It covers significant developments in the field of microbiology, including the study of bacteria, archaea, viruses, and unicellular eukaryotes.

[4] From 1956 to 1958, Pierre Grabar provided a summary of the microbiologic literature appearing in the Russian language through a partnership with the National Science Foundation.

[8] It defines its scope as microbiology, including bacteria, archaea, viruses, and unicellular eukaryotes.

All other members of the editorial committee are appointed by the Annual Reviews board of directors and serve five-year terms.

The editorial committee determines which topics should be included in each volume and solicits reviews from qualified authors.