12/10/2026

MicroRNA as key players in skin regeneration and anti-aging pathways

Azizi et al.

For full text please see pdf.

05/10/2026

Glycemia reprograms substrate transport and shapes divergent stress responses in differentiating H9c2 cells

Passaponti et al.

For full text please see pdf.

07/08/2026

Stress management by benzodiazepines in septic shock and critical illness: mechanistic and clinical evidence supporting alternative sedative strategies

Lambertucci et al.

For full text please see pdf.

07/07/2026

Triptolide inhibits ovarian cancer growth and metastasis via reprogramming of tumor-associated macrophages

Chen et al.

For full text please see pdf.

03/07/2026

Polyamine-mediated inhibition of ferroptosis contributes to geroprotection

Madeo et al.

For full text please see pdf.

24/04/2026

The IRE1α-XBP1s-NFκB axis controls cell survival and epithelial differentiation under osmotic stress through arachidonic acid metabolism activation

Parra et al.

Arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism plays a critical role in renal cell osmoadaptation. We recently demonstrated that hypertonicity induces the expression and activation of cytosolic phospholipase A2 (cPLA2). On one hand, AA released by cPLA2 enhances triacylglyceride (TG) synthesis and accumulation. On the other hand, AA is converted into prostaglandins (PG) through cyclooxygenase 2 (COX2) activity. Both processes are required for renal cell survival under osmotic stress. However, the mechanisms by which hypertonicity induces cPLA2 expression remain poorly understood. Given that we previously shown that hypertonicity regulates TG synthesis through the IRE1α-XBP1s branch of the unfolded protein (…)

06/03/2026

Multifaceted role of CNPY2 beyond ER stress: Disease implications and therapeutic potential

Ebadollahibaruq et al.

This review meticulously dissects CNPY2’s structural characteristics, expression patterns, and biological functions across various disorders, emphasizing its role on tumor initiation, microenvironmental stress, and chemoresistance, and evaluating its potential as a therapeutic target.

30/01/2026

Antifungal peptides: from modes of action to synergistic and immunologic potential

Carmona-Gutierrez et al.
26/01/2026

Reversal of Cushing syndrome by antibody-mediated neutralization of ACBP/DBI

Shen et al.

For full text please see pdf.

17/01/2020

RPA and Pif1 cooperate to remove G-rich structures at both leading and lagging strand

Maestroni et al.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the absence of Pif1 helicase induces the instability of G4-containing CEB1 minisatellite during leading strand but not lagging strand replication. We report that RPA and Pif1 cooperate to maintain CEB1 stability when the G4 forming strand is either on the leading or lagging strand templates. At the leading strand, RPA acts in the same pathway as Pif1 to maintain CEB1 stability. Consistent with this result, RPA co-precipitates with Pif1. This association between Pif1 and RPA is affected by the rfa1-D228Y mutation that lowers the affinity of RPA in particular for G-rich single-stranded DNA. At the lagging strand, in contrast to pif1∆, the rfa1-D228Y mutation strongly increases the frequency of CEB1 rearrangements. We explain that Pif1 is dispensable at the lagging strand DNA by the ability of RPA by itself to prevent formation of stable G-rich secondary structures during lagging (…)

14/10/2019

LTX-315 sequentially promotes lymphocyte-independent and lymphocyte-dependent antitumor effects

Liao et al.

LTX-315 is an oncolytic peptide that has antitumor efficacy in mice grafted with various tumor cell lines and is currently being tested in phase II clinical trials. Here we aimed to further evaluate LTX-315 in conditional genetic mouse models of cancer that typically resist current treatment options and to better understand the drug’s mode of action in vivo. We report LTX-315 mediates profound antitumor effects against Braf- and Pten-driven melanoma and delays the progression of Kras- and P53-driven soft tissue sarcoma in mice. Additionally, we show in melanoma that LTX-315 triggers two sequential phases of antitumor response. The first phase of response, which begins within minutes of drug delivery into tumors, is defined by disrupted tumor vasculature and decreased tumor burden and occurs independently of (…)

13/09/2019

Inflammation induced PD-L1-specific T cells

Munir et al.

PD-L1-specific T cells are a natural part of the T-cell repertoire in humans. Hence, we have previously described spontaneous CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell reactivity against PD-L1 in the peripheral blood of patients with various cancers as well as in healthy donors. It is well described that the expression of the PD-L1 protein is introduced in cells by pro-inflammatory cytokines, e.g. IFN-γ. In the current study, we were able to directly link inflammation with PD-L1-specific T cells by showing that inflammatory mediators such as IFN-γ generate measurable numbers of PD-L1-specific T cells in human PBMCs as well as in in vivo models. These PD-L1-specific T cells can vigorously modulate the cell compartments of the local environment. PD-L1-specific T cells may be important for immune homeostasis by sustaining the ongoing inflammatory response by the suppression of regulatory cell function both (…)

31/07/2019

Gold Nanoparticles sensitize pancreatic cancer cells to gemcitabine

Huai et al.

INTRODUCTION Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal disease. The mortality rate closely parallels that of incidence [1][2]. The current standard of care for advanced stage PDAC patients includes combination treatment with Nab-paclitaxel and

25/02/2019

The primary cilium protein folliculin is part of the autophagy signaling pathway to regulate epithelial cell size in response to fluid flow

Zemirli et al.

Autophagy is a conserved molecular pathway directly involved in the degradation and recycling of intracellular components. Autophagy is associated with a response to stress situations, such as nutrients deficit, chemical toxicity, mechanical stress or microbial host defense. We have recently shown that primary cilium-dependent autophagy is important to control kidney epithelial cell size in response to fluid flow induced shear stress. Here we show that the ciliary protein folliculin (FLCN) actively participates to the signaling cascade leading to the stimulation of fluid flow-dependent autophagy upstream of the cell size regulation in HK2 kidney epithelial cells. The knockdown of FLCN induces a shortening of the primary cilium, inhibits the activation of AMPK and the recruitment of the autophagy protein ATG16L1 at the primary cilium. Altogether, our results suggest that FLCN (…)

10/10/2018

p38β MAPK mediates ULK1-dependent induction of autophagy in skeletal muscle of tumor-bearing mice

Liu et al.

INTRODUCTION Cancer has been increasingly recognized as a systemic disorder that stresses multiple organs independent of its location. At least 50% of cancer patients experience cachexia, a systemic wasting syndrome manifested as weight loss, inflammation,

17/08/2018

Neuronal Lamin regulates motor circuit integrity and controls motor function and lifespan

Oyston et al.

Neuronal aging involves a progressive decline in cognitive abilities and loss of motor function. Mutations in human Lamin genes (LMNA, LMNB1, LMNB2) lead to a wide-range of diseases including muscular dystrophy, peripheral neuropathy and progeria. Here we investigate the role of neuronal Lamin in regulating age-related phenotypes. Neuronal targeting of Lamin led to shortened lifespan, progressive impairment of motor function and loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons within the protocerebral anterior medial (PAM) cluster in the Drosophila melanogaster brain. Loss of neuronal Lamin caused an age-related decline in neural physiology, with slower neurotransmission and increased chance of motor circuit failure with age. Unexpectedly, Lamin-dependent decline in motor function was specific for the chemical synapses of the dorsal longitudinal muscle (DLM). Together (…)

21/03/2018

Assay for high-throughput screening of inhibitors of the ASC-PYD inflammasome core filament

Sborgi et al.

The protein ASC is a central component of most inflammasome complexes, forming functional oligomeric filaments that activate large amounts of pro-caspase-1 for further IL-1β processing and the induction of Gasdermin D-dependent cell death. The central role of inflammasomes in the innate immune response pose them as new molecular targets for therapy of diverse acute, chronic and inherited autoinflammatory pathologies. In recent years, an increasing number of molecules were proposed to modulate inflammasome signalling by interacting with different components of inflammasome complexes. However, the difficult in vitro reconstitution of the inflammasome has limited the development of specific on-target biochemical assays for compound activity confirmation and for drug discovery in high throughput screening setups. Here we describe a homogeneous, pH (…)

07/03/2018

Dram1 regulates DNA damage-induced alternative autophagy

Nagata et al.

Autophagy is an evolutionarily conserved process that degrades subcellular constituents. Mammalian cells undergo two types of autophagy; Atg5-dependent conventional autophagy and Atg5-independent alternative autophagy, and the molecules required for the latter type of autophagy are largely unknown. In this study, we analyzed the molecular mechanisms of genotoxic stress-induced alternative autophagy, and identified the essential role of p53 and damage-regulated autophagy modulator (Dram1). Dram1 was sufficient to induce alternative autophagy. In the mechanism of alternative autophagy, Dram1 functions in the closure of isolation membranes downstream of p53. These findings indicate that Dram1 plays a pivotal role in genotoxic stress-induced alternative autophagy.

22/05/2018

The NLRC4 inflammasome requires IRF8-dependent production of NAIPs

Lee et al.

Inflammasomes orchestrate cellular responses to pathogen- or danger-associated molecular patterns by controlling the activation of caspase-1. Inflammasome activation results in enzymatically active caspase-1, which mediates the maturation and release of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and

22/05/2018

Targeting LRH-1/NR5A2 to treat type 1 diabetes mellitus

Cobo-Vuilleumier et al.

The liver receptor homolog-1 (LRH-1) is a member of the NR5A family of nuclear receptors that plays a pivotal role in early embryonic development while later on it specifies the endodermal lineage. In adults, LRH-1

10/05/2018

Nucleolar Stress: hallmarks, sensing mechanism and diseases

Yang et al.

The nucleolus is a prominent subnuclear compartment, where ribosome biosynthesis takes place. Recently, the nucleolus has gained attention for its novel role in the regulation of cellular stress. Nucleolar stress is emerging as a new concept, which is characterized by diverse cellular insult-induced abnormalities in nucleolar structure and function, ultimately leading to activation of p53 or other stress signaling pathways and alterations in cell behavior. Despite a number of comprehensive reviews on this concept, straightforward and clear-cut way criteria for a nucleolar stress state, regarding the factors that elicit this state, the morphological and functional alterations as well as the rationale for p53 activation are still missing. Based on literature of the past two decades, we herein summarize the evolution of the concept and provide hallmarks of nucleolar stress. Along with updated information and thorough discussion of existing confusions in the field, we pay particular attention to the current understanding of the sensing mechanisms (…)

10/05/2018

Calling RNF168 to action

Nowsheen and Lou

– [table id=103 /] – It is interesting to note that MDC1 acts as a node for the recruitment of both RNF8 and L3MBTL2 and brings these two factors into proximity. As we and others

08/05/2018

Exosomal secretion of truncated cytosolic lysyl-tRNA synthetase induces inflammation during cell starvation

Kim et al.

Kim et al. (2017) reveals three crucial steps of KRS secretion, including its dissociation from the MSC complex, interaction with syntenin, and secretion via the exosomal pathway (Figure 1). – [table id=102 /] – First,

04/05/2018

Endolysosomal dysfunction and exosome secretion: implications for neurodegenerative disorders

Miranda and Di Paolo

A master regulator of both endolysosomal function and autophagy is Vps34 and its lipid product phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PI3P) through which the lipid kinase exerts most of its biological actions in eukaryotic cells. A host of PI3P

28/03/2018

Putting together and taking apart: assembly and disassembly of the Rad51 nucleoprotein filament in DNA repair and genome stability

Andriuskevicius et al.

Homologous recombination is a key mechanism providing both genome stability and genetic diversity in all living organisms. Recombinases play a central role in this pathway: multiple protein subunits of Rad51 or its orthologues bind single-stranded DNA to form a nucleoprotein filament which is essential for initiating recombination events. Multiple factors are involved in the regulation of this step, both positively and negatively. In this review, we discuss Rad51 nucleoprotein assembly and disassembly, how it is regulated and what functional significance it has in genome maintenance.

23/03/2018

Oxidation of p62 as an evolutionary adaptation to promote autophagy in stress conditions

Otten et al.

Autophagy (literally meaning self-eating) is an intracellular trafficking pathway. It involves the formation of a double membraned organelle (called the autophagosome) around components of the cell, such as damaged proteins, protein aggregates and organelles, designated

22/03/2018

New insights into the key role of HIF-1α in IL-10-producing B cells

Meng and Bozec.

HIFs are heterodimeric transcription factors, consisting of an oxygen-labile alpha subunit (HIF- α) and a constitutively-stable beta subunit (HIF-β), that exert pivotal roles in inducing cellular responses to hypoxia. HIF-1α and HIF-2α are hydroxylated by

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21/11/2017

Metastatic-initiating cells and lipid metabolism

Aznar Benitah

INTRODUCTION Metastasis is an inefficient process at the cellular level, yet it is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths [cite]10.1016/j.stem.2014.02.002[/cite]. Despite intense investigation, the identity of the tumor cells with the capacity to colonize distant

01/11/2017

Tumor suppressive Ca2+ signaling is driven by IP3 receptor fitness

Bultynck and Campanella

Intracellular Ca2+ signals critically control a plethora of cellular functions, of which many impact cellular death and/or survival, processes often dysregulated in cancer [cite]10.1038/nrc.2017.18[/cite]. In healthy cells, Ca2+ signaling is employed for normal cell physiology

01/10/2017

The long non-coding RNA H19 – a new player in hepatocellular carcinoma

Ardelt and Pachmayr

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most prevalent and lethal cancers worldwide [cite]10.3322/caac.20107[/cite]. Incidence is increasing and due to its high chemoresistance, the therapeutic options are limited and HCC has risen to become one of

01/10/2017

TFEB-mTORC1 feedback loop in metabolism and cancer

Di Malta and Ballabio

Everyday most organisms face the requirement to adapt their metabolic cues to the fluctuation of nutrient resources into the environment. When nutrients are abundant cells activate anabolic pathways, such as protein and lipid synthesis, and

01/10/2017

Cell Stress – a new journal for cellular pathophysiology

Zimmermann et al.

Any disease that humanity encounters is preceded by a homeostatic disruption as a prelude to a consequent pathological state. Medical researchers and practitioners try to counteract this by designing and optimizing appropriate diagnostic tools and

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FAQs

Whether you’re preparing a manuscript, reviewing a paper, or just exploring the journal, this FAQ answers the essentials—from scope and founders to impact and how to submit. Prefer a tailored path? Pick For authors or For reviewers below.

Peer-reviewed, open-access research using unicellular organisms (and multicellular microorganisms) to understand cellular responses and human disease.

The journal (founded in 2014) is led by its Editors-in-Chief Frank Madeo, Didac Carmona-Gutierrez, and Guido Kroemer

Microbial Cell has been publishing original scientific literature since 2014, and from the very beginning has been managed by active scientists through an independent Publishing House (Shared science Publishers). The journal was conceived as a platform to acknowledge the importance of unicellular organisms, both as model systems as well as in the biological context of human health and disease.

Ever since, Microbial Cell has very positively developed and strongly grown into a respected journal in the unicellular research community and even beyond. This scientific impact is reflected in the yearly number of citations obtained by articles published in Microbial Cell, as recorded by the Web of Science (Clarivate, formerly Thomson/Reuters):

The scientific impact of Microbial Cell is also mirrored in a series of milestones:

2015: Microbial Cell is included in the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), a selection of developing journals drafted by Clarivate Analytics based on the candidate’s publishing standards, quality, editorial content, and citation data. Note: As an ESCI-selected journal, Microbial Cell is currently being evaluated in a rigorous and long process to determine an inclusion in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE), which allows the official calculation of Clarivate Analytics’ impact factor.

2016: Microbial Cell is awarded the so-called DOAJ Seal by the selective Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). The DOAJ Seal is an exclusive mark of certification for open access journals granted by DOAJ to journals that adhere to outstanding best practice and achieve an extra high and clear commitment to open access and high publishing standards.

2017: Microbial Cell is included in Pubmed Central (PMC), allowing the archiving of all the journal’s articles in PMC and PubMed.

2019: Microbial Cell is indexed in the prestigious abstract and citation database Scopus after a thorough selection process. This also means that Microbial Cell obtains, for the first time, an official Scopus CiteScore as well as an official journal ranking in the Scimago Journal and Country Ranking.

2022: Microbial Cell’s CiteScore reaches a value of 7.2 for the year 2021, positioning Microbial Cell among the top microbiology journals (previously available CiteScores: 2019: 5.4; 2020: 5.1).

2022: Microbial Cell is indexed in the highly selective Science Citation Index Expanded™, which covers approx. 9,500 of the world’s most impactful journals across 178 scientific disciplines. In their journal selection and curation process, Clarivate´s editors apply 24 ‘quality’ criteria and four ‘impact’ criteria to select the most influential journals in their respective fields. This selection is also a pre-requisite for inclusion in the JCR, which features the impact factor.

2022: Microbial Cell is listed in the Journal Citation Reports™ (JCR), and obtains its first official Journal Impact Factor™ (JIF) for the year 2021: 5.316.

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