Call for papers - Autoimmune disorders

Guest Editors

Jiuliang Zhao, MD, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, China
Ali R. Zomorrodi, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, USA

Submission Status: Open | Submission Deadline: 28 March 2025

BMC Medicine is calling for a submissions to our Collection on understanding the complex landscape of autoimmune diseases. This Collection seeks to showcase research that explores genetic and environmental factors, novel translational insights, dysregulated immune responses, and precision medicine strategies. By advancing our understanding of autoimmune disorders, this Collection aims to pave the way for personalized and effective interventions to alleviate the burden of these conditions on individuals and healthcare systems.

New Content Item This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

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Meet the Guest Editors

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Jiuliang Zhao, MD, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, China

Jiuliang Zhao is Professor of Rheumatology and Deputy Director of Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology at Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH), which has long been considered as one of the top hospitals in China. Dr Zhao’s major research interests are pathogenesis, and clinical studies for systemic lupus erythematosus and antiphospholipid syndrome. His team has established a prospective multicenter cohort Chinese SLE Treatment and Research Group (CSTAR) comprising over 5,000 lupus patients. Dr Zhao has authored 58 articles as either the first/co-first author or the corresponding author in journals such as Autoimmunity Reviews, Pharmacology & Therapeutics, Rheumatology (Oxford), and RMD Open. Dr Zhao serves as Vice President of Chinese Rheumatology Association (CRA) Young Committee, and Vice President of Asia Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology (APLAR) Young Rheumatologist Committee.

Ali R. Zomorrodi, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, USA

Dr. Ali R. Zomorrodi is an Instructor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and the Computational and Systems Biology Lead at Massachusetts General Hospital's Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center. His laboratory investigates the metabolic crosstalk between the host and microbiome in autoimmune conditions such as Celiac Disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. By leveraging multi-omics technologies, advanced computational modeling, and AI-driven tools, he strives to better understand the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of these chronic diseases and to streamline the design of personalized treatments.

About the Collection

BMC Medicine is calling for submissions to our Collection on autoimmune disorders.

Autoimmune disorders encompass a diverse group of conditions in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own cells, leading to chronic inflammation and tissue damage. These disorders can affect multiple organs and systems including the dermatological, digestive, endocrine, neuro-muscular, rheumatic, and vascular. The complexity of autoimmune disorders lies in their heterogeneity, with over 100 recognized autoimmune diseases, each with its unique pathogenesis and clinical manifestations. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of inflammation and autoimmune disorders is crucial for developing effective diagnostic tools and targeted therapies.

By advancing our collective understanding of autoimmune disorders, we hope to discover new therapeutic targets, develop precision medicine strategies tailored to individual autoimmune conditions, and explore innovative immunomodulatory interventions.

Topics of interest for this Collection include, but are not limited to:

Mechanisms of antibody and immune dysregulation
Inflammatory mechanisms underlying specific autoimmune diseases
Genetic and environmental factors influencing autoimmune disease susceptibility
Novel diagnostic/prognostic biomarkers for autoimmune disorders
Neuroinflammation and autoinflammatory disorders
Autoimmune diseases affecting specific systems (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes)
Diagnosis and classification criteria for autoimmune disorders
Advances in drug discovery and clinical trials testing therapeutic interventions
Autoimmunity and cancer: intersections and implications
Impact of autoimmune disorders on quality of life and psychosocial well-being. Patient and public involvement (PPI) containing lived experiences will be considered.
Emerging technologies and methodologies in autoimmune research
Interplay between COVID/infection and autoimmunity

This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

There are currently no articles in this collection.

Submission Guidelines

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BMC Medicine encourages submissions of front matter articles and original research, including clinical trials (phase I-III, randomized-controlled, either positive or negative trials), epidemiological studies (retrospective or prospective), systematic reviews and meta-analyses, -omics, medical imaging, genomics studies and biomarkers research. Before submitting your manuscript, please ensure you have read our submission guidelines.

Articles for this Collection should be submitted via our submission system, Snapp. During the submission process you will be asked whether you are submitting to a Collection; please select "Regenerative medicine" from the dropdown menu.

Articles will undergo the journal’s standard peer-review process and are subject to all of the journal’s standard policies. Articles will be added to the Collection as they are published.

The Editors have no competing interests with the submissions which they handle through the peer review process. The peer review of any submissions for which the Editors have competing interests is handled by another Editorial Board Member who has no competing interests.