Breaking Barriers: The Breakdown of Epithelial Defenses by Pathogens
A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Microbiology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 35
Special Issue Editor
Interests: neuroimmunology; respiratory viral infection; epithelial barriers; cognition and behavior impairment; neurotrophins; neurotransmitters
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Epithelial and epithelial-like barriers form the first and most crucial line of defense between host tissues and the external environment or internal compartments. These include the skin, respiratory epithelium, gastrointestinal tract, urogenital epithelium, ocular and nasal mucosa, and the specialized blood–brain barrier (BBB). This tightly regulated endothelial structure protects the central nervous system, with the barriers regulating nutrient exchange, preventing microbial invasion, and initiating immune responses.
Pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi, have evolved sophisticated strategies to breach, bypass, or exploit these barriers to facilitate colonization, dissemination, and immune evasion. The breakdown of epithelial and endothelial barriers is a key step in acute infections and plays a critical role in chronic inflammation, tissue damage, and systemic diseases.
This Special Topic aims to provide a comprehensive, cross-organ perspective on how pathogens compromise epithelial integrity and the resulting consequences for infection and host health. We encourage submissions of original research, reviews, mini-reviews, and perspectives exploring molecular mechanisms, host responses, experimental models, and potential therapeutic interventions.
This Special Issue, entitled "Breaking Barriers: The Breakdown of Epithelial Defenses by Pathogens”, aims to present recent research on any aspect of the mechanisms by which pathogens interact with, disrupt, or exploit epithelial and endothelial barriers across different organ systems. Some of its focal points include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Mechanisms of barrier disruption by bacterial toxins, viral proteins, and fungal enzymes (e.g., tight junction degradation, endocytosis, transcytosis, apoptosis).
- Organ-specific and systemic perspectives, including:
- Skin and wound-associated infections.
- Airway epithelium in respiratory infections.
- Gut epithelium in enteric diseases.
- Urogenital epithelium in sexually transmitted infections.
- Ocular and nasal barriers in mucosal pathogen entry.
- Blood–brain barrier (BBB) disruption in neuroinvasive infections (e.g., meningitis, encephalitis)
- Pathogen–host signaling at epithelial and endothelial interfaces.
- Inflammatory and immune responses are initiated by epithelial cells upon barrier compromise.
- Role of the microbiota in maintaining or disrupting epithelial barrier homeostasis.
Reviews, original research, and communications are welcome.
Dr. Karen Bohmwald
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 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. Microorganisms 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.
Keywords
- epithelial barrier
- blood–brain barrier
- barrier breakdown
- pathogen invasion
- tight junctions
- endothelial cells
- mucosal immunity
- host–pathogen interaction
- epithelial remodeling
- neuroinvasion
- respiratory tract
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.
