Toxicity of Metals, Metal-Based Drugs, and Microplastics
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Toxicology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 March 2026 | Viewed by 4806
Special Issue Editors
Interests: elements; metal interactions; mechanisms of metal toxicity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
2. CCMAR, Campus de Gambelas, Universidade do Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
Interests: metals in molecular sciences; decavanadate biochemistry; polyoxometalates (POMs) interactions with proteins; POMs applications in environment and health
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: nutrition; micronutrients; metals; nanoparticles
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The presence of contaminants, including metals, in the environment is known to pose a threat to both the health and life of organisms. Therefore, control of the levels of metals in environmental media and in the food chain is necessary. This is important in view of the fact that environmental exposure to metals occurs via ingestion of metal-containing food and via the inhalation route. Besides metal exposure, microplastic pollution is becoming a major issue for human health. Microplastics (MPs) are a growing concern as they continue to increase. Moreover, MPs have the ability to accumulate toxic metals in the environment, potentially harming plants, animals, and humans. Therefore, there is a need for more studies on the effects of microplastics and their associations with metals on human health, with the identification of the mechanisms underlying their adverse effects. More work also needs to be performed on the development of proper solutions to alleviate the harmful effects of microplastics and reduce their presence in the environment. It should also be emphasized that interdisciplinary projects are increasing due to observations that microplastics increase metal toxicity. Another issue is associated with metal-based drugs, which have been arousing the interest of many research centers around the world for a long time. The number of studies on the use of certain metals in medicine is constantly growing, raising concerns over their potential effects on human health. It should be mentioned that a better understanding of the mode of action of the metal-based compounds and their toxicity will help to deliver new metal-based therapies.
We invite authors to submit original research papers or review articles on the toxicity of metals with a focus on mechanistic analysis. Aside from the toxicity of metals, we accept studies and review papers about the mechanisms of action and toxicity of metal-based drugs on proteins and cells. Moreover, we accept original papers or review articles on the adverse effects and related mechanisms of microplastics and the association between microplastics and the toxicity of metals.
Dr. Agnieszka Scibior
Prof. Dr. Manuel Aureliano
Prof. Dr. Juan Llopis
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. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
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Keywords
- metal toxicity and pollution
- microplastic toxicity and pollution
- metal and microplastic bioaccumulation
- metal-based drugs
- protein metalation
- human health problems
- diseases
- in vitro/in vivo studies
- human studies
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