Bioprospecting of Marine Halophyte Plants
A special issue of Marine Drugs (ISSN 1660-3397). This special issue belongs to the section "Marine Biotechnology Related to Drug Discovery or Production".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 August 2026 | Viewed by 1683
Special Issue Editors
Interests: marine plants; biotechnological applications; antioxidant activity; antioxidants bioactivity; phytochemicals; natural product chemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: bioprospecting of natural products; plant tissue culture; plant biotechnology; phytorremediation; saline cultivation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Marine halophyte plants are a distinct group of salt-tolerant species capable of growing and completing their life cycle in environments characterized by high salinity, periodic flooding, intense radiation and oxidative stress, such as salt marshes, coastal dunes, tidal flats and saline wetlands. Depending on the species, halophytes can tolerate sodium chloride (NaCl) concentrations ranging from moderate salinity to levels comparable to or exceeding seawater (~600 mM), with some extreme halophytes reported to survive concentrations approaching 800–1000 mM NaCl under controlled conditions. These extreme environments drive the evolution of specialized physiological and metabolic adaptations, resulting in unique chemical diversity.
This Special Issue of Marine Drugs, entitled “Bioprospecting of Marine Halophyte Plants”, invites original research articles and reviews focused on marine and coastal halophytes as sources of bioactive natural products with pharmaceutical and nutraceutical relevance. Submissions are particularly encouraged in the following core topics:
- Isolation, identification and structural characterization of natural products from marine halophyte plants
- Phytochemical profiling and metabolomics of halophytes under saline and environmental stress
- Biological activities relevant to human health, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, neuroprotective, anticancer and metabolic effects
- Molecular and cellular mechanisms of action of halophyte-derived bioactive compounds
- Influence of salinity and environmental stressors on secondary metabolite production and bioactivity
- Ethnopharmacological knowledge and its experimental validation
- Role of plant-associated microbiota (e.g., endophytic fungi and bacteria) in modulating halophyte metabolite production and bioactivity
- Biotechnological approaches supporting the discovery, production and sustainable exploitation of halophyte-derived bioactive compounds
By integrating advanced analytical techniques, functional bioassays and mechanistic studies, this Special Issue aims to consolidate marine halophyte plants as a relevant and still underexplored source of marine-derived bioactive compounds, fostering innovation in drug discovery.
Dr. Luísa Custódio
Dr. Maria João Rodrigues
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-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Marine Drugs 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 2900 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
- bioactive compounds
- natural products
- secondary metabolites
- phytochemistry
- metabolomics
- stress-induced metabolism
- antioxidant activity
- neuroprotective effects
- blue biotechnology
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