toxicological sciences 135(2), 261–262 2013
doi:10.1093/toxsci/kft173

Editorial: A Toxicological Transition
Gary W. Miller
Received August 1, 2013; accepted August 6, 2013
It is truly an honor and privilege to be entrusted with the
reigns of Toxicological Sciences, the flagship journal of the
Society of Toxicology. As a member since graduate school,
I appreciate the importance of the Society in my own career
development and welcome the opportunity to contribute back
to the Society. Scientific societies serve many purposes. They
host national and regional meetings that provide forums for
dissemination and discussion of research findings and educational opportunities for their trainees. The society leadership
also provides strategic guidance for the field. Of course, it is
the membership that is the lifeblood of the society; they are the
leaders, the thinkers, the scientists, the writers, the mentors, and
the keepers of institutional memory.
Importance of Society Journals
Many societies also sponsor or publish their own academic
journals. Although the aforementioned activities promote scientific thought, foster the exchange of ideas, and build collaborations and friendships, it is the academic journal that provides
the most lasting impact. The published works that are deposited
into the archives of science, in this case Toxicological Sciences,
not only define the discipline, they are the discipline. The published works are the most tangible artifacts of what we do as
scientists.
This is why it is so important for Toxicological Sciences to
publish articles in a manner that is respectful to both the history
and the future of the field. Just over 15 years ago, the Society
decided to change the publisher affiliation for their leading
journal due to concerns about the limitations being placed on
the Society to control the destiny of the journal (and thus the
field). In 1998, Fundamental and Applied Toxicology (FAAT;
established in 1981) was renamed Toxicological Sciences
and a new era began as the flagship journal of the Society of
Toxicology (FAAT had previously been one of the two journals
sponsored by the Society.). Philip Watanabe, William Carlton,
Bernard Schwetz, and Henry d’A Heck, as Editors-in-Chief of
FAAT over those first 17 years, helped establish the foundation
that permitted the realignment. Curtis Klaassen (1998–2003)
served as the first Editor-in-Chief of Toxicological Sciences
during this critical transition period. In 2003, Lois LehmanMcKeeman (2003–2011) became the editor and oversaw a
significant increase in the stature of the journal, including a
sharp increase in impact factor. Michael Cunningham served
after Dr Lehman-McKeeman. Matthew Campen and John
Lipscomb have served as interim editors of the journal through
this past year and have been especially helpful during my
transition. It is also important to note the essential role of the
Society-appointed Board of Publications in assuring the journal’s activities and focus are well aligned with the mission of
the Society of Toxicology. Thus, the history of Toxicological
Sciences as the Society journal is relatively short, but it is clear
that it has been very successful.
Toxicological Sciences: The Showcase
of Toxicology
Toxicology has much to offer science. In the current genomic
era, it is becoming more evident to the scientific and general
public that our genes are unable to explain all of human disease and health. Genome-wide association studies have not
lived up to the expectations. Environmental contributors to
disease and their interactions with our genes are the next frontier. Understanding the biology that underlies the interaction
between environmental factors and biological pathways is what
we as toxicologists have been doing for decades, if not centuries. Toxicology provides the biological plausibility, mechanisms of action, and relevance to important association studies.
Our understanding of disease and health is incomplete without
toxicology. In addition to the mechanistic insight provided,
toxicology has long played a critical role in regulatory decision
making. Here, toxicology is able to have a direct impact on the
public’s health. But regulatory decisions must be based upon
very sound science. The general public trusts us to pursue science and not opinion. We must be very rigorous in our review
process and demand the very best science of our authors.
Promoting the Journal: Promoting the field
My focus as Editor-in-Chief will be to drive the field of toxicology forward. We must position the field to compete for the
increasingly scarce research dollars and avoid being neglected
by those that control national and international research agendas. This is not the time to be timid. With the resources of a
© The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Toxicology.
All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: [email protected].
262Miller
journal the size of Toxicological Sciences, we need to do a better
job of getting our message out. Scientists in other fields need to
gain an enhanced appreciation of the importance of toxicology.
Articles published in Toxicological Sciences should be immediately recognized as being the best in the field, and we will
enthusiastically champion the work published in the Journal.
The Society of Toxicology is the world’s largest organization of
toxicologists with over 7500 members. As the intellectual output of this preeminent society, we can and will publish the most
influential articles in the field of toxicology. Our goal should be
to elevate the standing of the field within the arena of science.
Being the top-ranked journal within the field is not an appropriate goal for Toxicological Sciences, it is merely an expectation.
Science, Not Gimmicks
Many journals have adopted strategies to increase their
impact factor. For example, many journals sponsor thematic
issues or increase the number of reviews that are published as
they tend to get cited more. During my term as Editor-in-Chief,
we will not publish reviews to boost impact factor. Nor will
we publish thematic issues to boost impact factors (no slight
to the 50th anniversary issue, which was a great of example of
what we want to do-draw attention to the field). We are going
to strive to publish a higher quality of science. We will publish the most innovative primary research in the field of toxicology. We will publish reviews that bring needed insight to
a certain aspect of the field, but the focus will be on creating
new knowledge. The approaches, models, and techniques that
were sufficient to warrant publication in the journal in 1998 are
likely not going to be sufficient in 2014. Science has become
more sophisticated, so must toxicology. We must attract better
manuscripts, become more selective, and then promote those
articles that have been accepted. Currently, reviewers and associate editors aim to accept only the top 25% of the manuscripts,
and in the past 2 years, we have had a 29% acceptance rate.
We will be more diligent and will reach the 25% goal over the
next 3 years. Members of the Society may have fewer of their
own articles accepted, but those that are will benefit from the
enhanced reputation of the journal.
Spotlight on the Science
Toxicological Sciences is an excellent journal. As a new
editor, it wouldn’t be prudent to make dramatic changes to a
journal that has experienced great success during its brief history. However, it also would not be prudent to maintain the
status quo. Other toxicology journals and journals that address
related disciplines are continually working to improve the quality of their journals. This is a competitive enterprise. Over the
next year the Board of Publications, the Associate Editors, and
I will be discussing ways to enhance the quality of Toxicological
Sciences. We will solicit feedback from society members, seek
guidance from editors of other top journals, and speak with key
leaders in the field.
That said, in consultation with the Board of Publications
and the Associate Editors, I am planning one major change.
Toxicology is an exciting discipline, and a key function of
Toxicological Sciences is to showcase this excitement. In the
past, the editors have highlighted one manuscript from each
issue. Soon we will be highlighting multiple articles in a new
feature section. This section will explain the importance of the
cited articles, will be published on the Society of Toxicology
web page, and will be distributed to press outlets. This feature
addresses the concept of placing the spotlight on the best our
field has to offer and getting it out to the scientific and general
public.
The Art of Science
Running of a journal falls somewhere between being an art
and a science. The scientist in me will most certainly rely on
the data concerning changes in acceptance rate, number of published manuscripts, citations, and impact factors when evaluating the performance of the journal. The Associate Editors,
reviewers, and I will assess the quality of the data and the writing in the submitted manuscripts in determining which will be
accepted. Yet, human factors are involved in the decisions made
by the Journal. Reviewers and editors devote countless hours
to the evaluation process, and none are perfect. There will be
disagreements and disputes, but we will work to settle these
issues in a respectful and timely fashion. Ultimately, the quality of the journal will be judged by those who read its contents
and not by metrics.
To the readers, I ask that you submit your very best work to
Toxicological Sciences and that you serve as reviewers when
asked. For my part, I promise to dedicate myself to making sure
that Toxicological Sciences is recognized as publishing the best
science in the field. Once again, I am honored to be the new
Editor-in-Chief of Toxicological Sciences and look forward to
being a steward of your science.