Nomenclature: Avoiding Babylonian Speech Confusion in Present Day Immunology

  • 45k

    Total downloads

  • 239k

    Total views and downloads

Download PDFDownload EPUB

Submit your idea

Select the journal/section where you want your idea to be submitted:

Submit your manuscript summarySubmit your manuscript

About this Research Topic

Submission closed

Background

The complexity of the immune system at the gene, protein, cell and organism level continues to provide a major challenge. Genomic landscape analysis, single-cell analysis and mass data acquisition encompassing genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics and proteomics have now added new levels of complexity. With the rapid progress in these and other fields of immunology, it has become more important than ever to agree on a nomenclature, i.e. to agree on a consensus for naming novel genes, proteins, cells and biological reagents related to the immune system. Names that were given initially may, in retrospect, not always be logical. In addition, researchers approaching a gene product from different angles may generate entirely different names for the same gene product. An example is the cytokine Interleukin-6, which was initially known as B-cell stimulatory factor 2; cytotoxic T lymphocyte differentiation factor; hybridoma growth factor; hepatocyte stimulating factor and interferon beta-2. In these cases, such usage of different names for the same item can lead to confusion and this may hinder progress in the field. Therefore, it is important for the experts in the immunology field to agree on a unified nomenclature.

The immunological community has, in fact, an excellent track record of conducting worldwide cooperative efforts on nomenclature issues. Remarkable examples of these include the establishment of the nomenclature for antigen receptor (IG and TR) genes, cytokines and chemokines and their receptors, as well as allergens, cell types and of the CD nomenclature for monoclonal antibodies.

With the many achievements reached in the past 40 years, there is a wealth of experience to draw upon, especially within the sub-committees of the Nomenclature Committee of the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS; www.iuisonline.org). The IUIS Nomenclature Committee is fostering nomenclature efforts by providing a platform that currently includes the activities of altogether 11 nomenclature subcommittees (Nomenclature Committee)

With the present Research Topic, we aim to highlight the need to address controversies and to stress the importance of nomenclature based on consensus within the immunology community. This Research Topic welcomes the submission of Original Research articles, Reviews, Mini-Reviews, Classification and Perspective articles that can provide a (historical) overview, challenge current standards, raise a new/potential issue, and propose new standards, on the following aspects of nomenclature in the immune system:

1. Genes – including, but not restricted to, families of genes or complex loci with important functions in the immune system, such as antigen receptors (IG/TR genes) and HLA/MHC.
2. Proteins including post-translational modifications – including, but not restricted to, families of antigen and pattern recognition receptors, activation/inhibition receptors, cytokines, chemokines and their receptors, and signaling molecules (kinases, phosphatases) and transcription factors involved in regulating lymphocytes and innate immune cells.
3. Cells – including cells of the myeloid and lymphoid lineages, as well as non-haematopoietic mesenchymal stem cells and fibroblasts with defined functions in the immune response.
4. Allergens – including, but not limited to, food and aero-allergens, venoms, and medication.
5. Biological reagents – including but not limited to recombinant proteins, monoclonal antibodies and small molecule inhibitors of protein function.

Articles published within this Research Topic may include suggestions of nomenclature. However, this does not imply that the suggested nomenclature has been approved by the IUIS Nomenclature Committee (http://www.iuisonline.org/index). A nomenclature can be labelled as approved by the IUIS Nomenclature Committee only following official approval by the IUIS Nomenclature Committee. Any questions regarding an official approval of a nomenclature should be directed to the IUIS Nomenclature Chair or the relevant Subcommittee Chair.

We acknowledge the initiation and support of this Research Topic by the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). A/Prof. Menno van Zelm currently serves as the chairman for the IUIS Nomenclature Committee; Prof. Pablo Engel is the chair of the IUIS CD Nomenclature Sub-Committee; Prof. Loems Ziegler-Heitbrock is the chair of the IUIS Monocytes and Dendritic Cells in Blood Sub-Committee; Asst. Prof. Sanny Chan is a member of the WHO / IUIS Allergen Nomenclature Sub-Committee and A/Prof. Andrew Collins is co-chair of the Germline Gene Database (GLDB) Working Group of the Adaptive Immune Receptor Repertoire community (AIRR-C) and chair of the Inferred Allele Review Committee (IARC).

Keywords: immunology, gene, protein, antibody, allergen, society affiliation RT

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

Topic editors

Frequently asked questions

  • Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

    Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

  • The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

    Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

  • As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

    A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

  • Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and it falls under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

    In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

  • Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

    As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

    Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

     

  • Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

    Check available article types here 

  • Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

    Suggest your topic here 

  • A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

    The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

  • As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

     

    You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

  • As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

  • If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

  • Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

  • Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

  • As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

    Find out more about our Research Topics

  • Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

    Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

  • In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.

     

Sponsorship

Impact

  • 239kTopic views
  • 190kArticle views
  • 45kArticle downloads
View impact