italics

1. Using Italics for Emphasis

Use italics (sparingly) to emphasize a word or phrase or bring attention to it.

2. Using Italics for Foreign Words and Phrases

Italicize such foreign words and phrases as in situ, in vivo, and inter alia; however, if the word or phrase is commonly used in your field, you may omit the italics.

3. Using Italics for Hyphenated Prefixes

Italicize hyphenated prefixes (such as cis-, trans-, o-, m-, and p-) to chemical formulas.

4. Using Italics to Cite Published Documents

Use italics in references, footnotes, and bibliographies for book titles and the names of journals, newspapers, and magazines.

In print, the titles of journal and magazine articles are listed in regular Roman type within quotation marks. On the web, omit the quotation marks.

5. Using Italics in Taxonomic Names

Unless you're discussing a genus in a general way, use italics to refer to specific genera, species, and varieties.