Slov Vet Res | Vol 60 No 4 | 177 DOI 10.26873/SVR-1922-2023 UDC 001.891:004.057.8:159.955.4:655.411:655.413:050 Pages: 177–79 Editorial Reflecting and Looking Forward – The Role of Veterinary Scientific Journals in Veterinary Research and Medicine With this issue, we will close 2023 and it is my distinct pleasure to summarize the continued improvements of the Slovenian Veterinary Research journal we’ve made this year. To advance authors’, reviewers’, and readers’ experiences, we first updated the Open Journal System. We continuous- ly revise and develop our instructions for authors, review- ers, and editors to streamline the pathway from submission to publication and make it easier for all. We have updated the graphical image of the journal, invited an artist to the Editorial team, and started featuring our manuscripts with illustrated artwork on the cover of the journal (1). With this, we want to emphasize the published work and novel dis- coveries, but also strengthen the interconnectedness of sci- ence and art (1). Furthermore, we emphasize manuscripts published in our journal or work pertinent to the discoveries on disease pathophysiology, therapy, prevention, and public health by short articles, and editorials (1-4). With these ar- ticles, which are published in both languages, English and Slovenian, we want to also reach out to veterinary students, educators, and clinicians and bring them relevant novel dis- coveries, locally and internationally. One of the importance of scientific journals is facilitating communication and collaboration among researchers, practitioners, students, and educators in the veterinary community. In the future, we would like to further strengthen this contribution and Spoštovani sodelavci, avtorji, bralci, recenzenti in člani ure- dniškega odbora Slovenskega veterinarskega zbornika! S to številko smo zaključili leto 2023 in v posebno veselje mi je opozoriti na novosti, ki smo jih opravili v tem letu. Da bi izboljšali izkušnje avtorjev, recenzentov in bralcev, smo po- sodobili sistem odprtega dostopa. Po potrebi prilagajamo navodila za avtorje, recenzente in urednike, vse z namenom izboljšanja postopkov do objave prispevkov. Letos smo spremenili tudi grafično podobo revije in v uredni- štvo povabili akademsko ilustratorko. Z njenimi ilustracijami, ki krasijo naslovnice posameznih števlk, predstavljavljamo nekatere objavljene prispevke, s čimer opozarjamo na znan- stveno aktualne teme in novejša odkritja, hkrati pa krepimo povezovanje z umetnostjo (1). S kratkimi uvodniki večkrat izpostavljamo posamezne objavjene članke, ki obravnavajo znanstveno tematiko iz področij javnega zdravja, patofizio- logije, terapije in preventive bolezni (1-4). S temi uvodnimi prispevki, ki jih objavljamo v angleškem in slovenskem jeziku, želimo predvsem študentom veterinar- ske medicine, pedagoškim delavcem in klinikom približati pomembnejša novejša odkritja. Eden od pomenov znan- stvenih revij je olajšanje komunikacije in sodelovanja med Refleksija in pogled naprej – vloga veterinarskih znanstvenih revij v veterinarskih raziskavah in medicini Klementina Fon Tacer1,2* 1Texas Tech University School of Veterinary Medicine 2Texas Center for Comparative Cancer Research, Amarillo, Texas, USA *Editor-in-Chief, Slovenian Veterinary Research journal: fontacer@ttu.edu Accepted: 29 December 2023 178 | Slov Vet Res | Vol 60 No 4 keep informing about the latest developments, best prac- tices, and emerging issues, and encourage a continuous exchange of ideas to help advance veterinary research and medicine. With the new image of the Jurnal, we also developed a new logo. We kept the blue color, traditionally associated with veterinary medicine, potentially because it is perceived as calm, soothing, and associated with trust, care, and com- passion, all adjectives pertinent to veterinarians. We also in- cluded a symbol of veterinary medicine, “Rod of Asclepius”, a serpent coiled around a rod with a little artistic touch of our Art editor (2). We started to be active on social media, we are now promoting and sharing our journal and manu- scripts to readers through X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, and LinkedIn. With all these activities we want to strengthen our mission of fostering the growth and de- velopment of the journal to advance comparative research and ultimately veterinary and human medicine to enhance the overall well-being and health of animals and humans. All of these initiatives and improvements are only possible because our journal is still self-published by the Veterinary Faculty at the University of Ljubljana with the support of the Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency (ARIS), and the big publishing houses can’t impose their culture, structure, and systems on our efforts. Being self-published allows us to be innovative and creative, however, it also requires a lot of volunteer, unpaid work, and service from our Editorial Team. We couldn’t have done all of these without the amazing Editorial Team, Co-Editors, Assistant to the editor, Executive and Associate Editors, and I would like to thank you all. Due to your passionate and voluntary work, we can continue the more than 60-year-old legacy of our Journal. Slovenian Veterinary Research Journal started in 1961 as “Reports Collection” of the Department for Veterinary Medicine of the Biotechnical Faculty at the University of Ljubljana (5). Much has changed since the launching of the Journal, the Veterinary Faculty became an indepen- dent member of the University of Ljubljana, accredited by the EAEVE (European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education), the Journal changed names and be- came an international journal in 2004, articles were pub- lished in English language (we still translate abstracts to Slovenian language and by doing so, keep them available to local veterinary community), and obtained impact fac- tor in 2010, but the mission stayed the same (5). Since day one, the Journal has served as a scientific communication platform and a vehicle for knowledge dissemination among veterinary medicine researchers, clinicians, students, and educators. Furthermore, the Journal also provides an edu- cational hub for future editors and reviewers who continue its mission. Last but not least, the Journal stimulates inter- disciplinary networking and collaboration, central to impact- ful discoveries that apply to both, animal and human health. The interconnection between people and animals, and their shared environment is now well recognized by the One Health concept (6). Veterinary medicine and comparative raziskovalci, veterinarji-praktiki, študenti in učitelji v veteri- narski skupnosti, kar bi v prihodnosti radi še okrepili in hkrati obveščali o razvoju, dobrih praksah in morebitnih nastaja- jočih težavah ter spodbujali neprekinjeno izmenjavo idej in tako pospešili napredek v veterinarskih raziskavah in veteri- narski medicini. Z novo podobo revije smo oblikovali tudi nov logotip. Ohranili smo modro barvo, ki je tradicionalno povezana z veterinar- sko medicino, predvsem ker je umirjena, pomirjujoča ter po- vezana z zaupanjem, skrbnostjo in sočutjem; s pridevniki, ki ponazarjajo osebno predanost veterinarskemu poklicu. V logotip smo vključili tudi simbol veterinarske medicine, Asklepijevo palico, ovito s kačo, znotraj črke »V«, ki ga je umetniško oblikovala naša likovna urednica (2). Postajamo aktivni na družbenih medijih, promoviramo in delimo našo revijo in objavljene prispevke z bralci prek spletnih omrežij X (nekdanji Twitter), Facebook in LinkedIn. S temi aktivnostmi želimo okrepiti prepoznavnost revije in prispevati k napredku raziskovalnega dela tako v veterinarski, kot humani medicini ter izboljšanju zdravja živali in ljudi. Vse te pobude in izboljšave smo lahko izpeljali, ker našo revijo izdaja Veterinarska fakulteta Univerze v Ljubljani ob podpori Agencije za raziskovalno in inovacijsko dejavnost RS (ARIS) in nam tako večje založbe ne morejo vsiljevati njihovih lastnih praks. Izdajanje revije v samozaložbi nam omogoča inova- tivnost in ustvarjalnost, vendar zahteva tudi veliko prosto- voljnega dela naše uredniške ekipe. Vsega tega ne bi mogli storiti brez izredne energije in dela sourednic, sourednika, pomočnice urednice, izvršnih in pridruženih urednic ter ure- dnikov in rada bi se vam vsem zahvalila. Z vašim neutrudnim in prostovoljnim delom lahko nadaljujemo več kot 60-letno tradicijo naše revije. Slovenski veterinarski zbornik je začel delovati leta 1961 kot »Zbornik« Oddelka za veterinarsko me- dicino Biotehniške fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani (5). Z dol- goletnim izhajanjem se je marsikaj spremenilo. Veterinarska fakulteta je postala samostojna članica Univerze v Ljubljani, kasneje tudi akreditirana pri Evropskem odboru za veterinar- sko izobraževanje (European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education, EAEVE). V tem obdobju se je revija nekajkrat preimenovala in postopno pridobivla vse večji po- men tudi v mednarodni raziskovalni skupnosti. Članke obja- vljamo v angleškem jeziku, s slovenskimi prevodi izvlečkov pa hkrati skrbimo, da jih približamo lokalnim uporabnikom. V letu 2010 je bil Slovenski veterinarski zbornik umeščen na seznam revij s faktorjem vpliva, kar je še povečalo medna- rodni ugled revije, poslanstvo pa je ves čas ostalo enako (5). Slovenski veterinarski zbornik že od vsega začrtka služi kot platforma za širjenje znanja in novih dognanj med razisko- valci, zdravniki, študenti in učitelji, poleg tega omogoča izo- braževanje raziskovalcev in bodočih urednikov ter recenzen- tov, ki nadaljujejo njegovo poslanstvo. Nenazadnje spodbuja interdisciplinarno mreženje in sodelovanje, kot pomembna dejavnika novih odkritij na presečišču zdravja živali in ljudi. Razumevanje naše medsebojne povezanosti z živalmi v skupnem okolju je ključno za doseganje optimalnega zdra- vstvenega stanja ljudi in živali, s tem pa tudi ciljev iniciative Slov Vet Res | Vol 60 No 4 | 179 research play an integral role in achieving the One Health goals (6). Not only because animals both impact and are impacted by people and the environment, but also because we learn from understanding similarities and differences between humans and other animals, referred to as zoobiq- uity, a term coined by Barbara Natterson-Horowitz and Kathryn Bowers (7,8). Furthermore, addressing the health questions through an evolutionary lens brings a novel, out- of-the-box, understanding and opportunities for prevention and therapeutic avenues (9). Together, veterinary science and journals like ours can help build bridges, cross-disciplinary and cross-continental. We will strive to do that, we have plenty of room for improve- ment and advancement, including the turn-around time of the manuscripts, manuscripts quality, and expansion of in- dexing to name a few, as we have plenty of ideas, how on to do it. Please enjoy this issue, send us your work, and serve as reviewers - together we can contribute to the future of vet- erinary and human medicine. »Eno zdravje« (6). Veterinarska medicina je tudi ključnega pomena za primerjalne raziskave, ki igrajo znatno vlogo pri doseganju teh ciljev (6). Ne le zato, ker živali vplivajo na ljudi in okolje in obratno ampak tudi, ker se hkrati učimo iz razu- mevanja podobnosti in razlik med ljudmi in živalmi, kar sta Barbara Natterson-Horowitz in Kathryn Bowers poimenova- li »Zoobiquity« (7, 8). Poleg tega raziskovanje zdravstvenih vprašanj prinaša tudi novejša spoznanja o boleznih in vse boljše možnosti za njihovo preprečevanje in zdravljenje (9). Slovenski veterinarski zbornik, lahko pomaga graditi meddi- sciplinarne mostove in prispeva k napredku znanja za vse. Prizadevali si bomo, da postanemo boljši, da skrajšamo čas presoje člankov, da še izboljšamo njihovo kakovost in razši- rimo indeksiranje. Uživajte v tej številki, pošiljajte nam svoje prispevke in posta- nite naši recenzenti – skupaj lahko prispevamo k boljši pri- hodnosti veterinarske in humane medicine. References 1. Kubale V. Veterinary illustration: science and art telling a story together. Slo Vet Res 2023; 60(1): 5–7. 2. Cestnik V. The cover and logo of Slovenian veterinary research con- tains the Rod of Asclepius. Slo Vet Res 2023; 60(2): 49–53. 3. Fon Tacer K, Rajčevič U. A 2023 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine: pathway for next generation of vaccines. Slo Vet Res 60(3): 123–6. 4. Horvat S. Reviving the Alpine ibex: addressing genetic and health con- cerns of Slovenian ibex with broader implications in biodiversity. Slo Vet Res 60(3): 119–21. 5. Majdič G, Grecs Smole B, Cestnik V. Ob šestdesetletnici izida prve številke Slovenskega veterinarskega zbornika. Vestnik Vet Zb 2021; 16(4): 265–71. 6. WHO. Advancing the One Health Agenda with a focus on environ- ment. Geneva: World Health Organization, 2023. https://www.who. int/news/item/21-12-2023-advancing-the-one-health-agenda-with-a- focus-on-environment (24. 12. 2023) 7. Natterson-Horowitz B, Bowers K. Zoobiquity: what animals can teach us about health and the science of healing, 1st ed. Knopf; New York, 2012. 8. Stenvinkel P, Painer J, Johnson RJ, Natterson-Horowitz B. Biomimetics - Nature’s roadmap to insights and solutions for burden of lifestyle dis- eases. J Intern Med 2020; 287(3): 238–51. 9. Wagner GP, Kshitiz, Dighe A, Levchenko A. The coevolution of placen- tation and cancer. Annu Rev Anim Biosci 2022; 10: 259–79.