A Glimpse into Future Research on Microalgae Diversity, Ecology and Biotechnology

Dear Colleagues,

Microalgae are an extremely important component of marine ecosystems’ functioning and climate regulation. Despite their significant contribution to productivity, microalgae diversity, mainly of prokaryotes, is still largely unknown. This may be partly due to the declining expertise in taxonomy (the basic science of biodiversity), which is also dangerously widening the gap between traditional and molecular approaches. Identifying microalgae species as well as the factors influencing a community structure and the interactions among organisms represents an important challenge to understand the functioning of an ecosystem.

Microalgae, using a network of signals, interact with all other organisms living in their environment. Signals are often transmitted by secondary metabolites that are generally not necessary for their daily functioning but play an important role in competition, defense, attraction. These molecules are recognized for having bioactive properties, but some of them are still largely underexplored and underexploited.

We look forward to receiving your contributions to this Special Issue in the form of original research or review papers that will improve our knowledge on microalgae diversity and ecology. Additionally, descriptions of the production of bioactive compounds including toxins, with their potential biotechnological applications, are also welcome.

Dr. Carmela Caroppo
Dr. Patrizia Pagliara
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.