Exploiting Marine ‘Omics’ Technologies for the Biodiscovery of Marine Natural Products

A special issue of Marine Drugs (ISSN 1660-3397). This special issue belongs to the section "Marine Biotechnology Related to Drug Discovery or Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 1471

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. School of Microbiology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
2. Environmental Research Institute, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
Interests: microbial ecology; marine biotechnology; metagenomics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The marine environment is host to taxonomically diverse planktonic microorganisms and microbes closely associated in amensal or commensal relationships with higher organisms such as plants and animals. Genomic sequencing of marine-associated microbes and metagenomic sequencing of marine microbiomes have revealed the vast genetic potential for the production of putative bioactive marine natural products, both through sequence homology comparisons and through marine genetic ‘dark matter’. Combined ‘omics’ technologies offer the promise of identifying, characterizing and exploiting novel marine natural products with prospective applications in industrial, pharmaceutical, nutraceutical or cosmeceutical sectors and processes. This Special Issue plans to highlight multi-'omics' strategies being employed to characterize novel genes, enzymes or small-molecule metabolites from marine environments.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Genomics of marine microbes with a focus on potentially bioactive specialized/secondary metabolites;
  • Metagenomics of marine microbial consortia;
  • Metabolomics of bioactive marine microbes;
  • Multi-‘omics’ approaches to realize the potential of cryptic specialized/secondary metabolism biosynthetic gene clusters.

Dr. Stephen A. Jackson
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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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. Marine Drugs 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 2900 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

  • ‘omics’
  • genomics
  • metagenomics
  • metabolomics
  • specialized/secondary metabolism biosynthetic gene clusters

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

22 pages, 1190 KiB  
Review
Aquatic Biomaterial Repositories: Comprehensive Guidelines, Recommendations, and Best Practices for Their Development, Establishment, and Sustainable Operation
by Christiana Tourapi, Eleni Christoforou, Susana P. Gaudêncio and Marlen I. Vasquez
Mar. Drugs 2024, 22(9), 427; https://doi.org/10.3390/md22090427 - 20 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1047
Abstract
The alarming pace of species extinction severely threatens terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, undermining the crucial ecological services vital for environmental sustainability and human well-being. Anthropogenic activities, such as urbanization, agriculture, industrialization, and those inducing climate change, intensify these risks, further imperiling biodiversity. Of [...] Read more.
The alarming pace of species extinction severely threatens terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, undermining the crucial ecological services vital for environmental sustainability and human well-being. Anthropogenic activities, such as urbanization, agriculture, industrialization, and those inducing climate change, intensify these risks, further imperiling biodiversity. Of particular importance are aquatic organisms, pivotal in biodiscovery and biotechnology. They contribute significantly to natural product chemistry, drug development, and various biotechnological applications. To safeguard these invaluable resources, establishing and maintaining aquatic biomaterial repositories (ABRs) is imperative. This review explores the complex landscape of ABRs, emphasizing the need for standardized procedures from collection to distribution. It identifies key legislative and regulatory frameworks, such as the Nagoya Protocol and EU directives, essential for ensuring responsible and equitable biorepository operations. Drawing on extensive literature and database searches, this study compiles existing recommendations and practices into a cohesive framework with which to guide the establishment and sustainable management of ABRs. Through collaborative efforts and adherence to best practices, ABRs can play a transformative role in the future of marine biotechnology and environmental conservation. Full article
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