Call for papers - Extra chromosomal DNA data notes

Guest Editors

Wenpan Dong, PhD, School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, China
Kangshan Mao, PhD, Sichuan University, China

Submission Status: Open | Submission Deadline: 13 June 2025

BMC Genomic Data invites submissions for a new Collection on extra chromosomal DNA data notes, highlighting the increasing recognition of extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) in biological processes such as genomic instability and adaptive evolution. Submissions are encouraged across various topics, including plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance, genomic instability, ecological roles of ecDNA in microbial communities, virus-encoded ecDNA in host-pathogen interactions, chloroplast ecDNA diversity in plant evolution, characterization of pathogenicity islands in bacterial genomes, ecDNA dynamics in plant stress responses, comparative genomics of plasmid content for insights into microbial adaptation, and the role of ecDNA in driving virulence in pathogenic bacteria.

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Meet the Guest Editors

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Wenpan Dong, PhD, School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, China

Wenpan Dong is an Associate Professor at the School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University (BFU). He obtained his PhD in Biology from Peking University in 2019. His primary research focuses on plant taxonomy, phylogenomics and biogeography, speciation and adaptive evolution, and the biodiversity conservation of several plant groups. He has published more than 50 papers in peer-reviewed journals, including Taxon, Molecular Ecology Resources, BMC Biology, Communications Biology, and Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.

Kangshan Mao, PhD, Sichuan University, China

Dr Mao earned his PhD from Lanzhou University, where he specialized in the phylogenetics and biogeography of plants, with a focus on plastid DNA sequences. His recent research centers on the spatiotemporal evolution of species diversity, speciation, hybridization, adaptive evolution, and conservation genomics, with a particular emphasis on Cupressaceae plants. His lab also investigates the evolution of various plant-parasite insect co-evolution systems by employing high-throughput sequencing and multi-omics approaches. Dr. Mao serves on the editorial boards of several distinguished journals, including BMC Genomic Data.

About the Collection

BMC Genomic Data is calling for submissions to our new Collection on extra chromosomal DNA data notes. As the field of genomics continues to advance, the significance of extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) in various biological processes is becoming increasingly apparent. EcDNA, once considered as superfluous genetic material, plays a crucial role in many processes such as genomic instability, cancer progression, microbial evolution, environmental adaptation, and adaptive evolution.

Understanding ecDNA is crucial for understanding how genes are organized in cells and how this affects biological processes. Research on ecDNA has already changed our comprehension of cancer biology, showing that it plays a big role in tumor diversity, resistance to drugs, and their ability to spread. In addition, investigations into ecDNA have taught us a lot about how bacteria change and resist antibiotics, and how they react to their environment. By further studying ecDNA, we hope to acquire more knowledge about cancer and antibiotic resistance, and to gain deeper insights into the mechanisms driving evolutionary innovation. Continued exploration of ecDNA could have big impacts on health, the environment, and technology.

We invite submissions encompassing a wide array of topics, including but not limited to:

Plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance in bacteria
Genomic instability and ecDNA in cancer cells
Ecological roles of ecDNA in microbial communities
Implications for host-pathogen interactions in virus-encoded ecDNA
Cytoplasmic (chloroplast and mitochondrial) DNA diversity and interaction between nuclear and cytoplasmic genomes in plant evolution
Characterization of pathogenicity islands in bacterial genomes
EcDNA dynamics in plant stress responses
Insights into microbial adaptation through comparative genomics of plasmid content
EcDNA as drivers of virulence in pathogenic bacteria

There are currently no articles in this collection.

Submission Guidelines

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This Collection welcomes submission of original Research Articles and Data Notes. Should you wish to submit a different article type, please read our submission guidelines to confirm that type is accepted by the journal. 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 "Extra chromosomal DNA data notes" 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.