Current Trends in Exploiting Molecular Signaling in Bacteria and Host Immunomodulation

Dear Colleagues,

Infectious diseases are one of the biggest threats to humankind, and despite the fact that we have been studying infectious diseases for over a century, there is still a lot to be learn. With the discovery of antibiotics, life expectancy increased significantly; unfortunately, due to their overuse/misuse they are no longer as effective, creating an imperative need to develop novel strategies to be applied in vaccine and therapeutic development.

Bacteria have evolved means that allow them to sense external cues, allowing them to adapt to different environments, including the host. Nevertheless, this bacterial ability to sense signals is only starting to be understood in a broad sense. Bacteria to bacteria communication is not unidirectional, and different genus or bacteria and even bacteria-fungi can also exchange signals that modulate their phenotype.

Interestingly, a new emerging area of investigation focuses on pathogens’ ability to manipulate host immune responses in order to infect, persist and transmit to a new host. A better understanding of how microorganisms sense host immune signals and manipulate them will provide new rational targets for vaccine and therapeutics that most likely would be applicable to a broad range of diseases.

The goal of this Special Issue is to provide a platform to exchange ideas, that demonstrate that bacteria can sense and respond to multiple stimuli, including other bacteria, other microorganisms, and even host immunity. We anticipate that this Special Issue will be the source of many novel ideas to come for the future development of vaccines and therapies that can even be applied to multiple infections.

Prof. Monica C. Gestal
Prof. Alina Maria Holban
Guest Editors

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