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AJP - Cell Physiology: A Message From The Editor
In assuming the editorship of the American Journal of Physiology-Cell
Physiology after the outstanding performance by recent Editors, in
particular my two immediate predecessors, most recently, Dennis Brown, and
before him, Kim Barrett, I feel a bit akin to the man who was the 6th (or
was it the 7th?) husband of a well-known Hollywood star (readers of “a
certain age” will know to whom this refers). When asked how he felt, he
responded, “I know what to do, I know how to do it, I just hope I can make
it interesting. . . .” I share his concern, as it is with humility and a bit
of trepidation that I begin my term as Editor of AJP-Cell Physiology.
This is an extraordinarily exciting time for cell physiology and
AJP-Cell Physiology from a broad scientific viewpoint and in terms of
the tools that are available, the nature and importance of the questions
that can be asked, and the answers that are being provided. A perusal of
recent issues reflects the success of AJP-Cell Physiology in capturing some
of this excitement. One of my goals is to enhance the attractiveness of the
journal for authors working at the cutting edge, in particular in areas that
are in “domains” of cell physiology but that have not always been well
represented among articles published in the journal. Examples include
cellular studies of developmental physiology (from preterm to grave),
integrative cell physiology, stem cell biology, apoptosis/autophagy, and
neurophysiology, in addition to areas of traditional strength such as ion
channel and transporter physiology and signal transduction. I plan that
AJP-Cell Physiology will have a mix of reviews (some organized in a
series around a timely topic of interest) and Editorial Focus articles (to
highlight published articles for readers) as well as reports of high-quality
original studies, such that readers will find multiple articles of interest
both in their immediate field of interest and more broadly, so that they
will say even more than in the past: “I have to read that!”
The most important change that will occur is among the first-rate
scientists who will be serving as Associate Editors, the majority of whom
are new Associate Editors for AJP-Cell Physiology: Robert Balaban,
John Geibel, Sophie Lotersztajn, Alicia McDonough, Kathleen Sweadner, and
Jason Yuan. All these individuals are enthusiastic about enhancing the
quality and appeal of AJP-Cell Physiology and provide both complementary and
synergistic expertise. Working with our highly knowledgeable Editorial
Advisory Board members, the Associate Editors and I will seek to be as rapid
and fair as possible, while being sensitive to authors and the efforts they
have expended in undertaking experimental studies and in preparing a
manuscript for submission.
In this regard, AJP-Cell Physiology is truly an international
journal with a very large number of submissions from outside the United
States. Moreover, English is not the native language of multiple editorial
board members and one of the Associate Editors. AJP-Cell Physiology
welcomes submissions from colleagues throughout the world. To facilitate the
review of their manuscripts, I urge all authors to make sure their
submissions use appropriate English words, grammar, and syntax.
The outstanding efforts of Margaret Reich, the staff of AJP-Cell
Physiology, and APS Publications have produced impressive gains in the
speed with which manuscripts are reviewed and published. Prospective authors
should be aware that “turnaround time” for decisions is generally within a
few weeks and that publication on-line is virtually immediate upon
acceptance of the final version of an accepted paper. Moreover, the print
version of the journal now has a minimal lag from the time of publication of
the electronic version.
I invite readers and prospective authors to work with us to continue the
success of AJP-Cell Physiology and the important contributions that I
anticipate it will make to report discoveries and expand knowledge in cell
physiology . . . “I hope we can make it interesting . . .”
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