Dear readers, We are thrilled to celebrate the 40th birthday of ALTEX in 2024. The journal has come a long way since its humble beginnings as a German biannual booklet first published by the Fonds für versuchstierfreie Forschung (FFVFF, Zurich, now Animalfree Research, Berne, Switzerland) in 1984. Our success and international recognition have flourished thanks to the continuous support of the sci