Bioactive Natural Compounds: Advanced Extraction, Characterization and Functional Applications

Dear Colleagues,

The growing demand for natural bioactive compounds in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and agricultural industries has driven the development of advanced extraction and processing technologies aimed at improving efficiency, selectivity, and sustainability. Natural matrices such as plants, agro-industrial by-products, algae, and microorganisms represent complex sources of high-value compounds, including phenolics, flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, peptides, and polysaccharides, whose recovery requires innovative and optimized process strategies.

Recent advances in extraction technologies, such as ultrasound-assisted extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, supercritical fluid extraction, pressurized liquid extraction, and enzyme-assisted processes, have demonstrated significant potential to enhance yield, reduce solvent consumption, and preserve compound integrity. In parallel, the integration of process modeling, optimization tools (e.g., response surface methodology), and scale-up approaches has become essential for translating laboratory findings into industrial applications.

This Special Issue will gather original research articles and reviews focused on the development, optimization, and intensification of processes for the extraction, separation, purification, and stabilization of natural bioactive compounds. Contributions addressing process design, kinetic modeling, mass transfer phenomena, green extraction technologies, downstream processing, encapsulation, and functional applications of bioactive compounds are particularly welcome.

Interdisciplinary studies that bridge chemical engineering, food science, biotechnology, and process systems engineering are encouraged, especially those contributing to scalable, efficient, and sustainable production systems.

Dr. Antonio De Jesús Cenobio-Galindo
Guest Editor

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-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes 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 2400 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.