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What is Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica (AHC)?
Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica (AHC) is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal published by the Japan Society of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry (JSHC). It publishes research in histochemistry and cytochemistry — the study of tissue and cell chemistry through techniques such as staining, imaging, and molecular labeling — spanning basic cell biology through clinically oriented pathology.
Its site functions mainly as a journal portal: you can browse articles, read instructions to authors, submit manuscripts, and view the editorial board. Content is powered by J-STAGE, Japan's public platform for academic journals, so articles are indexed and accessible there.
Who it's for
- Researchers in histology, cytochemistry and pathology looking for a specialized venue
- Clinicians and translational scientists who use tissue-based methods (for example, tumor immunology or biomarker work)
- Authors weighing where to submit, who need to understand fees and scope before preparing a manuscript
What's on the site
- Latest Articles and Best Articles lists, with author names and DOIs
- Instructions to Authors, submission information and editorial board
- Publication ethics, open-access and digital archiving policies
- Journal metrics: impact factor 1.9 (2025), 5-year impact factor 2.3
Costs to plan for
The site states that from submissions dated June 1, 2024, authors pay an Article Processing Charge: JPY100,000 standard, or JPY50,000 for JSHC members. This is charged in addition to conventional page charges of JPY5,000 per page. Budget for both, and confirm current terms in the Instructions to Authors before submitting.
A practical next step
If you are deciding whether to submit, read two or three recent articles in your subfield from the Latest Articles list to judge scope and methodological fit, then check the Instructions to Authors for the exact APC and page-charge rules that apply to your manuscript type. If you are a reader rather than an author, the Best Articles list is a reasonable starting point for highly regarded papers. Note that the journal's focus is specialized; work without a tissue- or cell-chemistry component may fit a broader pathology or cell-biology title better.
How much does it cost to publish an article in AHC, and what APC discounts are available for JSHC members?
Publishing in Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica (AHC) involves two separate charges. The journal's notice states that authors pay an Article Processing Charge (APC) plus conventional page charges of JPY 5,000 per page.
APC rates since June 1, 2024
- Standard rate: JPY 100,000
- Japan Society of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry (JSHC) members: JPY 50,000
So the member discount is 50%, or JPY 50,000 off the standard APC. This applies to submissions from June 1, 2024 onward, according to the notice on Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica.
What this means in practice The APC is not the whole bill. A 10-page article, for example, would add JPY 50,000 in page charges on top of the APC — JPY 150,000 at the standard rate or JPY 100,000 for a JSHC member. Authors should budget for both line items rather than the APC alone.
Next step Check the journal's Instructions to Authors for the current fee schedule and payment process, and confirm whether you qualify for JSHC membership before submitting, since joining may cost less than the discount if you publish more than once.
What topics and article types does AHC publish, and how can I browse its latest or best articles?
AHC publishes histochemistry and cytochemistry research — the intersection of chemical and molecular techniques with tissue and cell biology. Judging by the articles listed on its site, that includes cancer biology (tumor-associated macrophages in renal cell carcinoma, prognostic markers in breast cancer), developmental biology (whole-embryo culture and heat effects on development), and gene-regulation work (promoter methylation and gene expression). The journal presents original research articles; the site organizes them into "Latest Articles" and a curated "Best Articles" selection, and points to J-STAGE as the platform that powers those lists.
How to browse
- Latest Articles — the most recently released papers, each with author, DOI and release date. Use this to track current output.
- Best Articles — a smaller selection the journal highlights, useful if you want a quick sense of the kind of work it considers representative.
- Browse Articles — the general archive route if you already have a topic, author or year in mind.
- Instructions to Authors and Submission — the pages to read if you are planning to publish rather than read.
A practical scenario: a graduate student studying macrophage heterogeneity in kidney cancer would start with the Latest Articles list, open the TREM2/STAB1 paper on clear-cell renal cell carcinoma, then follow its DOI to the full text and citations. A lab head deciding where to submit would instead read Instructions to Authors first, since AHC charges an article processing charge on top of per-page charges, with a reduced rate for members of the Japan Society of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry — a meaningful difference if the corresponding author belongs to that society.
Decision criterion: use Latest Articles for currency, Best Articles for orientation in an unfamiliar field, and the author pages for submission logistics. For a broader view of open-access histology and cell-biology literature, J-STAGE hosts AHC's content alongside other Japanese society journals.
What are the manuscript submission requirements and instructions to authors for AHC?
AHC publishes through a submission-and-peer-review workflow rather than an open post-anything model, so the practical requirements come from its Instructions to Authors page and the notice on the homepage. The homepage notice states that from June 1, 2024, authors must pay an Article Processing Charge (APC) for articles published in Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica: JPY100,000 standard rate, or JPY50,000 for members of the Japan Society of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry. The notice also says APC is charged in addition to conventional page charges of JPY5,000 per page. AHC is published online with ISSN 1347-5800 and is indexed with a 2025 journal impact factor of 1.9 and a five-year impact factor of 2.3.
What to prepare before submitting
- Manuscript content: The journal covers histochemistry and cytochemistry, including cell and tissue imaging, molecular localization, pathology-related marker studies, and methods-oriented work. Recent examples include tumor-associated macrophage heterogeneity in clear-cell renal cell carcinoma and a whole-embryo culture system for developmental temperature studies.
- Article type and format: The Instructions to Authors page is the authoritative source for acceptable article categories, word limits, figure/table limits, reference style, and required sections. Check it before formatting, because the homepage only summarizes fees and links.
- Authorship and ethics: AHC maintains a Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement. Submissions should include author contributions, conflict-of-interest statements, and any required ethics approvals for human or animal work.
- Open access and archiving: AHC has an Open Access Policy and a Digital Archiving and Repository Policy. Confirm the license terms and self-archiving rules on those pages rather than assuming standard CC-BY.
- Submission route: The homepage lists "Submission" and "Instructions to Authors" as separate navigation items. Use the official submission system linked from the journal site, not a third-party portal.
Cost planning example
A corresponding author who is not a JSHC member and whose accepted article runs to 10 pages should plan for roughly JPY100,000 APC plus JPY50,000 in page charges, before any color or supplementary-material fees that the Instructions to Authors may list. A JSHC member with the same 10-page article would pay roughly JPY50,000 APC plus the same page charges. Confirm current fee categories directly with the editorial office, since the homepage notice covers only APC and page charges.
Decision criterion
If your work is a histochemical or cytochemical study aimed at a specialized readership and you can absorb the APC and page charges, AHC is a reasonable fit. If cost is the deciding factor, compare it with journals that waive fees for authors from certain regions or that operate under a different funding model; for journal-selection context, see J-STAGE and The Japan Society of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry. The next step is to open AHC's Instructions to Authors and Publication Ethics pages, then email the editorial office with any fee or format question before you submit.
What is the journal's impact factor and open access policy?
Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica (AHC) reports a Journal Impact Factor of 1.9 (2025) and a 5-year impact factor of 2.3 on its homepage. It is published as an open-access journal, with a stated Open Access Policy and a Digital Archiving and Repository Policy; the site also lists an Online ISSN (1347-5800).
For authors, the practical trade-off is that open access comes with article processing charges. According to the site's Important Notice, submissions from June 1, 2024 onward require an APC: JPY100,000 standard, or JPY50,000 for members of the Japan Society of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry (JSHC), in addition to conventional page charges of JPY5,000 per page. The journal also provides an Instructions to Authors page and a submission portal for checking current requirements.
A useful next step is to confirm the current APC, page-charge rules and licensing terms on the Instructions to Authors page before submitting, since the notice shown applies from a specific date and details can change. If you are a JSHC member, the reduced APC may materially affect your decision; if not, budget for the standard rate plus per-page charges. You can start at Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica (AHC).
Who serves on the AHC editorial board and how can I contact the editorial office?
The site lists an "Editorial board" link in its main navigation but does not publish the individual names on the page you provided. To see who serves on the board, open the "Editorial Board" link on Acta Histochemica et Cytochemica (AHC). For direct contact, use the "Contact" link on the same site, which routes to the Editorial Office by email.
H3 Practical next step
- If you need a specific person (for example, to check whether a proposed topic fits the journal's scope), check the Editorial Board page first, then email the Editorial Office with a short subject line and the manuscript type.
- If you are querying an APC or page charge, the site states that from 1 June 2024 authors pay an Article Processing Charge (JPY100,000 standard, JPY50,000 for JSHC members) in addition to page charges (JPY5,000 per page); the Instructions to Authors page is the authoritative place to confirm current details before you write.
H3 Who this matters to
- Authors deciding whether to submit: the board composition signals which histochemistry and cytochemistry areas are represented, which helps you judge fit.
- Readers or reviewers: the Editorial Office is the correct contact for corrections, permissions and status questions, rather than individual board members.
If the Editorial Board page is not reachable, the Editorial Office email linked from the Contact page is the reliable fallback; include your manuscript ID or DOI if your query concerns a specific article.
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