Autoimmunity: Celebrating 35 Years
Bridging the Gap Between Basic Research and Clinical Practice for 35 Years
Although research on autoimmunity was not new in 1988, publication of such research was scattered across journals devoted to various disciplines. This left little opportunity for cross-pollination or potentially fruitful collaboration among researchers in rheumatology, endocrinology, neurology and other disciplines.
The late Professor Terence J. Wilkin, founding Editor-in-Chief of Autoimmunity, saw the potential benefits of gathering this research into a single publication. As he wrote in the journal’s opening editorial:
"Autoimmunity aims not only to reach across the clinically defined divisions of medical science, but also to communicate basic immunology to clinicians and clinical autoimmunity to basic scientists. In 10 years’, the best medical practice will reflect the basic research of today, and it is important that clinicians be aware of the pace of fundamental research."
During his time with the journal, Terry Wilkin turned that vision into a reality, creating a legacy that has been brought forward into the 2000s by Professor Paolo Casali. Today, best medical practice continues to reflect the advances in basic research.
From its inception, Autoimmunity sought to function as an integrator and catalyst of the work of basic scientists and physician-scientists. It has played a pioneering role in integrating the ever-increasing knowledge in basic bioimmunology with the insights provided by clinical autoimmunity. Clinical practice itself has advanced as evidence-based medicine increasingly informs precision medicine.
All this has been accelerated by the torrential revolution of molecular biology, cell biology, molecular genetics (including the human genome project), epigenetics, genetically modified animal models, and bioinformatics.