The Interplay of Microbiota and Polyomaviruses in Human Health and Disease
A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 August 2025 | Viewed by 1160
Special Issue Editor
Interests: human polyomaviruses; Merkel cell polyomavirus; oncogenesis; microRNAs; DNA damage response
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
It is currently recognized that viral infections and changes in the composition of microbiota can contribute to the development of human diseases. Human polyomaviruses (HPyVs) are small non-enveloped DNA viruses widely distributed among the population. Following initial asymptomatic infection, HPyVs establish a lifelong persistence as part of the body microbiota, with low levels of replication and shedding. However, in immunocompromised conditions, viral reactivation can occur, posing a significant pathogenic treat. JC, BK and Merkel Cell polyomaviruses (JCPyV, BKPyV, MCPyV) are well known to be disease-associated. In particular, MCPyV is the only one responsible for human cancer. It is significant to note that infections with these viruses do not necessarily lead to disease, but they can be one of many contributing factors to pathogenesis. Virus-associated diseases generally develop as part of persistent infection over many years. In this context, the dynamic interactions among latent/persistent HPyVs infection and other components of microbiota may be crucial for the onset of various human diseases. Understanding these relationships may contribute towards identifying diagnostic and prognostic markers or pathways to recognize or characterize virus-associated disorders early. In this Special Issue, we intend to explore some aspects to better understand the interplay within HPyVs and microbiota and its contribution to human diseases. Studies on cellular pathways altered by these interactions and potentially involved in disease progression are welcome.
Dr. Valeria Pietropaolo
Guest Editor
We extend our sincere appreciation to Dr. Sara Passerini of "Sapienza" University for her noteworthy contributions to the special issue.
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Keywords
- human polyomaviruses (HPyVs)
- microbiota
- co-infection patterns
- cancer
- diagnostic markers
- cellular pathways
- immunosuppression
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