A new Editor-in-Chief for BioTechniques
Future Science Group (FSG) is delighted to announce the appointment of Michelle S. Itano as the new Editor-in-Chief for BioTechniques, the International Journal of Life Science Methods. Itano is Assistant Professor and Director of the Neuroscience Microscopy Core at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill (NC, USA).
Itano develops and customizes state-of-the-art optical imaging and analysis applications for a wide range of scientific research. She utilizes innovative fluorescence microscopy methods – including super-resolution and simultaneous multi-plane imaging – to investigate how viruses, such as HIV-1, infect cells.
In 2019, she was selected to be a CZI Imaging Scientist. She is also very invested in facilitating collaborations between researchers, software and infrastructure engineers and computing specialists to design and disseminate efficient bioimaging pipelines.
Itano joined the BioTechniques Editorial Board in 2020 and has made invaluable contributions to the journal since. Her new position as Editor-in-Chief begins immediately.
“I’m very excited to be joining BioTechniques in this role, particularly at a time when the life sciences are rapidly evolving,” commented Itano.
“I look forward to seeking ways that BioTechniques can further advance and support the effort to diversify and directly address inequalities in the publishing of biomedical techniques.”
In parallel, BioTechniques will also be launching BioTechniques LEARN on 19 July 2021. Establishing a career in research is difficult – in addition to keeping on top of the latest scientific updates and laboratory tools, early career researchers must navigate a myriad of difficulties including securing permanent job roles and funding, finding a good work—life balance and publishing.
BioTechniques LEARN will seek to provide resources covering all the areas an early career researcher needs to support them in their career. With guidance from a panel of Mentors, BioTechniques LEARN will provide resources including career and mentorship guidance and tips for getting work published (and noticed) – all in addition to how-to guides for the essential methods needed in the lab, and the latest new protocols from the peer-reviewed pages of BioTechniques.
FSG would like to thank outgoing Editor-in-Chief, Francesca Lake, for her dedication to BioTechniques since 2018.
To find out more about our new Editor-in-Chief, watch this video to discover the life science challenges Michelle hopes to tackle; check out this interview to gain a more in-depth glimpse into Michelle’s life, inspirations and aspirations; and listen to this podcast on how Michelle adapted the Neuroscience Microscopy Core she directs to continue crucial research during the COVID-19 pandemic.