Metabolomics: The Role of Natural Products in Drugs

Dear Colleagues,

Natural products have long served as a foundation for drug discovery, providing structurally diverse and biologically active compounds that continue to inspire modern therapeutics. In recent years, advances in metabolomics have transformed our ability to characterize the chemical diversity of natural matrices, understand bioactive metabolite functions, and uncover novel molecules with pharmaceutical potential. High-resolution analytical platforms, computational approaches, and integrative multi-omics are accelerating the identification, quantification, and mechanistic interpretation of natural products within complex biological systems.

Metabolomics offers unparalleled power to elucidate metabolic signatures associated with therapeutic activity; map biosynthetic pathways; and reveal new drug leads from plants, microbes, marine organisms, and human-associated microbiota. In this Special Issue, we aim to highlight recent advances in metabolomics-driven discovery, characterization, and application of natural products in drug development. We welcome the submission of studies that explore innovative analytical strategies; bioactivity-guided metabolomics; in silico metabolite prediction; metabolic pathway engineering; translational research; and the integration of metabolomics with pharmacology, toxicology, or systems biology.

By gathering cutting-edge contributions from across natural products research, in this Special Issue, we seek to advance our understanding of how metabolomics can reveal new therapeutic opportunities and accelerate the development of safer and more effective drugs.

Dr. Jeysson Sanchez-Suarez
Dr. Jennyfer Andrea Aldana Mejía
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. Metabolites 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 2700 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.