The Role of Estrogen Receptors in Health and Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

The estrogen receptors ERα, ERβ, and the G‑protein‑coupled estrogen receptor (GPER) are expressed in various tissues, e.g., in the brain, liver, bone, breast, colon, skin, salivary gland, and the tissues of the female reproductive tract. They mediate the effects of estrogens in many physiological and pathophysiological processes via different molecular mechanisms, which finally result in gene regulation.

The wide expression of these receptors is the background for this Special Issue. Whereas the function of ERa for example in breast cancer has been extensively studied, there remain open questions regarding the role of both nuclear ERs and of GPER-1 in different physiological processes and in the pathogenesis of various diseases.

This Special Issue of IJMS is thus calling for original work or comprehensive review articles on the role of ERa, ERb, and GPER-1 (A) in classical estrogen-dependent tissues of the female reproduction system, such as tumors of the ovary and endometrium or benign female reproductive disorders such as endometriosis or the polycystic ovary syndrome and (B) also addresses novel insights in the function of these receptors in the physiology and pathobiology of other tissues, which have classically not been considered to be estrogen-responsive. In addition to new aspects of their physiological function, novel insights in the role of these receptors in various diseases, elucidating putative tissue-specific pathways, have the potential to identify potential new biomarkers or therapy targets.

Suitable topics include but are not limited to:

• The role of ERa, ERb, and GPER-1 in the pathogenesis of diseases of tissues expressing at least one of these receptors;
• Novel insights in the physiological function of estrogen receptors in tissues expressing one or more of these receptors.

Prof. Dr. Oliver Treeck
Prof. Dr. Maciej Iek Skrzypczak
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. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. 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.

• estrogen receptors
• physiology
• pathobiology
• cancer
• benign diseases and disorders