Acanthamoeba spp. as Factors for Severe Infectious Diseases in Humans

Dear Colleagues,

Different strains of Acanthamoeba spp., widely distributed in natural and man-made environments are able to enter human body from  different sources causing pathogenic effects. They are etiological agents of a rare, usually fatal granulomatous amoebic encephalitis developing in immunocompromised individuals. Pathogenic Acanthamoeba strains cause the vision-threatening corneal disease, difficult for diagnosis Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK). The progressive, devastating, considered a rare disease can result in loss of visual acuity and even blindness; successful treatment has not yet been fully established. In the last decades, incidents of AK are detected with increasing frequency especially in contact lenses wears. Threat for individual and public health caused by AK remains poorly investigated; it is worldwide medical problem however the knowledge and awareness of the threat is still insufficient. There are challenges in AK management: suitable clinical and laboratory diagnosis, in vivo / in vitro and molecular techniques, epidemiology aspects, chemotherapy, pathogenesis mechanisms, potential role of concomitant infections and endosymbiotic microorganisms as secondary diseases factors, an association with oral cavity microbiota, influence of various risk factors. In this special issue we would like to present up-to-date data and advanced research desirable for the prevention of health threat caused by Acanthamoeba spp. infections.

Prof. Dr. Lidia Chomicz
Prof. Dr. Jacek P. Szaflik
Dr. Wanda Baltaza
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. 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.