Call for Papers: Mass Spectrometry in Microbial Sciences

Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (JASMS) is welcoming submissions for an upcoming Special Issue on Mass Spectrometry in Microbial Sciences to coincide with the 2026 ASMS Winter Conference of the same theme.

This Special Issue will cover methods and applications of mass spectrometry applied to all aspects of microbial sciences and all microorganisms including viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic systems. Submissions are welcomed that demonstrate microbial sciences intersecting with mass spectrometry, encompassing technological developments, microbial biology, ecology, diagnostics, characterization of microbial populations, commensalism, pathogenesis, bioengineering and related topics. Mass spectrometry plays a critical role in elucidating these interactions and assessing outcomes. These analyses have also been facilitated by new tools for the study of microbes by mass spectrometry, including spatial and ‘omic level analyses.

For readers, this Special Issue will be an easily identifiable source of high-quality papers describing new approaches and applications of mass spectrometry to microbial science topics. For authors, the Special Issue will provide a venue of increased visibility for their work.

Topics include, but are not limited to:

• Mass spectrometry methods applied to the study of microbial biotechnology
• Approaches and findings from the study of host-pathogen, host-microbiome and microbiome-pathogens interactions
• Environmental microbiology
• Microbial communication
• New computational methods for the analysis of microbial mass spectrometry data
• Emerging technologies to analyze microbes and microbial communities

Organizing Editors

Prof. Jennifer Brodbelt, Editor-in-Chief, JASMS
The University of Texas at Austin, United States

Prof. Alison Scott, Guest Editor
University of Maryland, United States

Prof. Vanessa Phelan, Guest Editor
University of Colorado, United States

Prof. Laura-Isobel McCall, Guest Editor
San Diego State University, United States

Submission Information

We welcome submissions for this Special Issue through June 30, 2026. For more information on submission requirements, please visit the journal’s Author Guidelines page.

All manuscripts will undergo rigorous peer review. Papers accepted for publication for this Special Issue will be available ASAP (as soon as publishable) online. After all submissions have been published, they will then be compiled online on a dedicated landing page to form the Special Issue. Manuscripts submitted for consideration will undergo the full rigorous peer review process expected from ACS journals.

Open Access: There are diverse open access options for publications in American Chemical Society journals. Please visit our Open Science Resource Center for more information.

How to Submit

• Log in to the ACS Publishing Center.
• Select the "Journals" tab.
• Choose Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry.
• Click "Submit."
• Select your manuscript type, and, under "Special Issue Selection," choose “Mass Spectrometry in Microbial Sciences."

If you have any general questions regarding submission to this Special Issue, please contact the Editorial Office (eic@jasms.acs.org).