Veterinary Microbiology occupies a special niche, as it publishes pathogenic and epidemiologic data, which largely have a specific veterinary, rather than broad, readership; therefore, they would not be of immediate interest to microbiology journals with a wider scope. Nevertheless, the materials published in Veterinary Microbiology are also of fundamental applicability, even though this may not be recognized as such by other journals.

  Have there been specific developments in the field of microbiology that may have contributed?

Rather, the developments in molecular techniques and their application in veterinary microbiology—also in countries with a short research tradition—have led to many submissions. Many of these manuscripts report analogy type of research, often focusing on national problems and are rejected, but they may pass the editorial filters when they contain an element of novelty.

  How do you envision the state of our knowledge in this particular field 10 years from now?

I would not know. Being a virologist, however, I can predict new conditions to arise—there have been many in the past—due to molecular evolution. Wildlife, farm, and companion animals constitute a huge reservoir for human and animal pathogens alike, to arise by mutation and recombination; these would be discovered, studied, and published immediately (viz. SARS).

  What would you like to convey to the general public about the work of Veterinary Microbiology?

Bacteria and viruses are here to stay. Their study consequently must continue, in order to be prepared for emerging and re-emerging microbial pathogens of animals and man. SARS is a point in case: coronaviruses having been hitherto irrelevant in human medicine, but of considerable animal health importance, their molecular pathogenic properties have been studied in the veterinary environment. Now approaches to antiviral therapeutics and vaccine development can profit from these natural disease models. Veterinary Microbiology is a publication platform that serves both the fundamental and applied infectious disease research scene.

Veterinary Microbiology
Prof. Marian C. Horzinek and Dr. J.F. Prescott, Editors-in-Chief
Elsevier Science, publisher