Protein Biomarkers in Cancer and Neurodegeneration
A Special Issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067) belonging to the section "Biochemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026 | Viewed by 947
Editor
Interests: neurodegeneration; neuroinflammation; neurodegenerative diseases; neurodevelopmental disorders; tumor markers; specific proteins
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Lifestyle diseases, which include neurodegenerative diseases, and cancers belong to completely different groups of disorders, but they are linked by a similar mechanism of development due to lifestyle factors that cause changes in the body, particularly in the concentrations of specific proteins. The term “neurodegenerative diseases” (NDs) collectively defines a group of pathological conditions of the nervous system, characterised by the degeneration of neurons. This group of disorders includes different diseases leading to dementia or motor neuron disfunction, resulting in disability. Among them, Alzheimer’s (AD) and Parkinson’s diseases (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and multiple sclerosis (MS) have the greatest importance because of their devastating outcomes and enormous socio-economic impact. Although they have a variegated aetiology, an increasing role in their pathology is ascribed to neuroinflammatory processes. Neuroinflammation may affect not only neurons but also non-neuronal astrocytes and microglia cells, as well as immune cells entering the nervous system. These cells cooperate in both the damage and repair of diseased brain tissue. Interactions between cells and the extracellular environment have emerged as new targets for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. However, the heterogeneity of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying these diseases hinders efforts at slowing down the progression of these diseases and developing effective treatments against them. Moreover, the availability of biomarkers with appropriate sensitivity and specificity that could predict treatment success is very limited.
Inflammatory and infectious diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) may also be involved in the pathogenesis of neurodegeneration. Microbial infection has emerged as a new risk factor for NDs, and new evidence supports the universal hypothesis that some bacteria, viruses, and even fungi could be involved not only in brain inflammation but also in neurodegeneration and dementia. The diagnosis of CNS infections and the identification of potential pathogenic pathways of these diseases are also topics of interest for this Special Issue, as are the therapy and prevention of these diseases, including vaccination.
Submissions reporting studies on malignant primary brain tumours and other neoplasms are also welcome. Cancers, like neurodegenerative diseases, have an inflammatory aetiology; examples include pancreatic cancer associated with chronic pancreatitis, or stomach cancer developing as a result of infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori.
The goal of this Special Issue is to collect original research manuscripts, short communications, and reviews on the latest advances regarding new mechanisms of and therapeutics for neurological diseases, including neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation, and tumours.
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Biological mechanisms related to neurodegeneration, inflammation, and tumorigenesis within the central nervous system and other neoplasms;
- Neurodegenerative diseases as proteinopathies;
- The relationship between neurodegeneration and inflammation;
- New potential biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, including mild cognitive impairment, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntington’s disease, and prion diseases;
- The prognostic value of biomarkers of neurodegeneration in the conversion from mild cognitive impairment to fully symptomatic dementia;
- Cytokines, chemokines, and matrix metalloproteinases as prognostic factors in the carcinogenesis of malignant tumours;
- Mediators of inflammation, chemokines, and their receptors as novel tumour markers in malignant tumours in relation to the histological type of tumour;
- Relationships between COVID-19 and neurological diseases.
This Special Issue is supervised by Prof. Dr. Barbara Mroczko.
Prof. Dr. Barbara Mroczko
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
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-anonymized 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
- neurological diseases
- potential biomarkers
- tumour markers
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.
