Molecular BioSystems goes from strength to strength
Abstract
At the start of a new year we reflect on the growth of Molecular BioSystems in 2005 and look ahead to the developments planned for 2006.
We are delighted to be writing to you at the start of what we are sure will be a second highly successful year for Molecular BioSystems. May 2005 saw the publication of the first issue of the journal and the subsequent seven months have seen the journal go from strength to strength with a range of high quality submissions and a very enthusiastic response from the community that we aim to serve.
Molecular BioSystems was conceived as a forum drawing together all scientists working at the interface between chemistry and the -omic sciences and systems biology. We have therefore been pleased to receive submissions from scientists with backgrounds in a very broad range of disciplines, and to have published an exciting mix of subject matter in both primary research and review material. Topics ranging from systems biology to cell–cell communication and from visualising DNA to functional gene-discovery systems were covered in 2005 and we look forward to publishing more excellent science this year. The number of high quality submissions continues to grow leaving us in no doubt that this journal has truly been welcomed by the community. Our referees are instrumental in ensuring that only the very highest quality work is published in the journal and we thank them for their vital part in the successful launch of the journal.
Molecular BioSystems is already very clearly an international journal (Fig. 1) so reading the journal ensures you stay abreast with the key developments in the field from all over the world. In keeping with the international character of the journal we and the other members of the Editorial and Advisory Boards have travelled to many conferences during 2005 to give Molecular BioSystems a high profile worldwide. The response from delegates at these meetings has been enthusiastic and positive (Fig. 2), in line with the messages we receive in response to our calls for papers. A busy travel schedule will continue in 2006 and we look forward to meeting you during the year.
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| Fig. 1 2005 published content in Molecular BioSystems by country of main author. | ||
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| Fig. 2 The Molecular BioSystems exhibition stand at the 30th FEBS Congress and 9th IUBMB Conference in Budapest, Hungary, in July 2005. | ||
In common with all RSC journals Molecular BioSystems maintains a high standard of professional service for its authors. Our publication times are rapid at typically less than 80 days from initial receipt to online publication for primary research in 2005, and we promote your work by sending copies of the relevant issue to scientists that you nominate as being its most relevant audience. We also offer authors free colour where scientifically necessary, no page charges, an online supplementary information service for free deposition of data or movies to accompany the manuscript, and the opportunity to be featured on the outside or inside front cover of the journal (Fig. 3). These benefits naturally extend to the readers by ensuring that Molecular BioSystems contains very timely research presented in an attractive manner with all supporting material available free online.
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| Fig. 3 A selection of the eye-catching journal covers from 2005. | ||
We are continually looking at how to improve our service to the community still further and with this in mind this issue sees the first of our new Tutorial Reviews. These review articles are “how to…” guides for different techniques; they review the field and draw together variations on a technique in a definitive reference guide for the new or less-experienced user. Suggestions for other techniques that you would like to see reviewed in this way are welcome at any time (molbiosyst@rsc.org).
It is not just Molecular BioSystems that has developed over recent months; 2005 has seen RSC Publishing invest significantly in technological developments across all of its products. First there was the introduction of the new website in the summer which included a contemporary, fresh look and an enhanced structure for improved and intuitive navigation between relevant, associated content. The improvements to the technological infrastructure have made the site more flexible and efficient, and better equip the RSC to deliver enhanced publishing products and services for its customers in the future. The new look was just the start and towards the end of the year we were pleased to provide further enhancements in the form of RSS feeds and ‘forward linking’ facilities.
RSS, or ‘really simple syndication’, is the latest way to keep up with the research published by the RSC. The new service provides subscribers with alerts as soon as an Advance Article is published in their journal of choice. Journal readers simply need to go to the journal homepage, click on the RSS link, and follow the step-by-step instructions to register for these enhanced alerts. RSS feeds include both the graphical abstract and text from a journal's contents page – i.e. they deliver access to new research straight to a readers PC, as soon as it is published! Many feed reader software packages also have the added benefit of remembering what has been read previously, which in turn makes tracking and managing journal browsing more efficient.
‘Forward linking’, the reverse of reference linking, enables readers to link from any RSC published paper to the articles in which it is cited. In essence, it allows researchers to easily track the progression of a concept or discovery, since its original publication. With one click of a button (on the ‘search for citing articles’ link) a list of citing articles included in Cross-Ref is presented, complete with DOI links.
At a time when research is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary in nature and the amount of published works continues to grow, it is hoped that the new technology, developed in conjunction with Cross-Ref, will significantly reduce the time spent by researchers searching for information.
These developments demonstrate the investment in publishing products and services over the past year and 2006 will see us enhancing our products further, with improvements to the HTML functionality of all journals and ReSourCe (the author and referee web interface) already underway.
All of the content published in this journal continues to be highlighted online in the Chemical Biology Virtual Journal (www.rsc.org/chembiolvj). The portal, which was launched in 2002 in recognition of the significant amount of chemical biology material published across RSC journals, enables interested readers to readily access relevant items. All chemical biology articles and related papers published in RSC journals are drawn together online every two weeks, with a selection of the primary literature free to access for a month. RSC Publishing is also expanding its chemical biology portfolio this year with the launch of an exciting new supplement: Chemical Biology (Fig. 4). A companion publication of Chemical Science and Chemical Technology, it draws together coverage from RSC publications and provides succinct accounts of the latest chemical biology research. It will appear monthly as a free print supplement in the front of this journal, and is also available free online.
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| Fig. 4 The monthly news supplements Chemical Biology, Chemical Science and Chemical Technology. | ||
2005 was an exciting year for those of us involved with the launch of Molecular BioSystems. We are now working hard to ensure that 2006 is even better so that all those working at the interface between chemistry and the -omic sciences and systems biology have a truly outstanding forum for the dissemination of their work. To be a part of this exciting venture and ensure that your research is noted by the best in the field submit your high quality papers to Molecular BioSystems at www.rsc.org/molecularbiosystems and ensure that all of your colleagues have easy access to the journal's contents by checking that it is listed in your library's catalogue.
On behalf of the Editorial and Advisory Boards as well as the editorial staff we thank you for your enthusiastic support of Molecular BioSystems in 2005 and look forward to working with you in developing your journal throughout 2006.
Thomas Kodadek, Editorial Board Chair
Caroline Evans, Editor
Sarah Thomas, Editor
| This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2006 |