Academic Editors
The following people constitute the Editorial Board of Academic Editors for PeerJ. These active academics are the Editors who seek peer reviewers, evaluate their responses, and make editorial decisions on each submission to the journal. Learn more about becoming an Editor.
Dean S Venables
Dr Dean Venables is a lecturer in physical & environmental chemistry in the School of Chemistry and in the Environmental Research Institute, University College Cork. He is a research leader in the Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry and is also affiliated with the Tyndall National Institute. His research interests focus on atmospheric chemistry and spectroscopic instrument development for quantifying trace gases and characterising aerosol optical properties.
Thiago M Venancio
Associate Professor (UENF; Brazil), 2010-present; Postdoctoral fellow at NCBI-NIH (USA), 2008-2010; PhD in Bioinformatics (University of Sao Paulo, Brazil), 2004-2008.
My lab focuses on genomic and transcriptomic studies of plants, fungi and bacteria. Our main goals involve the generation and analysis of big biological datasets using computational methods to understand key aspects of living organisms, such as: 1) the evolution of multidrug resistance genes in Fungi; 2) the evolutionary basis of gene essentiality in Bacteria and Archaea; 3) the transcriptional landscape and regulatory apparatus of land plants, particularly legumes.
Balu Alagar Venmathi Maran
Dr. Balu Alagar Venmathi Maran, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Graduate School of Integrated Science and Technology, Nagasaki University, Japan
Dr. Balu Alagar Venmathi Maran is an Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Integrated Science and Technology, Nagasaki University, Japan. He previously served as an Associate Professor at the Borneo Marine Research Institute, Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), Malaysia, from 2017 to 2023. Before that, he was a Research Professor at Chonnam National University, Pukyong National University, and Kyungpook National University, South Korea (2015–2017) and a Scientist at the Korean Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, South Korea (2011–2015).
Dr. Venmathi Maran earned his Ph.D. in Marine Biology from Hiroshima University, Japan, and has 25 years of research experience in marine science and aquaculture. His expertise includes the taxonomy of marine fish parasites and the application of natural products for parasite control in aquaculture. Additionally, his research focuses on jellyfish biodiversity, harmful jellyfish toxins, and the potential of jellyfish collagen in cosmetics.
Currently, he is engaged in a marine science and technology project utilizing artificial intelligence in biological imaging. His significant contributions to research and innovation have been recognized with multiple awards and gold medals from UMS.
Dr. Venmathi Maran has authored over 100 research articles, 10 book chapters, and has edited three books published by Springer and UMS Press. As the principal investigator of several research projects, including an international project on marine biodiversity, he plays a key role in advancing marine research.
Additionally, he serves as an Academic Editor for PeerJ (Q1), International Journal of Microbiology (Wiley), and Diversity (MDPI) as a Guest Editor, along with several other scientific journals.
Natascia Ventura
Natascia Ventura received her MD and PhD degrees at the University of Rome and her post-doctoral training at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Since 2012 she leads the Mitochondrial-associated aging and diseases group and her research mainly uses C. elegans as a powerful genetic tractable organism to unravel mechanistic aspects of mitochondrial-stress control of longevity and to develop models for human mitochondrial-associated diseases.
Jesus Vera
Professor of Optometry and Vision Sciences, University of Granada, Spain.
Most of my research is focused on the effects of physical activity on the health status, mainly for the prevention and management of different cardiovascular and ocular
diseases. Currently researching Optometry, Sports Medicine, Sport Psychology and Neuropsychology.
Alexis Verger
Senior Molecular Biologist (CR1 CNRS) at the Interdisciplinary Research Institute (IRI) - Lille 1 University - France.
My lab studies how human genes can be turned on and off by transcription factors. We investigate the fundamental mechanisms underlying specific gene control in the context of diseases, such as cancer.
Sheetal Verma
Dr. Sheetal Verma is an expert in the field of infectious disease immunology, and works primarily on host immune responses to Tuberculosis (TB). She has published extensively on characterization and validation of immuno-pathological pathways that modulate disease outcomes in TB.
In her current role, she is responsible for overseeing the implementation of scientific protocols and research operations at multiple international sites as part of the RePORT International Consortium. Dr. Verma works closely with the Data Management and Operations Center of RePORT International in coordinating cross-institutional regulatory processes, biorepository management and supervising assigned staff at international research laboratories.
She is a co-investigator on multiple NIH/NIAID grants and is a valued member of the Rutgers NJMS community, due to her skills in the practice and teaching of research in high containment Biosafety Level 3 Laboratories (BSL3). In this capacity, she leads training of new scientists in containment procedures, performing key experiments and designing applicable protocols for working with animal models.
Dr. Verma obtained her MS degree from Case Western Reserve University in 2010 and her PhD from Rutgers University - New Jersey Medical School in 2017.
Shailendra Kumar Verma
Dr. Shailendra Kumar Verma is currently a postdoctoral fellow at La Jolla Institute for Immunology, California, USA. He pursued his Ph.D. from Central Drug Research Institute, India in the field of vaccine immunology. Dr. Verma joined DRDE, and had been a scientist since 2005 to 2021. His major research area focused onto the vaccine and therapeutic development against infectious diseases. He has published more than 25 publications in peer reviewed journals of highly repute. Dr. Verma has more than 15 years of research experience in infection and immunology. His present research at La Jolla institute for Immunology is focused onto the vaccine/therapeutic development against SARS-CoV-2 and ZIKA virus.
Robert Verpoorte
Emeritus Professor of Pharmacognosy/Plant Cell Biotechnology at Leiden University. Editor in chief of Journal of Ethnopharmacology and Phytochemistry Reviews, executive editor Biotechnology Letters. Honorary doctorates of University of Amiens (France) and Uppsala (Sweden).
Gregory M Verutes
Gregg Verutes is a biogeographer currently supporting Blue Forest Conservation's data management, visualization, and reporting systems. He specializes in blending the fields of conservation and technology to empower planners, managers, and analysts who are passionate about protecting the multitude of benefits flowing from ecosystems to people. He has previously worked for the National Geographic Society, Audubon Society, World Wildlife Fund, and Stanford University. Gregg received his Ph.D. in Marine Science & Technology from the University of Santiago de Compostela, a M.Sc. in Geographic Information Science from San Diego State University, and B.Sc. in Policy Analysis & Management from Cornell University.
Annamaria Vezzani
Head of Experimental Neurology, Department of Neuroscience, Mario Negri Institute. Associate Editor of Basic Science for Epilepsia. Former Chair of the Commission on Neurobiology of International League Against Epilepsy. Recipient of the Research Recognition Award for translational research in 2009 by the American Epilepsy Society.
Olja Vidjak
Dr. Olja Vidjak's educational background includes an MSc in Oceanology (1998) and a PhD in Biology (2004) from the University of Zagreb, Croatia. She is a researcher at the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (Croatia), with primary specialization in the ecology and taxonomy of marine zooplankton. Her research interests include the spread and management of aquatic non-native species and marine biodiversity conservation.