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Life
Special Issues
Mechanisms and Novel Biomarkers in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases
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Mechanisms and Novel Biomarkers in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Research".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 2610

Editors

Dr. Josko Bozic

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pathophysiology, University of Split School of Medicine, 21000 Split, Croatia
Interests: biomarkers, IBD; cardiovascular disorders; diabetes; inflammation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Nikola Pavlović

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pathophysiology, University of Split School of Medicine, 21000 Split, Croatia
Interests: IBS; SIBO; CAKUT; histology; cardiovascular disorders

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to our Special Issue dedicated to chronic inflammatory diseases, one of the most complex and rapidly evolving areas of modern biomedical research. Chronic inflammation represents a critical link between immune dysregulation, metabolic imbalance, and vascular dysfunction, playing a central role in the development of tissue damage and systemic complications.

Despite significant advances in therapeutic strategies, the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying chronic inflammatory conditions remain incompletely understood. This Special Issue aims to bring together original research articles and comprehensive reviews that explore the interplay between persistent inflammation, immune regulation, and tissue remodeling across different organs and disease contexts.

A particular focus of this issue is the identification and validation of novel biomarkers with diagnostic, prognostic, or therapeutic relevance. Contributions addressing cytokine profiles, genetic and epigenetic factors, circulating microRNAs, metabolites, and microbiome-derived molecules, as well as translational and clinical studies supporting precision medicine approaches, are especially welcome.

By integrating basic, translational, and clinical perspectives, this Special Issue seeks to provide new insights into disease mechanisms, foster interdisciplinary collaboration, and ultimately contribute to improved patient care.

We warmly invite you to submit your latest work and look forward to your valuable contribution to this collection.

Dr. Josko Bozic
Dr. Nikola Pavlović
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 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. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2600 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

  • chronic inflammation
  • biomarkers
  • immune regulation
  • molecular mechanisms
  • precision medicine

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 1079 KB  
Article
Association of a Composite Inflammatory Score with Stroke Prevalence: A Cross-Sectional Study
by Boyuan Li and Yiu-Wing Kam
Life 2026, 16(5), 785; https://doi.org/10.3390/life16050785 - 8 May 2026
Viewed by 525
Abstract
Systemic inflammation plays a key role in cerebrovascular disease. While C-reactive protein (CRP) and white blood cell (WBC) count are individual risk markers, the predictive value of a combined inflammatory score (IS) for stroke prevalence remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate this [...] Read more.
Systemic inflammation plays a key role in cerebrovascular disease. While C-reactive protein (CRP) and white blood cell (WBC) count are individual risk markers, the predictive value of a combined inflammatory score (IS) for stroke prevalence remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate this association in a national population. Data were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 1999 to 2010. An IS was calculated as the sum of standardized Z-scores for CRP and WBC. Weighted multivariable logistic regression assessed the IS-stroke association, adjusting for demographics and clinical confounders. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) models and subgroup analyses were performed. Among 9963 included participants, 345 reported a history of stroke. After full adjustment, individuals in the highest IS quartile had 1.60-fold higher odds of stroke (OR = 1.60, 95% CI: 1.08–2.36) compared to the lowest quartile. Each unit increase in IS was associated with 6% higher odds (OR = 1.06, 95% CI: 1.01–1.12). RCS analysis revealed that higher composite IS is independently associated with increased stroke prevalence, suggesting a nonlinear association. The composite IS remained a significant predictor in models where the individual CRP and WBC components did not. This combined index may capture inflammatory burden more comprehensively than either marker alone in cross-sectional analyses. However, given the cross-sectional design, these findings should be interpreted cautiously and require confirmation in prospective studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mechanisms and Novel Biomarkers in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases)
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28 pages, 2639 KB  
Article
A Triple-Hit Multi-Omics Framework for Psoriasis: Microbial Metabolic Remodeling and Immune Cell Methylome Signature Associated with an AMP-Dominant Lesional Program
by Yoon Kyeong Lee, Hak Yong Kim and Donghwan Shim
Life 2026, 16(3), 516; https://doi.org/10.3390/life16030516 - 20 Mar 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1160
Abstract
The gut–skin axis is increasingly implicated in psoriasis pathogenesis, yet the cross-compartment convergence of molecular programs remains incompletely defined. We constructed a conceptual “Triple-Hit” multi-omics framework by integrating five independent public datasets spanning gut microbial functional remodeling (shotgun metagenomics), systemic immune cell methylomes [...] Read more.
The gut–skin axis is increasingly implicated in psoriasis pathogenesis, yet the cross-compartment convergence of molecular programs remains incompletely defined. We constructed a conceptual “Triple-Hit” multi-omics framework by integrating five independent public datasets spanning gut microbial functional remodeling (shotgun metagenomics), systemic immune cell methylomes (PBMC and CD8+ T-cell EPIC 850K), and lesional skin regulatory layers (miRNA and bulk RNA-seq). In the gut compartment, functional profiles exhibited a selective reduction in microbial lipid catabolic potential, including decreased fatty acid degradation and a lowered composite lipid degradation score, alongside heterogeneous shifts across SCFA-associated metabolic pathways. Systemically, PBMC methylomes revealed widespread regional remodeling (45,396 DMRs) enriched for membrane-proximal signaling and cytoskeletal programs, while CD8+ T cells showed specific epigenetic alterations in lipid- and glycosphingolipid-associated loci, suggesting a systemic metabolic–epigenetic alignment. In the skin, we identified a compact miRNA signature (168 DE-miRNAs) and a mechanistically interpretable, directionality-constrained miRNA–mRNA bridge that aligns with an AMP-dominant inflammatory transcriptome, consistent with reduced post-transcriptional restraint. Collectively, these findings support a convergent multi-omics framework linking putative microbial metabolic remodeling, systemic immune priming, and cutaneous effector programs. This study provides a systems-level perspective on psoriasis pathogenesis, highlighting the metabolic–epigenetic–transcriptional convergence as a potential avenue for therapeutic intervention. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mechanisms and Novel Biomarkers in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases)
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Review

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20 pages, 717 KB  
Review
Postprandial Inflammatory Stress: A Hypothesis-Generating Framework Linking Metabolic, Immune and Vascular Responses
by Roko Šantić, Marko Kumrić, Lovre Martinović, Nikola Pavlović, Azer Rizikalo, Marino Vilović, Josip Vrdoljak and Joško Božić
Life 2026, 16(8), 1298; https://doi.org/10.3390/life16081298 - 7 Aug 2026
Viewed by 300
Abstract
Chronic low-grade inflammation accompanies cardiometabolic disease, while routine risk assessment is based mainly on fasting measurements. This structured narrative review summarises human evidence for discrete postprandial changes in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and remnants, glucose and insulin, endotoxin-related markers, innate immune cells and endothelial function. [...] Read more.
Chronic low-grade inflammation accompanies cardiometabolic disease, while routine risk assessment is based mainly on fasting measurements. This structured narrative review summarises human evidence for discrete postprandial changes in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and remnants, glucose and insulin, endotoxin-related markers, innate immune cells and endothelial function. The evidence is comparatively consistent for postprandial lipaemia, glycaemic excursions and acute flow-mediated dilation responses, whereas endotoxin, cytokine and cellular findings are smaller, assay-sensitive and less consistently replicated. Based on this evidence, we introduce PRISM-CM (Postprandial Inflammatory Stress Modules in CardioMetabolic disease) as an author-developed, hypothesis-generating evidence map. It comprises five candidate biological domains—lipid–remnant burden, glucose–insulin stress, endotoxin handling, innate immune-cell activation and endothelial response—with recovery kinetics treated as a cross-domain analytic dimension. The framework was not derived by clustering, consensus methods or predictive modelling; its illustrative response patterns are not validated endotypes. A composite score is not proposed because the independence, reproducibility and incremental predictive value of the candidate measurements have not been established. Potential future diagnostic and prognostic applications require prospective validation. Reference ranges, age- and sex-specific norms, within-person reproducibility, reproducible response patterns and outcome-linked thresholds remain unknown. PRISM-CM is therefore not a clinical algorithm, risk score or treatment-selection tool. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mechanisms and Novel Biomarkers in Chronic Inflammatory Diseases)
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