The American Physiological Society is a non-profit professional society for physiologists. It has nearly 10,000 members, most of whom hold doctoral degrees in medicine, physiology, or other health professions. Its mission is to support research and education in the physiological sciences. The society publishes 16 peer-reviewed journals, sponsors scientific conferences, and sponsors awards to further this mission.[1]
Since it was founded in 1887, the APS has had 93 presidents lead the organization, beginning with founder Henry Bowditch and continuing through its current president, Linda C. Samuelson.[2] The APS is governed by an elected Council consisting of the president, the president-elect, the immediate past president, and nine councillors. Management of the affairs of the society is the responsibility of a full-time executive director, appointed by and responsible to the Council. The society maintains a staff and offices in Rockville, Maryland. It conducts its operations based on a constitution and bylaws, as given in the society's Operational Guide. As a nonprofit scientific organization, the society holds tax-exempt status. The organization is managed by Executive Director Scott Steen, CAE, FASAE.
The American Physiological Society was founded in 1887 with 28 members.[3] Of them, 21 were graduates of medical schools, but only 12 had studied in institutions with a physiology professor.
The American Physiological Society was founded at a time when very few physiological laboratories existed in the United States and there were few investigators. The newly established society was one of the earliest national disciplinary societies in the sciences, the first society in the biomedical sciences, and likely the first to require its members to publish original research. The stated object of the society was to promote the advancement of physiology and to facilitate discourse among American physiologists. There was a conscious effort to ensure the representation of all areas within physiology, encompassing topics as diverse as neurology, psychology, ophthalmology, pathology and therapeutics, as well as plant physiology and animal biology.
The APS recognizes five physiologists as its founders: Henry Pickering Bowditch, Silas Weir Mitchell, and Henry Newell Martin co-signed the original letter to active physiology researchers inviting them to the new society, and John Green Curtis and Russell Henry Chittenden provided early organizational support. The organizational meeting founding the society was held on December 30, 1887, in Curtis' laboratory space at Columbia University and was attended by seventeen people.[4] [5] The society had 28 founding members. The first regular meeting of the APS followed in September 1888 in Washington, DC, featuring paper presentations and demonstrations.
In its early days the APS served a young field with relatively few dedicated researchers, so its efforts were oriented toward advancing teaching and research. APS members collaborated to author a textbook of physiology and launched a journal, the American Journal of Physiology, in 1898. As the field of physiology matured, the society expanded in membership.
The modern APS sponsors many awards, including the Horace W. Davenport Distinguished Lecturer,[6] the Walter B. Cannon Award,[7] and Arthur C. Guyton Award,[8] and the Henry Pickering Bowditch Award.[9]
The first Hispanic woman to be president was Patricia E. Molina.
The American Physiological Society publishes both journals and books as a nonprofit publisher.
There are 16 scholarly, peer-reviewed journals covering specialized aspects of physiology. Ten of the journals are published twice monthly. All told, APS publishes some 3,100 original peer-reviewed articles annually, totaling approximately 32,000 pages per year.
Members can affiliate with one of twelve disciplinary sections composed of members that share a common interest. The sections are Cardiovascular, Cell and Molecular Physiology, Central Nervous System, Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Environmental and Exercise Physiology, Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, Neural Control and Autonomic Regulation, Renal Physiology, Respiration, Teaching of Physiology and Water and Electrolyte Homeostasis. Each member is asked to designate one primary, and two secondary section affiliations. Sections have their own internal governance.
The APS has a variety of membership categories. Regular membership is for individuals conducting original research in physiology. Affiliate membership is for individuals interested in physiology but without the evidence of scholarly work. Graduate Student membership is for any student engaged in physiological work that will culminate in a doctoral degree. Undergraduate Student membership is for individuals working toward an undergraduate degree that will eventually lead to work in physiology or a related field.
The American Physiological Society provides its membership with opportunities to be involved with the society through service on its various committees. The committees are: Animal Care and Experimentation, Awards, Career Opportunities in Physiology, Chapter Advisory Committee, Committee on Committees, Communications, Conferences, Daggs Award, Education, Finance, International Physiology, Joint Program, Physiologists in Industry, Membership, Perkins Memorial Fellowship, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (formerly the Porter Physiology Development and Minority Access to Research Committee), Public Affairs, Publications, Section Advisory, Senior Physiologists, Trainee Advisory, and Women in Physiology.
The American Physiological Society sponsors a number of scientific meetings each year. Experimental Biology, the APS annual meeting, is conducted jointly with other FASEB member societies. In addition to its annual meeting, specialized APS Conferences are held throughout the year and focus on designated areas of physiological research. The spring annual meeting, Experimental Biology, is convened jointly with other biomedical societies. This multi-society interdisciplinary, biomedical, and scientific meeting features plenary and award lectures, symposia, oral and poster sessions, a placement center, and an exhibit of scientific equipment, supplies, and publications.[10]