Dear Colleagues,

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) play a bivalent role in cells, being involved in the host immune defenses against pathogens and, when overproduced, creating a highly cytotoxic milieu that contributes to direct organ/tissue damage. Thus, their production and role must be carefully modulated. Scavenging and metal chelating compounds can be used alone or in concert to currently available therapies to address this issue.

In microorganisms, redox metabolism is generally based on specific enzymatic processes, affecting their morphological and functional integrity. Thus, the counteraction of these pathways could represent a valuable therapeutic strategy to fight microbial infections. It is hardly surprising that the search for innovative antimicrobial agents, endowed with new mechanisms of action, led to the design of modulators of microbial redox balance, such as inducers of oxidative stress and inhibitors of antioxidant molecules with minimal or no interference on the host antioxidant defenses. In this way, redox-balance-targeting antimicrobials act directly or indirectly on oxidative stress in a complex interplay. Recently, co-administration or multi-targeting approaches have been proposed to treat infections, limiting oxidative damage.

Therefore, this Special Issue aims to gather studies addressing the subcellular, cellular, and molecular bases of the redox status, especially if associated with infectious diseases. Antioxidants of natural and synthetic origin can be used to limit the exacerbation of this physiological process or to stimulate the natural immune response to external harmful stimuli. It will shed light on the microbial redox system and its role in the pathogenesis of infections, along with host–pathogen interactions. It will also focus on the discovery and development of new antimicrobial agents able to modulate the oxidant–antioxidant equilibrium in both pathogens and hosts.

Dr. Simone Carradori
Dr. Ilaria D'Agostino
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• drug design
• innovative targets in medicinal chemistry
• natural products
• antimicrobial activity
• antioxidants and prooxidants
• antibiofilm activity
• oxidative stress
• drug repositioning
• in silico screening
• host–pathogen interaction
• microbiota
• combination therapy
• multi-target agents