Plant Volatile Organic Compounds: Extraction, Characterization and Biological Activities
A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Natural Products Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 1
Special Issue Editors
Interests: essential oils; plant secondary metabolites; chromatographic techniques; biological activities
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: organic chemistry; natural products; phytochemistry; essential oils; biological activities
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are among the most well-known plant specialized metabolites gaining increasing attention due to their ecological functions, chemical diversity, and wide-ranging biological properties. These molecules play key roles in plant defence, communication, and adaptation, and they also hold tremendous potential for applications across the pharmaceutical, agrochemical, food, and cosmetic industries.
This Special Issue aims to gather high-quality original research and review articles that explore the extraction methods, chemical profiling, and functional properties of VOCs from a wide variety of plant species. Emphasis will be placed on sustainable and innovative extraction technologies, including green and circular approaches that valorise agricultural and forestry residues as raw materials.
We encourage submissions that address topics including, but not limited to, the following:
- Innovative and sustainable extraction techniques (e.g., hydrodistillation, microwave-assisted extraction, supercritical fluid extraction).
- Chemical characterization of plant VOCs using GC-MS, GC×GC, enantioselective analysis, and related methods.
- Biological activities of plant VOCs, such as
- Antioxidant;
- Anti-inflammatory;
- Antimicrobial (bacterial, fungal, viral);
- Insecticidal and pesticidal;
- Neuroprotective and psychopharmacological effects.
- Structure–activity relationships (SARs),
- Valorisation of by-products and waste biomass from agro-industrial and forestry processes
- Ecological functions and interactions of plant VOCs
- Formulation and delivery systems for plant VOC-based products.
Dr. Ana Lima
Prof. Dr. Elisabete Maria de Castro Lima
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 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. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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
- plant volatile organic compounds
- biosynthesis and emission
- essential oils
- biological activities
- green extraction
- omics technologies
- circular bioeconomy
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.
