Prof. Dr. Oliver von Bohlen und Halbach Appointed Section Editor-in-Chief of Section “Neuroscience” in Biology

Biology (ISSN: 2079-7737) announces the appointment of Prof. Dr. Oliver von Bohlen und Halbach (Universitätsmedizin Greifswald, Germany) as Section Editor-in-Chief (SEiC) of the “Neuroscience” Section. Prof. Dr. von Bohlen und Halbach has been a member of the Biology Editorial Board since 2021 and brings extensive editorial experience across neuroscience and related disciplines.

Prof. Dr. von Bohlen und Halbach is a professor of anatomy and cell biology at the Universitätsmedizin Greifswald. His research centers on neuroanatomy and cellular neuroscience, with a strong focus on neurotrophic signaling, dendritic spine structure, adult neurogenesis, neuronal and synaptic plasticity, and hippocampal and amygdala-related circuits. His work integrates molecular, cellular, and behavioral approaches, contributing to a deeper understanding of brain structure and function in health and disease.

In his role as SEiC, Prof. Dr. von Bohlen und Halbach will work with the Editorial Office and academic editors to support high-quality submissions and to further strengthen the “Neuroscience” Section as an open forum for fundamental and translational research.

The journal Biology covers all aspects of life sciences and provides scientists with excellent access to new research. An important discipline within biology is neuroscience, which now also has its own Section within the journal. I hope and believe that the Section “Neuroscience” will provide neuroscientists with a quick and efficient route to publish and share their knowledge internationally in a timely manner within a high-quality publication.  

The journal is well supported by an effective editorial team, which guarantees an efficient, high-quality review process and fast publication. I would like to see us adopt this standard for the Section “Neuroscience”. To achieve this goal, an active neuroscience community is required. Active support will also help to make the international neuroscience community more visible.

Neuroscience is one of the most fascinating disciplines in the field of life sciences. With few exceptions, nerve cells and/or nerve fibers are found in all organs and tissues. This means that we should not only focus on the function and mode of operation of nerve tissues in relation to each other, using a wide variety of methods, but also on their relations and associations with other tissues. Neuroscience is a discipline that continues to contribute to our fundamental understanding of biological processes in living organisms. This is also driven by the development of new techniques and methods, which, together with established methods, will advance knowledge.

Open access (OA) has significantly reshaped academic publishing, creating both new opportunities and challenges. OA is a publishing model that makes scholarly research freely available to readers, removing traditional paywalls. However, most OA journals shift publication costs from readers to authors, which can disadvantage early-career researchers or institutions with limited funding. Fortunately, several mechanisms exist to help reduce or overcome these barriers (see, for example, https://www.mdpi.com/ioap). Increasingly, countries require publicly funded research to be published in OA venues and provide dedicated financial support to make this possible. This is essential for ensuring that all researchers have better access to knowledge in their fields of interest and for enabling the rapid dissemination of scientific findings.

We wish Prof. Dr. Oliver von Bohlen und Halbach every success in his new position, and we look forward to their contributions to the journal.