The International Reviews of Immunology has now entered the second quarter of a century of its existence. This editorial aims to offer the readership a synopsis of the recent past, current status, and near future of the journal. Prestigious members of the editorial team have led, and continue to lead, the journal through times of great achievement in the biomedical field: cellular and molecular characterization of immune responses; the cloning of major histocompatibility molecules and of T- and B-cell receptors; discovery and development of monoclonal antibodies as key components of today's diagnostic and therapeutic arsenal in infectious diseases and cancers; progress in understanding the molecular pathogenesis of diseases such as type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and systemic lupus erythematosus; the cloning of the first tumor-associated antigens; and a revolution in vaccinology culminating with the first anticancer prophylactic vaccine. In one way or another, these achievements, as well as many others, were reflected in the pages of our journal through the dedication of numerous contributors and guest editors, the support of the readership, and the guidance of the publisher throughout the years. Nowadays, the scientific community and the public witness another great revolution in the biomedical field that promises to change our strategy in fighting cancer and inflammatory, cardiovascular, and metabolic disorders: the coming of age of molecular targeted therapies. With a deeper understanding of molecular targets and the pathways involved in disease processes and the realization of heterogeneity of molecular pathogenesis of disease comes the promise of designing therapies that are tailored to one's disease. Great modern medicines such as Avastin®, Rituxan®, Iressa®, and Gleevec® integrate the concept of molecular diagnosis, biomarker analysis, and molecular targeted therapies and are true examples of a first generation of tailored therapeutics. It is evident from these examples what a key role immunology played and continues to play throughout this revolution via the advent of monoclonal antibodies. Today's efforts to develop targeted and even personalized therapies in cancer and other diseases takes great advantage of new knowledge obtained in various branches of immunology.
During the past 2 years, the journal has undergone several changes, starting with a new editor-in-chief and subsequently a new publisher. Whereas the former was announced in an editorial published in 2005, the latter went in effect during the second half of 2006. Today, Informa Healthcare has the mission and responsibility of managing the publication of the journal. International Reviews of Immunology welcomes this prestigious organization, replacing Taylor & Francis as publisher. The new management is putting in place new, modern processes with the aim to build value in the journal, and a new marketing campaign is just ahead of us. Informa Healthcare is a major global contributor to the process of biomedical research journalism and has a commitment to promoting scientific literature in numerous fields worldwide.
Now 2 years after we redefined the mission of International Reviews of Immunology, we are happy to report achievements, while also highlighting development areas where we need the conjugated help of the readership, an expanding editorial team, and the publisher. The scope of the journal has been broadened to include topics outside basic immunology, such as autoimmunity and infectious diseases, focusing on translational and medical sciences. Thus, we hosted technology-focused issues dedicated to DNA, cancer vaccines, and new immunotherapeutic approaches in autoimmune diseases; or subject matter–oriented issues dedicated to NKT or T-regulatory cells in basic science, disease, and treatment. In doing this, our hope is to more activly publicize the exciting science at the foundation of modern molecular targeted therapies in immune disorders, infectious diseases, cancer, and other areas.
Our focus has also expanded to include topics directly linked to the development of new biomolecules, small-molecule therapies, biomarkers, and diagnostics. Using these new topics, we are aiming to feed the need for information in industry and academia alike, as well as foster an open exchange of communication between these highly dynamic yet differentially focused sectors. It is our conviction that an exchange of knowledge and processes between nonprofit and for-profit organizations—with the former focused on long-term basic research consisting of target and biomarker discovery, and the latter interested in advancing new drugs and diagnostics through development—will have a key positive impact in the field of targeted molecular therapies.
Another recent change involved the journal's editorial board. Although prestigious, key opinion leaders continue to offer their valuable contribution to the team, we expanded the group with new editors—dynamic contributors to the field of immunology, residing in North America and overseas—who reflect the global and translational focus of the journal. During the same 2 years, we made a transition to a paperless submission and review process, which is by no means complete, yet is a valuable first step to expedite and modernize the initial steps of publication. We applied for the first time for the ISI citation index and, with an impact score higher than 2, our journal is positioned within the top half of all immunology journals.
Several development areas are ahead of us, all aimed to ensure a more prominent profile of the journal in the scientific publication world. First, we are announcing a transition to a system combining invited topics and free submissions with the aim to increase the number of high-quality submissions and to empower the readership to participate in shaping the content of International Reviews of Immunology. The nature of submissions is being diversified; beyond editorials and minireviews, International Reviews of Immunology will accept original contributions in the form of reviews outside a common theme or a predetermined topic. We now consider review articles that encompass expert opinion sustained by original research data. On the other hand, most issues will also feature a section dedicated to preselected topics of unusually high interest for the readership, composed of invited reviews as before. We encourage submission of editorials or minireviews that provide a synopsis or state-of-the-art information about in a particular field as well as proposals for topics to be covered, accompanied or not by proposals for guest editorship. The full text of these articles will be made available on the publisher's Website; in addition, all published manuscripts will continue to be indexed by Medline. This allows us to continue to expand the vision of International Reviews of Immunology, to capture topics pertaining to translational science, innovative concepts in immunotherapy, along with more traditional clinical research topics. Through this, we hope to broaden our contributor and readership base to mirror the complexity of new disciplines—in academia and industry alike—involved with translating new concepts in immunology and immunotherapy (). As an example, in the current issue we host exciting reviews covering diverse, yet synergistic, topics: Qu and Zhao discuss basic scientific evidence in support of T-regulatory cells; Chiriva-Internati et al. outline target discovery, evaluation processes, and novel antigens in multiple myeloma; Ward and Kaufman discuss the translation of costimulatory molecules in cancer immunotherapy; and finally, Malyankar provides a synopsis on tumor-associated antigens with a potential biomarker value.
FIGURE 1 Expanded scope of the International Reviews of Immunology, mirroring, advances in biomedical sciences applied to immunotherapeutics.
Through these steps, it is our hope that in addition to the traditional academic readership, the journal will gradually capture the attention of a dynamic yet growing readership in the pharmaceutical industry and the biotechnology sector. Overall, our intention is to strengthen the position of this journal as an essential bridge between annual reviews journals and monthly or biweekly published immunology journals with a focus on research articles. To support a projected influx of manuscripts, the modernization of the paperless submission and review system will continue, with the transition to a Web-based system late this year. A renewed “Aims & Scope” of the journal and “Instructions to Authors” will also be printed soon.
In summary, International Reviews of Immunology aims to be relevant to all immunologists, molecular biologists, microbiologists, translational scientists, industry researchers, and physicians who are involved with immune-mediated diseases (autoimmune, allergic), novel immunotherapeutics, biomarkers, and diagnostics in support of drug development. We welcome suggestions and input from the entire research community as we continue to serve our readership.