk of Acute Chest Syndrome in Patients with Sickle Cell Disease
by James Fan, Joanna Gemel, Eric C. Beyer and Gabrielle Lapping-Carr
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(8), 3831; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26083831 - 18 Apr 2025
Viewed by 207
Abstract
Acute chest syndrome (ACS) is among the most serious complications of sickle cell disease (SCD). While the pathogenesis of ACS is incompletely understood, endothelial damage and microvascular occlusion are critical components. Our previous studies have implicated small extracellular vesicles in the plasma of [...] Read more.
Acute chest syndrome (ACS) is among the most serious complications of sickle cell disease (SCD). While the pathogenesis of ACS is incompletely understood, endothelial damage and microvascular occlusion are critical components. Our previous studies have implicated small extracellular vesicles in the plasma of subjects with SCD in causing endothelial dysfunction. This suggested that microRNAs within these small EVs might be responsible for endothelial damage. The sequencing of microRNAs in small EVs from the plasma of subjects with SCD revealed that several miRNAs were differentially expressed between subjects with and without ACS history, including let-7c-5p. In a replication cohort, plasma let-7c-5p levels were quantified via RT-qPCR. The baseline plasma let-7c-5p level was twofold higher in patients without previous ACS. Furthermore, we observed a positive correlation between let-7c-5p levels and time to subsequent ACS events. These findings suggest a role for let-7c-5p in endothelial disruption underlying ACS pathogenesis. It may also serve as a novel biomarker for ACS detection and the prediction of disease progression. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue MicroRNAs as Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets in Human Diseases)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop