The cross-disciplinary intellectual stream of ImmunoMedicine

Abstract

Welcome to ImmunoMedicine, an open-access, peer-reviewed, online journal whose mission is to disseminate high-impact, cross-disciplinary discoveries translating immunology into medicine. It matters where scientists and clinicians publish their best research. Allow ImmunoMedicine to be your conduit to this exciting world of translational research.

Why another online journal? The niche for ImmunoMedicine is the space where ideas from different currents meet, creating a new intellectual stream. The motivation for this journal is best captured by a recent experience I had attending the Akira Arimura Memorial Symposium on vasoactive intestinal polypeptide/pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (VIP/PACAP) and related peptides at UCLA in early November 2019. Dr. Arimura discovered PACAP 30 years ago after purifying peptides after processing the hypothalami from the brains of 130 000 pigs. He identified the PACAP peptide from column fractions using a bioassay that involved measuring lutenization of oocytes in rats. Beyond the herculean task of peptide purification and identification, Dr. Arimura launched the field of studying vasoactive neuropeptides that is cross-disciplinary due to the pleiotropic effects of PACAP and the related VIP on behavior, autonomic functions, and adaptive and innate immunity.

I foresee a similar role for ImmumoMedicine, catalyzing a discourse on the intersection of immunology with the pathophysiology of disease and the maintenance of health and homeostasis. I envision ImmunoMedicine to be the online version of a transdisciplinary symposium, highlighting new discoveries in immunology and showing how the basic science knowledge can be translated to explain and affect diverse processes in medicine. The target audience is students, trainees, and faculty in immunology, oncology, hematology, regenerative medicine, cardiology, neurology, rheumatology, or any of the multitude of clinical or basic science specialties that intersect with immunology. We welcome our colleagues from the pharmaceutical industry who are eager to identify new targets for drug development or understand how existing drugs affect immune responses. We invite anyone with an interest in discovering and unraveling the intricacies of immunity and its intersection with medicine.

We have assembled an outstanding group of associate editors and an editorial board with the expertise and commitment to provide every ImmunoMedicine submission with rapid, high-quality editorial evaluation, external peer review and, where warranted, actionable critiques for revision and publication. ImmunoMedicine has high standards for scientific originality and impact in the field, which is to the benefit of authors and readers alike. Our author guidelines offer detailed information regarding article types and submission requirements. The online submission process at https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/imed is straightforward and our editorial office team offers expert assistance where needed. Wiley even offers authors useful online tools to help them prepare a manuscript for the best possible reception by editors, reviewers, and readers. Given the tremendous speed with which researchers are producing new data and publications in this area, ImmunoMedicine will have a strong focus on rapid publication, both in terms of peer review, typesetting, and production, and high-level service to the authors in this growing community.

So grab a paddle and launch into the intellectual stream of ImmunoMedicine. The water is fine!