Meet the Editors | Interview with Prof. Dr. Alexander V. Ljubimov—Section Editor-in-Chief of Cells
Prof. Dr. Alexander V. Ljubimov is an internationally recognized eye researcher, with over 100 peer-reviewed papers, reviews, and book chapters published. He is the Director of the Board of Governors Regenerative Institute Eye Program and a Professor of Biomedical Sciences and Neurosurgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Dr. Ljubimov is also an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), USA. He has studied ocular diabetes for the past 30 years.
We had the pleasure of meeting him online and had a discussion in which we learned more about his background, views, and interests.
The following is a brief interview with Prof. Dr. Alexander V. Ljubimov:
1. You are an internationally recognized eye researcher—could you share your current research focus with us and what is exciting about it?
We have several National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded projects in the lab. They deal with the restoration of normal wound healing and stem cell functions in the diabetic corneas, studies of a new wound healing regulator Wnt-5a, and novel nanopolymers for the treatment of glioblastoma. The most exciting recent findings were 1. the discovery of epigenetic changes in the diabetic cornea related to new wound healing mediator Wnt-5a; 2. the first single-cell RNA-seq analysis of a systemic corneal disease (diabetes) using human samples, which is ongoing; and 3. the discovery of the influence of a tumor extracellular matrix component laminin-411 on glioblastoma innate immune system, providing new rationale for its inhibition for brain tumor treatment.
2. What made you decide to lead this Section?
I am on many editorial boards and have much experience in editing scientific papers. My research in the field of cell biology closely relates to stem cell markers and functions. When MDPI offered me this position in Cells, I did not hesitate. The journal and editorial model are for quality reviews with fast turnaround and open access for all articles. This is a very appealing combination for researchers, making Cells more and more popular. I am happy that I am part of this process of rapid dissemination of quality science and growth in the popularity of Cells.
3. What suggestions do you have for our Section’s development?
Last year, we organized a free one-day webinar on ocular cell biology in order to make the community more familiar with the journal. We need to make such webinars a routine practice, highlighting various directions of research that the journal focuses on. Organizing more thematic issues with invited original papers and reviews also seems important for the Section's development.
4. What made you move from your home country and pursue research in the USA?
Back in 1991, I obtained a prestigious fellowship from the International Union Against Cancer (UICC) to work in Sanford Burnham Prebys Institute in San Diego and spent two years there studying apoptosis. At that time, my home country, the Soviet Union, collapsed and I decided to continue my work in the USA. In the process, I had to change fields from cancer research to ophthalmology, studying neovascularization as a common topic. We received the first NIH grant within 2 years in my new field, and I am still continuing this research. Because of my wife’s studies, I have also maintained close ties with the cancer field over the years.
5. Do you have any advice for young researchers?
My advice may sound trivial, but it helped me along the way. In my opinion, research requires perseverance and enthusiasm. The more you love your studies, the more exciting and interesting your life will be. Do not be afraid of failures or changes, everybody has them at some point. Also, I was fortunate that most of my mentors and superiors were people who commanded respect by their breadth of knowledge, bright ideas, and strong work ethics. This made working with them enjoyable.