Bioactive Peptides, Synthesis, Properties, and Medical Applications

Dear Colleagues,

Bioactive peptides are formed by amino acids (50 or less), which can perform hormonal and signaling functions in human body. Despite their early use only as a model for the development of small molecules, peptides are today considered as important drugs candidates, and peptide-based drug discovery is entering into a renaissance era. Peptides fill the gap between small molecules and protein-based therapeutics in terms of molecular dimension and display some virtues, including elevated target selectivity, reduced side effects and toxic degradation products. More than one hundred FDA-approved peptide-based medicines are already available on the pharmaceutical market, and a robust clinical pipeline is currently enrolling numerous peptide molecules. For instance, therapeutic peptides enable alternative treatments for several conditions such as diabetes, cancer, obesity, osteoporosis, cardiovascular diseases, and inflammation. Conjugation to carriers or nanoparticles and/or the employment of chemical strategies to improve ‘drug-like’ properties of peptides have contributed to addressing their critical pharmacokinetic issues. Moreover, the advancements of the synthetic technologies that can smoothly provide large peptide libraries, along with reduced costs and a more sustainable approach, are encouraging their use for further biomedical investigations. The aim of this Special Issue is to present the most recent topics and advances useful in the design, synthesis, and pharmacological investigations of bioactive peptides aimed at challenging pathological conditions. Studies focused on the identification and characterization of novel peptides, the elucidation of their mechanisms of action, and the strategies employed to improve their ‘drug-like’ properties are welcome.

Dr. Francesco Merlino
Dr. Rosa Bellavita
Prof. Dr. Fernando Albericio
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. Biomedicines 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 2600 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.

• bioactive peptides
• peptidomimetics
• chemical strategies
• beta-amino acids
• conjugated peptides
• therapeutic peptides
• drug discovery
• peptide-based delivery