Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
8.1
4.9
Journals
IJMS
Special Issues
Immunotherapy: New Developments and Challenges
ijms-logo
Submit to IJMS Review for IJMS Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

Immunotherapy: New Developments and Challenges

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Immunology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 January 2025) | Viewed by 5054

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Xingxing Fan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Neher's Biophysics Laboratory for Innovative Drug Discovery, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macao, China
Interests: molecular pharmacology; cancer immunotherapy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Paolo Coghi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Pharmacy, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau 999078, China
Interests: infectious disease; malaria; virus; cancer; medicinal chemistry; natural compounds
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Immunotherapy is a promising strategy for cancer treatment that harnesses the power of the immune system to fight tumor cells. However, current immunotherapeutic agents have limitations such as high toxicity, low specificity, and poor bioavailability.

The most successful cancer therapies are immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), bi-specific T-cell engagers (BiTEs), and chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T cells). The possibility for a combination therapy built on the aforementioned techniques has recently been considered by researchers and has been demonstrated to have a significantly stronger impact on cancer therapy. Therefore, new research methodologies are necessary for a full explanation of the processes behind various cancer therapeutic approaches.

This Special Issue aims to publish original research papers, systematic reviews, and opinion pieces that focus on clinical/translational cancer immunotherapy, covering both in vitro and in vivo experiments on new immunotherapeutic strategies, therapy-related immune regulation, and immunotherapy markers.

Dr. Xingxing Fan
Dr. Paolo Coghi
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.

Keywords

  • tumor microenvironment
  • small molecules
  • IDO1 inhibition
  • checkpoint inhibitor therapy
  • adoptive T cell therapy
  • metabolic reprogram
  • resistance mechanisms
  • immune modulation
  • immune reconstitution
  • combination therapy
  • immunosuppression

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

18 pages, 13605 KiB  
Article
The Transcriptional Landscape of Immune-Response 3′-UTR Alternative Polyadenylation in Melanoma
by Xiao Yang, Yingyi Wu, Xingyu Chen, Jiayue Qiu and Chen Huang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(5), 3041; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25053041 - 6 Mar 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2083
Abstract
The prognosis of patients with malignant melanoma has been improved in recent decades due to advancements in immunotherapy. However, a considerable proportion of patients are refractory to treatment, particularly at advanced stages. This underscores the necessity of developing a new strategy to improve [...] Read more.
The prognosis of patients with malignant melanoma has been improved in recent decades due to advancements in immunotherapy. However, a considerable proportion of patients are refractory to treatment, particularly at advanced stages. This underscores the necessity of developing a new strategy to improve it. Alternative polyadenylation (APA), as a marker of crucial posttranscriptional regulation, has emerged as a major new type of epigenetic marker involved in tumorigenesis. However, the potential roles of APA in shaping the tumor microenvironment (TME) are largely unexplored. Herein, we collected two cohorts comprising melanoma patients who received immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) immunotherapy to quantify transcriptome-wide discrepancies in APA. We observed a global change in 3′-UTRs between responders and non-responders, which might involve DNA damage response, angiogenesis, PI3K-AKT signaling pathways, etc. Ten putative master APA regulatory factors for those APA events were detected via a network analysis. Notably, we established an immune response-related APA scoring system (IRAPAss), which exhibited a great performance of predicting immunotherapy response in multiple cohorts. Furthermore, we examined the correlation of APA with TME at the single-cell level using four single-cell immune profiles of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), which revealed an overall discrepancy in 3′-UTR length across diverse T cell populations, probably contributing to immunoregulation in melanoma. In conclusion, our study provides a transcriptional landscape of APA implicated in immunoregulation, which might lay the foundation for developing a new strategy for improving immunotherapy response for melanoma patients by targeting APA. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunotherapy: New Developments and Challenges)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

15 pages, 653 KiB  
Review
Advances in Antibody-Based Immune-Stimulating Drugs: Driving Innovation in Cancer Therapy
by Ren-Jie Zhao and Xing-Xing Fan
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(4), 1440; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26041440 - 8 Feb 2025
Viewed by 1000
Abstract
Antibody-based immune-stimulating drugs (ABIs) represent a transformative frontier in cancer immunotherapy, designed to reshape the tumor microenvironment and overcome immune suppression. This study highlighted recent advances in ABIs, including immune-stimulating antibody conjugates (ISACs), bispecific antibodies (BsAbs), and checkpoint blockade enhancers, with a focus [...] Read more.
Antibody-based immune-stimulating drugs (ABIs) represent a transformative frontier in cancer immunotherapy, designed to reshape the tumor microenvironment and overcome immune suppression. This study highlighted recent advances in ABIs, including immune-stimulating antibody conjugates (ISACs), bispecific antibodies (BsAbs), and checkpoint blockade enhancers, with a focus on their mechanisms of action, clinical advancements, and challenges. Preclinical findings revealed that ISACs effectively boost overall anti-cancer immunity by reprogramming tumor-associated macrophages, enhancing T cell activation, and engaging other immune pathways. Similarly, BsAbs effectively redirect immune cells to tumors, achieving significant tumor regression. Additionally, artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the development of ABIs by optimizing drug design, identifying novel targets, and accelerating preclinical validation, enabling personalized therapeutic strategies. Despite these advancements, significant challenges remain, including immune resistance and off-target effects. Future research should prioritize next-generation multifunctional antibodies, AI-driven innovations, and combination therapies to enhance efficacy and expand therapeutic applications. Connecting these gaps could unlock the full potential of ABIs, upgrading cancer treatment and improving outcomes for patients with refractory or resistant tumors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunotherapy: New Developments and Challenges)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 678 KiB  
Review
Monoclonal Antibodies in Metastatic Gastro-Esophageal Cancers: An Overview of the Latest Therapeutic Advances
by Foteini Kalofonou, Melpomeni Kalofonou, Foteinos-Ioannis Dimitrakopoulos and Haralabos Kalofonos
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(3), 1090; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26031090 - 27 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1010
Abstract
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have completely changed the face of oncology over the last 50 years, and they have contributed to a major breakthrough in terms of cancer therapy. Esophageal and gastric cancers, the eighth and fifth most commonly diagnosed types of cancer worldwide, [...] Read more.
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have completely changed the face of oncology over the last 50 years, and they have contributed to a major breakthrough in terms of cancer therapy. Esophageal and gastric cancers, the eighth and fifth most commonly diagnosed types of cancer worldwide, respectively, have lately, been managed more effectively, with the introduction of new therapeutic treatment strategies, especially mAbs. Combination treatments and new molecules have changed the face of the disease, while more therapies are getting approved on a daily basis. This review aims to analyse the major up-to-date clinical trials using mAbs and immunotherapy for the treatment of advanced gastro-esophageal cancers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunotherapy: New Developments and Challenges)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop