Incoming editor Lihong Wang talks about aspirations for the Journal of Biomedical Optics in this video interview

BELLINGHAM, Washington, USA -- SPIE has announced the appointment of Lihong V. Wang of Washington University in St. Louis as editor of the Journal of Biomedical Optics effective 1 January 2010.

The Journal of Biomedical Optics publishes peer-reviewed papers that utilize modern optical technology for improved health care and research, and has been a leading journal in this fast-advancing field since its launch in 1996.

Wang will succeed founding editor Joseph Lakowicz, director of the Center for Fluorescence Spectroscopy, Univ. of Maryland School of Medicine (1996-1999), and current editor Bruce Tromberg, director of the Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic and professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Univ. of California, Irvine (1999-2009).

"Dr. Wang brings to the Journal of Biomedical Optics editorship a deep background in biomedical optics along with considerable experience as a journal editor, author, and reviewer," said Eric Pepper, SPIE Director of Publications. "SPIE is pleased to have a scientist of his stature continue the outstanding leadership tradition of the journal as we begin the next decade."

Wang received his PhD from Rice University in Houston, Texas. He holds the Gene K. Beare Distinguished Professorship in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. He has authored and co-authored two books, published 181 scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals, and delivered 204 plenary, keynote, and invited talks.

Wang received the National Institutes of Health (NIH) FIRST award, the National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award, and the Outstanding Young Scientist Award sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Medical, Inc. and the Houston Society for Engineering in Medicine and Biology. His research on non-ionizing biophotonic imaging has been funded by NIH, NSF, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Whitaker Foundation, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and other funding sources.

His group has made seminal contributions to ultrasound-modulated optical tomography, photoacoustic tomography, thermoacoustic tomography, modeling of light transport in biological tissue, and polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography. In particular, his laboratory invented frequency-swept ultrasound-modulated optical tomography, dark-field confocal photoacoustic microscopy, exact reconstruction algorithms for thermoacoustic tomography, Mueller-matrix optical coherence tomography, and spectroscopic oblique-incidence reflectometry. His Monte Carlo model of photon transport in scattering media has been used worldwide.

Wang is chair of the International Biomedical Optics Society and a Fellow of SPIE, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, the Optical Society of America, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He has served on the editorial boards for the Journal of Biomedical Optics and Applied Optics and has reviewed for more than 30 scientific journals. He has organized conferences as a conference chair and received conference grants from the Whitaker Foundation and NIH. He has served as a study section chair or grant reviewer for NIH, NSF, and the Whitaker Foundation. He serves on the scientific advisory boards of three companies.

The journal is published bimonthly. For more information, see spie.org/jbo or access the Journal of Biomedical Optics in the SPIE Digital Library.

SPIE is the international optics and photonics society, founded in 1955 to advance light-based technologies. Serving more than 188,000 constituents from 138 countries, the Society advances emerging technologies through interdisciplinary information exchange, continuing education, publications, patent precedent, and career and professional growth. SPIE annually organizes and sponsors approximately 25 major technical forums, exhibitions, and education programs in North America, Europe, Asia, and the South Pacific. In 2008, the Society provided more than $1.9 million in support of scholarships, grants, and other education programs around the world. For more information, visit SPIE.org.