Tailored Therapies and Targeted Diagnostics: The Role of AI in Precision Medical Microbiology
A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Microbiology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2026 | Viewed by 15
Special Issue Editor
Interests: Mycobacteria; intracellular pathogens; drug discovery; host-pathogen coevolution and crosstalk; Automation in clinical diagnostics; high-throughput screening; AI-driven data analysis machine learning; diagnostic technologies; pathogen identification
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Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The field of medical microbiology has undergone a transformative shift with the integration of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), automation, and high-throughput screening (HTS) technologies. These advancements have revolutionized pathogen detection, identification, and drug discovery, enabling faster, more accurate, and scalable diagnostic and therapeutic solutions. AI-driven image and data analysis, utilizing deep learning and self-supervised models, has enhanced diagnostic precision by enabling pre-screening, classification, and quantification of specimens tailored to specific patient profiles. These technologies are now integral to clinical decision support systems, predicting infection risks, detecting pathogens early, and optimizing laboratory workflows.
Automated systems have streamlined processes by integrating specimen inoculation, incubation, imaging, and AI-based interpretation into seamless pipelines. High-throughput screening platforms, combining automation, multiplexing, fluorescence polarization, and ultra-dense microplate formats, have accelerated the screening of massive compound libraries, improving hit-rate optimization and resource allocation in drug discovery from microbial targets. Advanced technologies such as AI-augmented MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry (MS) and next-generation sequencing (NGS) have further enhanced pathogen identification, while ML models predict microbial virulence factors and therapeutic targets directly from genomic and metabolic profiles.
Despite these advancements, challenges remain, including technical limitations such as culture growth times and instrumentation costs, as well as ethical concerns related to data privacy, algorithmic bias, and the need for human oversight in clinical decision-making. Collaborative efforts among healthcare professionals, researchers, and technologists are essential to address these challenges and fully harness the potential of these technologies.
This Special Issue aims to showcase cutting-edge research and review articles that explore the application of AI, ML, automation, and HTS in medical microbiology. We invite contributions that highlight novel methodologies, clinical applications, and solutions to overcome current limitations, fostering the development of autonomous, AI-enhanced diagnostic ecosystems for rapid clinical decision-making and the discovery of new interventions. Reviews, original research, and communications will be welcome.
Dr. Yash Gupta
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
- artificial intelligence in medical microbiology
- machine learning for pathogen detection
- automation in clinical diagnostics
- high-throughput screening in drug discovery
- AI-augmented MALDI-TOF MS
- next-generation sequencing (NGS)
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