Biophysical Society Bulletin | September 2024

Publications

Know the Editor Kanchan Garai

Peer Review Week Explores Challenges and Opportunities for Technology

Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Associate Editor Biophysical Reports

Kanchan Garai

BPS, along with other societies, publishers, institutions, and re searchers, will once again cele brate the value of peer review to the academic community during the annual Peer Review Week. From September 23–27, there will be events and activities under the theme “Innovation and Tech nology in Peer Review.”

What are you currently working on that excites you? We are focused on uncovering the mechanisms of liquid-liq uid phase separation (popularly known as LLPS) of proteins. LLPS involves separation of biomolecules such as proteins and RNA into liquid droplets. It enables organization of cellular components without the need for membrane-bound compartments. It is crucial for normal cellular functions, such as gene expression regulation, signal transduction, and the formation of stress granules. However, LLPS can also lead to growth of abnormal protein aggregates, commonly known as amyloid fibrils. For instance, in Alzheimer’s disease, the tau protein—critical for stabilizing microtubules—can undergo LLPS, resulting in the formation of neurotoxic aggregates. We use single molecule techniques to study the process of LLPS and amyloid aggregation with single molecule sensitivity and resolution. Our goal is to understand the underlying pathways and to devise strategies to prevent the transition of the pro teins of interest from the soluble to the insoluble phase. What has been your biggest “aha” moment in science? A few years ago, we were trying to investigate interaction of lipids with amyloid-beta peptide, a small protein involved in Alzheimer’s disease. We tried various experiments but didn’t find any significant interaction. In the meantime, we built a total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscope to visualize and study growth of the aggregates, viz, amyloid fibrils starting from the soluble peptide. Once again, the lipids didn’t affect the growth of the fibrils. However, we started observing something entirely new: spherical liquid-like con densates of lipid-amyloid-beta complexes. This started a new direction of research in my lab.

Technology has changed the character of the peer review process enormously, with modern online systems allowing for rapid sharing of text, images, and data, as well as edits and reviewer feedback. Now technology has the potential to continue to streamline the peer review process, but it also has introduced additional challenges. Research integrity is a major concern, and publishers have to be aware of how authors might be using advances like AI in preparation of their articles. In turn, AI can be used to help identify problems with sub missions, including improper manipulation of images or data. There are also opportunities to achieve efficiencies in peer review if AI can be used to automate some administrative tasks so that reviewers and editors can concentrate more on the scientific content of submissions. BPS is grateful for the peer reviewers who give back to the biophysics community by using their expertise to help their fellow researchers to get their work ready for publication. They are a vital part of our journal publishing program. For more information about webinars and other activities during Peer Review Week, go to www.peerreviewweek.wordpress. com. Follow on social media using hashtags #PeerReview Week and #AIinPeerReview.

Numbers By the

The Biophysical Society has published more than 22,000 peer-reviewed research articles since Biophysical Journal was launched in 1960.

September 2024

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