Nutrition & Metabolism (N&M) will publish articles that integrate nutrition with biochemistry and molecular biology. The open access process is chosen to provide rapid and accessible dissemination of new results and perspectives in a field that is of great current interest. Manuscripts in all areas of nutritional biochemistry will be considered but three areas of particular interest are lipoprotein metabolism, amino acids as metabolic signals, and the effect of macronutrient composition of diet on health. The need for the journal is identified in the epidemic of obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemias and related diseases, and a sudden increase in popular diets, as well as renewed interest in intermediary metabolism.A new Open Access journal,  Nutrition & Metabolism (N&M) include 1) an awareness of an epidemic of obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemias and related diseases, 2) a sudden increase in the popularity of diets, such as low carbohydrate diets, to achieve weight loss and combat diabetes, and 3) a renewed interest in intermediary metabolism accompanied by the development of new tools and techniques for genomic and metabolic analysis.Recent events that provide the rationale for a new Open Access journal, ) and similar motions exist in the US congress [N&M feel that, at this point, the burden of proof is on proponents of perpetuating the current system. We are, however, not doctrinaire on this point and believe one should pay for a service if it is valuable. Beyond information, printed collections provide convenience and we intend to offer bound copies of articles on individual topics as the journal proceeds.With the considerable activity shown in these areas, rapid and easily accessible dissemination of new information is clearly valuable. Whereas articles in existing journals do discuss intermediary metabolism in a nutritional context, there is a need for a unique and explicit focus for this discipline. In addition, it is precisely because publications in nutritional biochemistry are spread over such a large number of existing journals, few libraries and almost no individual can subscribe to all. It is in areas like this that free, open access becomes important. There is a large published debate on open access . Most rcongress ,3. The eN&M has its own strengths and interests as indicated by the board of editors . Three areas of particular interest are lipoprotein metabolism, amino acids as metabolic signals, and the effect of macronutrient composition of diet on health. This is reflected in our opening research articles by Darimont, et al. on the control of obesity and lipid structure by adrenergic systems, and by Volek, et al. on the effectiveness of low carbohydrate diets, and differential effects on fat and lean mass.Nutrition and metabolism is a broad field and we welcome submissions from all areas of nutrition and related biochemistry. Like any journal, however, , while not recommending any particular diet, highlighted many of the relevant issues in macronutrient control of metabolism. In our initial publications, contributors to the conference will provide reviews of the various topics covered. In the first posting, Klaas Westerterp summarizes the importance of macronutrient composition in thermogenesis, and Stephen Phinney discusses the impact of ketogenic diets on physical performance. Kimball and Jefferson review the regulation of mRNA translation in general. The article provides a nice overview of various mechanisms involved in the control of protein synthesis when amino acids become limiting. Perhaps the most important from a practical standpoint, Nuttall and Gannon summarize potential benefits of higher protein diets in diabetes.The sudden popularity of low carbohydrate diets is one of the most remarkable phenomena in nutrition today. A recent editorial by Walter Willett points out how important it is that we understand them . SimilarN&M is free. Articles are included in PubMed and archived in PubMed Central. Online submissions can be made at .Nutrition & Metabolism welcomes contributions in all areas of research in which nutrition interacts with biochemistry and molecular biology. Emphasis will be on the molecular, biochemical, and physiologic understanding of various metabolic pathways. The journal will publish Original Research, Reviews, Commentaries and Perspectives, Brief Communications, Methods and Book Reviews. Access to all articles in


Journal of Autoimmune Diseases is created as an independent open access journal. In addition to the obvious advantages of the open access, the Journal will practice a double-blind reviewing of the manuscripts, which means that both the reviewers and the authors remain anonymous to each other. We believe that such a policy will reduce the influence of personal and other non-scientific factors on the reviewer's decision making.A new online  Autoimmune diseases are common and can affect virtually every organ in the body. They range from organ specific diseases such as thyroiditis or type 1 diabetes to life-threatening multi-system diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus and the systemic vasculitides. Clinicians from every field of medicine may encounter these patients and both generalists and specialists need to keep up to date with clinical and experimental developments in autoimmunity. The advent of targeted therapies for example the anti-TNF-α agents for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis exemplify the application of basic science research that can lead to effective therapies.Journal of Autoimmune Diseases. There are several journals devoted to autoimmune diseases already, with at least four having the word "autoimmunity" in the title. In addition, a number of immunological journals and journals that specialise in particular diseases publish papers on autoimmunity. So is there a need for yet another journal?Inspired by the publisher, BioMed Central, a group of enthusiastic professionals gathered to launch the Journal of Autoimmune Diseases certainly thinks so. This Journal is one of the new breed of online-only journals which are proving extremely successful. But it is not the magic word "internet' that makes the difference. Two distinct features provided by, BioMed Central and the Editorial Board offer special advantages to readers and authors.The Editorial Board of Journal of Autoimmune Diseases is universally and freely available online to everyone, its authors retain copyright, and it is archived in internationally recognised free repositories such as PubMed Central [The aim of publishing is to share information with the community. Authors are also keen to know that their work is being read. One of the syndromes of authorship has been the little card politely requesting a reprint. This card is sometimes forgotten or filed in the circular filing cabinet thus inducing considerable guilt both in the paper's author and the recipient. The era of reprint requests may be drawing to a close since most of the journals can now be found on-line. However, the access to a paper on-line often requires a subscription or a purchase of an individual article ("pay-per-view"). The high publication costs of printed journals deprive their publishers of the generosity of complete free access, but this tends to limit the dissemination of research. An alternative approach provided by BioMed Central is to make access totally free for everybody, as part of their Open Access policy . It mean Central ; e-Depot Central ; Potsdam Central  and INIS Central .Journal of Autoimmune Diseases enables scientists from countries and institutions with limited funds to read the same material as wealthier ones [ier ones . This haier ones .Journal of Autoimmune Diseases aims to provide a high standard of double-blinded peer review, in which the reviewer's name is not disclosed to the authors, and the authors remain anonymous to the reviewers. A few journals already use this system, so why do we believe that this will benefit the scientific community?The We have all come across situations where an honest, laborious piece of work was hard to publish. Some journals reject up to 95% of manuscripts , and thipersonally, a good paper is rejected or additional possibly unnecessary experiments are required which will take a year or two. Unfair rejection can occur due to a conflict of interest, be it personal or financial. For instance, an individual may be rejected on the basis of ethnicity [It is the nature of human beings that if a reviewer does not like you thnicity , so may An unfair acceptance takes place when the reviewer is benevolent to a weak paper that has an outstanding name as the last author. Some authors may successfully exploit this weakness of a reviewer's human being by placing the famous name intentionally. This results in a ghost authorship of which the celebrity may be unaware! One of us remembers an anecdotal conversation he heard a few years ago in one of the universities:Dorit (a secretary to the Professor): Robert? There is a new paper of yours I see on Medline. Do you wish me to update your publication list?Professor: Who are the other authors?(Dorit reads 20 last and first names)Professor: Hm-m-m...I don't know any of these people. What is the title there?(Dorit reads the title)Professor: I don't remember even discussing anything like that or being consulted...Dorit: Should I ignore it then?Professor: Could you print it out for me? I will read it first. If the paper is good enough...Well, then I'll have nothing to do but to add it to my list of publications.What are the remedies then? Two policies that could help to overcome these difficulties are completely open peer review and completely anonymous, or double-blind peer review. In open peer review , the revJournal of Autoimmune Diseases – we all need that important first paper to get going. The Editorial Board has been carefully selected from leading authorities in their own fields to help achieve our ambitious aim of developing a high class international journal that is accessible by all who have internet access and we look forward to receiving your submissions.We hope to attract clinical and basic science reports from leading and innovative authors. We call for established authors to publish with us in order to be easily accessible by all other scientists, to stop fighting with the windmills of the elite journals, to write detailed and clear papers in the unlimited space provided by internet. We would also strongly encourage more junior authors who are making their way in this field to consider publishing high quality science in the


PLoS Medicine editors argue that all trial registries, reports, and databases should be freely available onlineThe  PLoS Medicine, Mike Clarke, the director of the United Kingdom Cochrane Centre, lays down a challenge to clinical researchers and journal editors [In a compelling essay in this issue of  editors . He arguFirst, we would argue that by the time a paper is sent to a journal, it is surely too late in the process to be insisting on systematic reviews. If a clinical trial report meets our criteria for originality, importance, and quality, it makes little sense for us to reject it just because the authors failed to systematically review the literature when designing their study. The time to mandate that researchers do a review is much earlier—when they apply for funding, register their trial, or seek ethics committee approval.There is no doubt that the best research builds on previous knowledge. But unfortunately, the current medical publishing system hides much of this knowledge behind subscription or “pay per view” charges, which discriminates against researchers who do not work for well-funded institutions. A group of researchers in Indonesia, for example, recently told a depressingly familiar story of trying to search the medical literature in preparation for a research project ; access Many clinical trials, especially negative ones, remain unpublished, which prevents researchers from reviewing all the data on an important health issue. There are two main reasons why certain trials are not published: one is that the pharmaceutical industry has a long history of suppressing data that are commercially unfavorable and the second is that medical journals and the popular media favor publication of positive over negative trials . While we support the recent announcement on trial registration by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors—as a condition of considering a trial for publication, member journals will require registration of the trial in a public trials registry —we beliePLoS Medicine is committed to publishing high-quality negative trials. In this issue, for example, we publish an important randomized controlled trial of a malaria vaccine in 372 Gambian men, which found that the vaccine was ineffective at reducing the natural infection rate.The scientific literature will remain biased unless the publishing industry changes its practices and provides a place where the results from all registered trials can be published. The internet makes it possible for every single clinical trial to be publicly and seamlessly tracked through three tiers. The first tier is registration in a publicly available database. The second is the publication of a peer-reviewed summary of every trial, regardless of its outcome, in a traditional journal format, with annotations and critiques that help readers understand the trial's implications. The third is the deposition of detailed trial data in a structured, computable format that allows sophisticated searching and analyses across trials. This format will allow the development of better tools to help clinicians apply trial results to their practice. For trial data to be as useful as possible, all three tiers must be publicly accessible. Assessment of each trial's validity is critical, but should not stop crucial information about all trials being placed in the public domain.http://rctbank.ucsf.edu) are under development. And as a publisher committed to open access, PLoS will provide the second, essential tier—journals capable of peer reviewing and publishing an annotated report of every trial. Traditional medical journals, with their subscription-based model, are unlikely to be able to provide this service, because in order to attract subscribers they need to publish only the highest-profile trials. We believe that an open-access model—in which the research funder pays a publication fee to recover the costs of peer review and for hosting the report on a secure server—is the best mechanism for creating such venues. We are working to make that happen.Trial registries exist, such as ClinicalTrials.gov and the International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number registry. Moreover, many trials are registered in a semi-public database maintained by the United States Food and Drug Administration, and there are compelling arguments (which Turner articulates in an essay published online ahead of our December issue ) for makReturning to Clarke's challenge, our final response is to say that we have a bold vision of a freely accessible online world of clinical trials—from registration to annotated summaries to trial databases. That world would be even richer if every systematic review were made freely available. We challenge the Cochrane Collaboration to put the full text of all of its reviews into the public domain. We hope the Cochrane Collaboration will join us in the open-access revolution.


CytoJournal is published by an independent publisher BioMed Central, which is committed to ensuring that the peer-reviewed biomedical research is Open Access. Since its launch, BioMed Central has graciously supported the processing of all the articles published during CytoJournal's first 6 months. However, for long term viability, CytoJournal has to achieve financial viability to support publication expenses. From 1st March, 2005, authors will be asked by the publisher to pay a flat article-processing charge. This editorial discusses how a significant proportion of authors may not have to pay this fee directly under a variety of different mechanisms such as institutional and society memberships with BioMed Central. CytoJournal is published by BioMed Central, an independent publisher committed to ensuring peer-reviewed biomedical research is Open Access – it is universally and freely available online to everyone, its authors retain copyright, and it is archived in at least one internationally recognised free repository [CytoJournal however, has taken this further, by making all its content Open Access.pository . CytoJouCytoJournal's first 6 months. However, as we move forward it is crucial that CytoJournal develops its own financial viability, at least to support publication expenses. Thus, from 1st March, 2005, authors will be asked by the publisher to pay a flat £330 (approximately US $600/€500) article-processing charge (APC) [Since its launch in August 2004, BioMed Central has graciously supported the processing of all the articles published during st March, 2005 will not have to pay an APC, even if it is accepted for publication after peer review.Please note that authors submitting any article online to CytoJournal before 1Traditionally, readers pay to access articles, either through subscriptions or by paying a fee each time they download an article. Escalating journal subscriptions have resulted in libraries subscribing to fewer journals , and theCytoJournal's Open Access policy changes the way in which articles are published. First, all articles become freely and universally accessible online, and so an author's work can be read by anyone at no cost. Second, the authors hold copyright for their work and grant anyone the right to reproduce and disseminate the article, provided that it is correctly cited and no errors are introduced [CytoJournal's articles are archived in PubMed Central [troduced . Third,  Central , the US  Central  in Germa Central  in Franc Central - the NatOpen Access has four broad benefits for science and the general public. First, authors are assured that their work is disseminated to the widest possible audience, given that there are no barriers to access it. This is accentuated by the authors being free to reproduce and distribute their work, for example by placing it on their institution's website. They can still use the published material for any future plans including book chapters, monograms, and presentation after due acknowledgement about its original publication. It has been shown that free online articles are more highly cited because of their easier availability . Second,Open Access to original peer-reviewed scientific information to both the general public and experts alike has many benefits. It can affect and shape the public opinion. In the long run the availability of such information in the field of cytopathology will translate into further progress in cytopathology and maximize its benefits to various fields of life sciences.CytoJournal's articles. Authors are asked to pay a flat payment of £330, during 2005, if their article is accepted for publication [CytoJournal without incurring an APC. We strongly recommend readers to approach their respective societies to become members under this provision.APCs will allow continued Open Access to all of lication . Currentlication . Biomed No charge is made for articles that are rejected after peer review. Many funding agencies have also realized the importance of Open Access publishing and have specified that their grants may be used directly to pay APCs ., a non-profit organization, is looking for help from appropriate organisations to support the publication cost in CytoJournal, so that ultimately our journal will be an Open Access journal free of any financial burden for all CytoJournal authors. We appreciate any help in this matter to achieve this goal. You may contact by e-mail: cytojournal@mcw.edu to extend the support.As another avenue, Cytopathology-Foundation, Inc CytoJournal does not levy additional page or color charges on top of this fee, which can easily exceed £330 with conventional journals. As the entire manuscript with color PDF file is freely available on-line, authors do not have to stock reprints and spend mailing charges to share the publication with their peers. The PDF files can be directly downloaded by the interested colleague/researcher or the author to share the PDF file through e-mail at the click of the mouse!The APC pays for the manuscript publication process. It allows the article to be freely and universally accessible in various formats online, and for the processes required for inclusion in PubMed and archiving in PubMed Central, e-Depot, Potsdam and INIST. Although some authors may consider £330 expensive, it must be remembered that CytoJournal, the article being online only, any number of color figures and photographs can be included at no extra cost. In addition, CytoJournal being a web based publication, a small video clip could also be included as part of publication without extra cost. This provision to include video clip(s) is an excellent opportunity to improve the clarity of the details to the readers about dynamic processes such as procedures and methodologies [With reference to conventional journals it is usually stated in instructions to authors that- 'this journal does not reproduce color illustrations unless the cost of such reproduction is subsidized by the author and agreed upon in advance'. Restricting the number of images published in a manuscript or publishing them as black & white would significantly compromise the publication standard we hope to maintain for a morphology based discipline such as cytopathology. With dologies .CytoJournal is not alone in the move to Open Access funded by APCs. The British Medical Journal has recently announced that it cannot continue to provide free access to its website [Although several journals now offer free access to their articles online, this is different from Open Access (as defined by the Bethesda Statement ). These  website  and is c website . Also, t website . Given t website , the higCytoJournal to serve the pathology, cytopathology, and entire medical community. We believe this change will benefit and aid scientific research in general. We hope you will support this progress by submitting your next article to CytoJournal.By providing a forum for Open Access, APCs will enable APC = article-processing charge.CytoJournal, the work of the Editors-in-Chief, the Editorial Board, and of all invited outside peer reviewers is entirely voluntary, without tangible remuneration of any kind. Our goal is publication and dissemination of the highest quality literature and research in cytopathology and related areas. Our (intangible) rewards are in the achievement of these goals. Any decisions about manuscripts are based entirely on the quality of the scientific content, and not on the ability of authors to pay article-processing charges.At


Virology Journal is an exclusively on-line, Open Access journal devoted to the presentation of high-quality original research concerning human, animal, plant, insect bacterial, and fungal viruses. Virology Journal will establish a strategic alternative to the traditional virology communication process. Previously unknown viruses, such as the SARS coronavirus, may emerge at anytime, anywhere in the world. Viruses previously thought to be geographically restricted, such as WNV, may appear in new regions and spread rapidly. Poliovirus, once thought to be on the brink of elimination, has surged with a widespread distribution in nearly a dozen African nations that now poses a serious risk to the polio eradication initiative. Governments and individuals are increasingly aware of the threats posed by viruses, including established viruses, emerging viruses and the many viruses that are potential agents of bioterrorism. However, lack of information or misinformation regarding viruses can further exacerbate their impact on public health. There is an urgent need for a rapid forum for communications among virologists. Virology Journal will present high-quality original research concerning human, animal, plant, insect bacterial, and fungal viruses, while establishing a strategic alternative to the traditional virology communication process. Links to an extensive database of virology information on the Internet will be provided through our "All the Virology" (ATV) web site Virology Journal's Open Access policy changes the way in which articles in virology can be published [Virology Journal's articles are archived in PubMed Central [ublished . First,  Central , the US  Central  in Germa Central  in Franc Central , the NatOpen Access has four broad benefits for science and the general public. First, authors are assured that their work is disseminated to the widest possible audience, given that there are no barriers to access their work. This is accentuated by the authors being free to reproduce and distribute their work, for example by placing it on their institution's website. It has been suggested that free online articles are more highly cited because of their easier availability . Second,Virology Journal will consider: research, book reports, case reports, commentaries, debate articles, hypotheses, methodology articles, reviews, short reports and short protocols. An editorial board of 30 members has been established . In addiVirology Journal whose authors and readers will benefit from learning about viruses in regions of the world with limited financial resources. No member of the editorial or advisory boards of Virology Journal or their Institutions will receive any portion of the article-processing charge.Critics of Open Access often suggest that Editors have a financial incentive to accept articles as more articles means more revenue. However, BioMed Central insists that decisions about a manuscript must be based on the quality of the work, not on whether the article-processing charge can be paid. This policy will certainly apply for It is also a BioMed Central policy that Editors should declare their competing interests. Several years ago, I suggested that it would be a useful policy for the Editors of scientific and medical journals to declare their competing interests on a yearly basis . Few edi"I declare that my institution holds or has applied for several United Stated and International patents based on technology developed in my laboratory. These patents or patent applications cover a range of technologies including diagnostic assays, human A-type retroviruses and a B-type retrovirus (betaretrovirus), and peptides that inhibit viral infectivity. Tulane University has licensed some of these technologies to private companies for commercial development (list available on request), and I receive royalties from these licenses. I have also served on several study sections for the National Institutes of Health and currently served as the Chair of a biodefense study section (SSS-Z). I receive a per diem and reimbursement from the NIH for service on the study sections. Except for mutual funds in a retirement account managed through Tulane University, I own no stocks or other commercial instruments."Virology Journal, we hope to catalyse a fuller utilization of the Internet for scientific communication in virology drawing on our long experience with the ATV website. We welcome any advice and input.There are several outstanding virology journals covering all aspects of this dynamic field, but none of the general virology journals are exclusively published on-line or are Open Access. With the launch of


Molecular Cancer offers Open Access to all of its content, thereby providing a platform to present information to specialists and the public in order to further promote free exchange of ideas, concepts and findings in all fields of cancer-related biomedical science. All the published articles in the journal are determined by the peer review process.Open Access is one of the attempts to maximize the exchange of information, and therefore benefits the scholar communication . MoleculOpen Access has following broad benefits for science and the general public:• All articles become freely and universally accessible online; so an author's work can be read by anyone at no cost.• The authors hold copyright for their work and grant anyone the right to reproduce and disseminate the article, provided that it is correctly cited.• A copy of the full text of each Open Access article is permanently archived in an online repository separate from the journal, such as PubMed Central, the US National Library of Medicine's full-text repository of life science literature, the repositories at the University of Potsdam in Germany, at INIST in France and in e-Depot, the National Library of the Netherlands' digital archive of all electronic publications.• Authors are assured that their work is disseminated to the widest possible audience. This is accentuated by the authors being free to reproduce and distribute their work, for example by placing it on their institution's website. It has been suggested that free online articles are more highly cited because of their easier availability .• The information available to researchers will not be limited by their library's budget, and the widespread availability of articles will enhance literature searching.• The results of publicly funded research will be accessible to all interested readers and not just those with access to a library with a subscription. As such, Open Access could help to increase public interest in, and support of, research. Please note that this public accessibility may become a legal requirement in the USA if the proposed Public Access to Science Act is made law .• A country's economy will not influence its scientists' ability to access articles because resource-poor countries (and institutions) will be able to read the same material as wealthier ones, although creating access to the internet is another matter.Molecular Cancer published a number of interesting papers, and the list of the top ten most accessed articles is available at . All papers accepted by Molecular Cancer appear as 'accepted manuscript' on the web pages and are subsequently included in PubMed. A fully formatted portable document file is available approximately two to three weeks after acceptance along with a web-version of the article.The on-line publication, to the exclusion of print, has many advantages: Coloured pictures can be presented along with large sets of supporting data  without additional charges. In addition, the on-line submission process allows a fast and effective handling of papers and allows authors to check the status of their submitted manuscript(s). There is no limitation in space, but concise papers are more likely to be read.Molecular Cancer, all members of the editorial board and the reviewers for their ongoing support for Open Access publishing and for aiming higher standards for Molecular Cancer.The peer review policy, described in , ensuresMolecular Cancer did not change significantly, compared to the last report [Molecular Cancer after revisions. In addition to indexing in PubMed, PubMed Central and other search engines, Molecular Cancer is working closely with the Institute for Scientific Information to ensure that citation analysis of our articles will be available.The acceptance rate of t report . One outPJC is Editor-in-Chief and CS is Deputy Editor of this journal. Both do not receive any remuneration for their efforts but they are exempted from the article processing fee for this journal.


Emerging Themes in Epidemiology is a new, online Open Access journal. This editorial – which coincides with the Journal's launch – describes its unique review and publication model. The editorial board and review process of ETE will be managed by research degree students and will therefore be a training ground for students . With our mix of Open Access publishing and the strong involvement of students in editing and reviewing, we believe that Emerging Themes in Epidemiology will be a progressive medium for promoting new ideas in epidemiology. Emerging Themes in Epidemiology (ETE) was conceived late on a Friday afternoon. As the rest of the academic and professional work week was coming to an end, the creators of this journal were just beginning to think straight. Clearly the work of students. However, it was not just clandestine meetings at unsociable hours that brought this diverse group of epidemiology PhD students together to launch and direct a new journal.The idea that has given birth to ETE, which will be a training ground for PhD students.Through training and various research projects PhD students become versed in the technical, methodological and practical aspects of epidemiology. While some will stay in academia and some will use their skills in other sectors of public health, our time as PhD students is seen as a time to learn and a time to be a part of the academic community. However, aside from the occasional correspondence with editorial boards, research students receive little training or involvement in the process of scientific publication. We think that this is an important process for us to learn about since, as researchers, our careers are dependent on publication. So we came together to form Emerging Themes in Epidemiology, the philosophical underpinnings of the Journal have been illustrated. Now, some explanation is required of how we will achieve our vision of ETE.This Open Access journal will also be our contribution to the field of epidemiology. Students will manage the editorial board and they will be a part of the review committee for each paper. Through this process we hope to learn. But, we also hope to facilitate the publication of new ideas and to raise issues that concern us as students of epidemiology. In the other editorial in this launch 'issue' of ETE is made up of doctoral students and faculty. The research students are from various academic and public health institutes in London (though we are open to the prospect of overseas expansion). The student members are responsible for the running of the Journal, for managing the review process and communicating with authors and readers. The board is headed by our Editor-in-Chief, Professor Peter Smith, and is overseen by an international panel of Associate Editors. The role of these senior faculty is to consider the major decisions of the Board and to preside over final publication judgements. And, because PhD studentship is a transient state (of varying length), these Associate Editors will maintain the continuity of ETE by recruiting new student editors as the current board graduates.The editorial board of At present, there is a lively debate as to whether peer-review should be 'open' or 'closed'. Recognizing the forceful arguments on both sides, we believe that the scientific community is best served by a system that encourages a constructive dialogue between colleagues. Authors and reviewers will know each others' name and affiliation. However, we recognize that some highly specialized fields of research are small and competitive. In reality, this means that there are often repercussions for giving both criticism and praise to a colleague's work. So at the reviewers' request, we will withhold their names from the authors.ETE, it is assigned to one of our two Deputy Editors. A committee of five research students then screens the manuscript to decide whether it fits within the scope of the Journal. If they decide it does, the paper is sent for external peer review. All papers are seen by a minimum of two reviewers. As part of our dedication to involving research students in the editorial process and facilitating the publication of new ideas, at least one PhD student and one expert in the appropriate field will be asked to review each paper. How will PhD students perform as reviewers? There is evidence that young reviewers (under 40 years old) trained in epidemiology or statistics, and those who can dedicate about 3 hours provide better quality reviews [When a paper is submitted to  reviews . ClearlyETE. Authors can therefore be confident that their papers will have the highest visibility and will be available in PubMed's archives.Final decisions to accept or reject will always be done with the endorsement of one of the Associate Editors, who are senior researchers in various epidemiologic fields. The involvement of students in the review process is admittedly novel, but we believe there are sufficient checks and balances in our review system to ensure quality. Testament to this is the decision by PubMed and PubMed Central to index ETE will encourage openness from authors as well as reviewers. An individual's financial or professional associations do not necessarily constitute conflicts of interest, but failing to declare them can be highly misleading to the reader and the scientific community [The issue of conflict of interest is anathema to many scientists. We are trained to pursue objectivity; the suggestion that one's methods, results or conclusions are in any way affected by funding sources or other affiliations can be seen as a direct challenge to credibility. It shouldn't be. In the complex funding and political environments in which we work, we can no longer deny that these issues must be faced. Evidence has mounted that funding is associated with research outcomes (in tobacco and food) and, recently, high-profile cases related to vaccine safety and nutritional supplements have furthered the case for explicit statements of potential conflicts -5. Once ommunity .ETE is a journal dedicated to active discourse in epidemiology. We will ask contributors to disclose their source(s) of funding – as it could be seen to influence opinions or research agenda. We will also ask authors to disclose links to other associations that are not explicit from their institutional affiliation.Perhaps there is no discipline more appropriate for open-access publication than epidemiologic research and the allied population health sciences. Our work has the aim of revealing the determinants of disease in human populations, with the ultimate goal, through knowledge empowerment, intervention and policy, to reduce suffering from ill health. With such an ethos, how can we justify keeping research findings locked away in expensive medical journals, inaccessible to those who may need it most?The open-access publishing model has the potential to revolutionize the way authors use scientific literature and the manner in which it is received by other scientists and the community at large. The advent of open-access publishing means "it is now possible to make our treasury of scientific information available to a much wider audience, including millions of students, teachers, physicians, scientists, and other potential readers, who do not have access to a research library that can afford to pay for journal subscriptions" .Currently, the most common economic model for sustaining Open Access journals is one where the author pays for the costs incurred in the editorial and publishing process. BioMed Central, our publisher, charges authors per accepted publication (currently $525), but fees are waived for authors from institutions with membership to BioMed Central or authors with financial hardship. Our hope is that a long-term solution will in future be developed by the scientific community as a whole, perhaps through the provision of grant schemes for Open Access publication. Nonetheless, recognizing the difficulties with the current 'author pays' model, we aim to cover the article processing fees for at least the next few years for all submissions not already covered under institutional memberships or other grants or subsidies.ETE will call for papers on a particular subject pertinent to the theory and practice of epidemiology. The series of articles will be built around a framework, designed by the editorial board and a guest editor. The series of articles will be published in tandem, and will be highlighted on a special page on the website. The flexibility of online publishing will allow for articles submitted after the initial publication of the issue and for commentary on the original articles to also be included. Guest editors for special issues will work with the Editorial Board to develop an issue, commission appropriate articles and write a leading editorial. Anyone interested in collaborating with ETE to curate a special issue is encouraged to contact the Editorial Board.From time to time Emerging Themes in Epidemiology will be a progressive medium for promoting new ideas that will contribute to the development of the field.Epidemiology is 'young' science, rapidly evolving in its theory, methods, and subject matter. With our mix of Open Access publishing and the strong involvement of students in editing and reviewing, we believe that


Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction is an open access, online, peer-review journal publishing papers on all aspects of research into reproductive endocrinology, infertility, bioethics and the advanced reproductive technologies. The journal reports on important developments impacting the field of human reproductive medicine and surgery. The field exists as a sub-specialty of obstetrics & gynecology, focusing on the diagnosis and treatment of complex human reproductive problems. The continued growth of this relatively new field depends on quality research by proven scientists as well as junior investigators who, together, make contributions to this area of medical and surgical practice. The publishing revolution made possible by internet technology presages a bright future for continued interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers. Against this background, Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction exists for the scientific community to facilitate this scholarly dialogue. Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction began in Atlanta after discussions with London-based publisher BioMed Central to develop a new electronic peer-reviewed journal reporting on the rapidly growing field of reproductive endocrinology and infertility. Working with colleagues who shared this vision, an exploratory organizational group was established to design a journal that would not only meet the current demands of the specialty, but also anticipate its challenges and needs for the future.In early 2002, planning for Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction already had received submissions and inquiries from authors seeking to publish manuscripts in the categories of original research, review, case report, opinion/debate, medical history, and letters. Although column space does not constrain electronic publishing in the same way as traditional print journals, our peer-review process determined that not every submission was appropriate for publication. Hence, from the first instance the journal has pledged to observe a peer-review policy that ensures only the best quality manuscripts are published.By the time of its formal launch in July 2004, Journal of Experimental and Clinical Assisted Reproduction is fully committed to the philosophy of Open Access as articulated in the following policies:Our editorial board membership reflects a depth of expertise required to guide editorial policies of a journal that aspires to join the top tier of selective scientific journals. Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction (ISSN 1743-1050) are also accessioned in PubMed Central, maintained by the U.S. National Library of Medicine – the world's largest medical library. Accordingly, all journal publications are available free and without password requirements to anyone with internet access. Furthermore, the platform provided by our publisher, BioMed Central (NLMID b101153627), allows author(s) to track how frequently their manuscript has been accessed and viewed by the public at no charge.While the availability of published articles on the journal's homepage provides high and unrestricted visibility for accepted articles, contents of The journal reports on important developments impacting the field of human reproductive medicine and surgery. We accept manuscripts describing research in reproductive endocrinology, infertility, bioethics and the advanced reproductive technologies. At the discretion of the Editors, conference proceedings may be considered for publication by special arrangement., although this is not a requirementAfter a manuscript is received via the journal's on-line electronic submission system, selection of referees and editorial review is underway within a few business days. Our peer review process evaluates the appropriateness and suitability of all submitted manuscripts, as well as supplying authors with any additional requirements or modifications needed before the article can be published. We seek to reach an editorial decision on a manuscript within three weeks of its initial receipt, although author delays in addressing referees' comments are likely to extend this timeline. Questions regarding the suitability of a proposed submission may be sent to the journal office at The abstract of each manuscript is reviewed by two internal referees, which may include members of the Editorial Board. Authors can expect a response regarding this preliminary review within one week, and manuscripts judged outside the scope of the journal are identified accordingly. Submissions considered to be appropriate for the journal are reviewed by at least one independent referee. Referees' comments are relayed to corresponding authors in a confidential/anonymous manner, and all communication regarding submissions is through the journal's editorial office. The Editorial Office will review commentaries, together with input from an Editorial Board member with the relevant expertise. It may be necessary to enlist additional reviewers and/or statisticians in certain cases to assure the highest quality manuscripts are chosen for publication.Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction. However, for each manuscript accepted thereafter, our publisher will charge a modest fee comparable to the cost of a single color page charge in a print journal (see ). This fee may be waived in hardship cases or for selected authors without budget support, provided that such a waiver request is made at the time of manuscript submission. These policies assure no publishing bias will exist against residents, fellows, or other investigators with little or no research funding.For the first six months, no author charges will apply to any work accepted for publication in We do not require authors to assign their copyright claim to the publisher as a condition of publishing any article. This means that our authors keep the copyright to their article with the freedom to include article components in subsequent published work, to submit the article in full to colleagues, or to include the work in their own homepage(s) without the publisher's prior authorization or permission.Journal of Experimental & Clinical Assisted Reproduction exists for the scientific community to facilitate this scholarly dialogue.With the beginning of a new century of medical research, library privileges and institutional journal holdings will continue to be eclipsed by electronic publishing and unrestricted access to the internet. The publishing revolution made possible by such technology presages a bright future for continued interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers. Against this background, ESS, RMW, and GDP drafted and reviewed the manuscript.


Current journal requirements forcing clinical trials to be registered  are insu


NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation (JNER) is intended to fill this gap and foster cross-fertilizations among these disciplines. By making readily available to clinicians selected studies with potential impact on physical medicine & rehabilitation, JNER is anticipated to foster the development of novel and more effective rehabilitation strategies. Conversely, by presenting clinical problems to a readership of neuroscientists and engineers, JNER is expected to generate innovative work in neuroscience and biomedical engineering with future applications to physical medicine & rehabilitation. JNER will leverage on Open Access as a means to guarantee that its content is readily available to scientists, clinicians, and the general public thus promoting scientific and technological advances that are relevant to rehabilitation. JNER is an Open Access initiative. Open Access assures dissemination to the widest possible audience and is seen by many as essential for publicly funded research. BioMed Central offers an outstanding platform to make JNER possible and allow neuroscientists, biomedical engineers, and clinicians to see their work published in a timely manner and thus make an immediate impact in the field of rehabilitation. JNER will focus on innovative work with higher likelihood of a dramatic impact on rehabilitation. Thus, priority will be given to outstanding and visionary scientific reports, i.e. those proposing exceptionally innovative concepts with great potential in the field.Advances in neuroscience and biomedical engineering deeply affect the clinical practice of physical medicine & rehabilitation. New research findings and engineering tools are continuously made available that have the potential of dramatically enhancing the ability of clinicians to design effective rehabilitation interventions. This quickly evolving research field is difficult to track because related literature appears in a wide range of scientific journals. There is a need for a scientific journal that offers to its readership a forum at the intersection of neuroscience, biomedical engineering, and physical medicine & rehabilitation. The Journal of  During the past decade, we have witnessed profound changes in physical medicine & rehabilitation originated by advances in neuroscience and biomedical engineering. For example, imaging and neurological assessment methods have dramatically improved the management of patients with motor impairments; robotics and artificial muscle research have generated revolutionary concepts in orthotics and prosthetics; and advances in cortical recordings and the understanding of central nervous system mechanisms have changed the way clinicians look at movement disorders. These techniques and others have brought about, and will continue to give rise in the future to, dramatic advances in physical medicine & rehabilitation.Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation (JNER) aims to provide such an outlet, hosting the introduction of new methods and the discussion of their clinical implications, and offering an opportunity to publish, in a timely manner, articles relevant to the cross-fertilization of neuroscience, biomedical engineering, and physical medicine & rehabilitation.As advances in neuroscience and biomedical engineering continue to generate new techniques, with tremendous impact in the field of physical medicine & rehabilitation, it becomes apparent that there is an urgent need for establishing an outlet for the intersection of these three research fields. JNER's editorial board [al board  demonstrJNER's Open Access policy changes the way in which articles are made available to the scientific community. First, all articles become freely and universally accessible online, and so an author's work can be read by anyone at no cost. Second, the authors hold copyright for their work and grant anyone the right to reproduce and disseminate the article, provided that it is correctly cited and no errors are introduced [JNER's articles are archived in PubMed Central [troduced . Third,  Central , the US  Central  in Germa Central  in Franc Central , the NatOpen Access has four broad benefits for science and the general public. First, authors are assured that their work is disseminated to the widest possible audience, given that there are no barriers to access their work. This is accentuated by the authors being free to reproduce and distribute their work, for example by placing it on their institution's website. It has been suggested that free online articles are more highly cited because of their easier availability . Second,JNER will contribute to make the latest advances in neuroscience and biomedical engineering, which have the potential to impact on the clinical practice of physical medicine & rehabilitation, readily available to scientists, clinicians, and the general public. Because of its inherent interdisciplinary nature, JNER will foster further advances in the field thanks to the cross-fertilization among science, technology, and clinical practice. Science and technology are expected to offer new tools to design clinical interventions and, vice versa, clinical problems are anticipated to foster basic research in neuroscience and the development of new technologies. Besides, increased awareness of the way science and technology can improve clinical outcomes will lead to better quality of healthcare in rehabilitation. Changes currently occurring in this field are so dramatic that we expect, in a few years, that modernized rehabilitation inpatient and outpatient units will be completely different from what is the state-of-the-art today. For instance, we envision that continuous monitoring of patient status will be performed via miniature, wireless, wearable sensors which not only allow clinicians to monitor vital signs, but also track motor activities and provide a means to analyze motor patterns associated with recovery. Furthermore, robotic devices will be used to enhance physical therapy, ad hoc protocols will be designed for each patient, and augmented and virtual reality tools will enhance rehabilitation by becoming part of routine exercise protocols.Open Access will increasingly become an accepted way to disseminate information to the scientific community and the public at large. By becoming part of the movement for Open Access, JNER intends to provide a forum for ideas and concepts that could make a difference in physical medicine & rehabilitation by innovating the design of clinical interventions.Open Access to outstanding and visionary scientific reports appears to be a tremendous tool to increase the speed at which clinical practice changes as a result of advances in neuroscience and biomedical engineering. By prioritizing outstanding and visionary publications, JNER is free for the first 6 months following the launch of the journal. Manuscripts submitted after this period will be subject to an article-processing charge on acceptance. Waiver requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis, by the Editor-in-Chief. Authors can circumvent the charge by getting their institution to become a 'member' of BioMed Central, whereby the annual membership fee covers the article processing charges for authors publishing in any of the BioMed Central journals. Current members include NHS England, the World Health Organization, the US National Institutes of Health, Harvard, Princeton and Yale universities, and all UK universities [Publication in ersities . No charersities .JNER's editorial board will be solely used to further promote the journal and to continuously increase the scientific quality of JNER's articles.The article-processing charges pay for efficient and thorough peer review, for the article to be freely and universally accessible in various formats online, and for the processes required for inclusion in PubMed and archiving in PubMed Central, e-Depot, Potsdam and INIST. Funding available to JNER to high quality, prioritizing visionary work, and focusing on research that has the potential of a great impact on physical medicine & rehabilitation. Forthcoming articles will further prove such commitment. Topics of interest to come in the next few months are virtual and augmented reality in rehabilitation, wearable technology in rehabilitation, methods for the analysis of movement, and robotics applied to rehabilitation. These are all topics of great relevance for the research at the intersection of neuroscience, biomedical engineering, and physical medicine & rehabilitation.The first articles published in the journal demonstrate the commitment of JNER as well as to the authors who submit their manuscripts in the future and support our journal and the Open Access initiative. Members of the editorial board and reviewers have done some excellent work; special thanks to them and the Managing Editor, Sara Midwood, for their contributions to JNER.Special thanks to the authors of the first articles published in


Journal of Neuroinflammation is an Open Access, online journal published by BioMed Central. Open Access publishing provides instant and universal availability of published work to any potential reader, worldwide, completely free of subscriptions, passwords, and charges. Further, authors retain copyright for their work, facilitating its dissemination. Open Access publishing is made possible by article-processing charges assessed "on the front end" to authors, their institutions, or their funding agencies. Beginning November 1, 2004, the Journal of Neuroinflammation will introduce article-processing charges of around US$525 for accepted articles. This charge will be waived for authors from institutions that are BioMed Central members, and in additional cases for reasons of genuine financial hardship. These article-processing charges pay for an electronic submission process that facilitates efficient and thorough peer review, for publication costs involved in providing the article freely and universally accessible in various formats online, and for the processes required for the article's inclusion in PubMed and its archiving in PubMed Central, e-Depot, Potsdam and INIST. There is no remuneration of any kind provided to the Editors-in-Chief, to any members of the Editorial Board, or to peer reviewers; all of whose work is entirely voluntary. Our article-processing charge is less than charges frequently levied by traditional journals: the Journal of Neuroinflammation does not levy any additional page or color charges on top of this fee, and there are no reprint costs as publication-quality pdf files are provided, free, for distribution in lieu of reprints. Our article-processing charge will enable full, immediate, and continued Open Access for all work published in Journal of Neuroinflammation. The benefits from such Open Access will accrue to readers, through unrestricted access; to authors, through the widest possible dissemination of their work; and to science and society in general, through facilitation of information availability and scientific advancement. Journal of Neuroinflammation is an Open Access, online journal that is published by BioMed Central, an independent publisher committed to Open Access for peer-reviewed biomedical research [Journal of Neuroinflammation. Open Access publishing is made possible by article-processing charges (APCs) assessed "on the front end" to authors, their institutions, or their funding agencies. The Journal of Neuroinflammation will introduce APCs of around US$525 per article for manuscripts submitted on or after November 1, 2004. This charge will be waived for all authors from institutions that are BioMed Central members, and in additional cases for reasons of genuine financial hardship.research . Among tTraditional journals generally do not charge authors for publication . Instead, article access is traditionally paid for by readers, either through subscriptions or through fees assessed for online viewing and downloading. Over the past decade, escalating journal subscriptions have resulted in cash-strapped libraries cancelling journal subscriptions , thus liJournal of Neuroinflammation's Open Access policy changes the way in which articles are published. First, all articles become freely and universally accessible online, immediately upon acceptance, so an author's work can be read by anyone at no cost. Second, the article authors retain copyright for their work, and grant to anyone the right to reproduce and disseminate the article, provided that it is correctly cited and no errors are introduced [Journal of Neuroinflammation's articles are permanently archived in PubMed Central [The troduced . Third,  Central , the US  Central  in Germa Central  in Franc Central , the NatOpen Access has four broad benefits for science and the general public. First, published work is disseminated freely and instantly to the widest possible audience, without barriers to access. Authors are free to reproduce and distribute their work at will, for example by placing it on their institution's website. Open Access publication has been shown to actually increase article citations and impact because of this easier availability . Second,Journal of Neuroinflammation. Authors will be asked to pay around US$525 upon acceptance of their article for publication. Submitted articles that are not accepted will incur no charge. There will be no charges for authors from institutions that are institutional members of BioMed Central. Currently this includes NHS England and all universities in the UK, the US National Institutes of Health and 136 other institutions and universities in the USA, the World Health Organization, and almost 200 additional institutions in 37 other countries [Article-processing charges will allow continued Open Access to all article published in ountries . Potentiountries . FinallyJournal of Neuroinflammation does not levy any additional page or color charges on top of this fee. Because we are an online-only journal, any number of color figures, photographs, and 'extra' pages can be included at no extra cost. Such color and page charges, as assessed by more traditional journals, can easily exceed our flat US$525 per-article APC. Another common expense with traditional journals is the purchase of reprints for distribution, and the cost of these reprints is also frequently greater than our APCs. The Journal of Neuroinflammation provides free, publication-quality pdf files for distribution, in lieu of reprints.The APC pays for an electronic submission process that facilitates efficient and thorough peer review, for publication costs involved in providing the article freely and universally accessible in various formats online, and for the processes required for the article's inclusion in PubMed and its archiving in PubMed Central, e-Depot, Potsdam and INIST. There is no remuneration of any kind provided to the Editors-in-Chief, to any members of the editorial board, or to peer reviewers; all of whose work is entirely voluntary. Although some authors may consider US$525 expensive, it must be remembered that British Medical Journal, for instance, recently announced that it cannot continue to provide free access to its website [Several traditional journals now offer free access to their articles online, but this is different from Open Access as defined by the Bethesda Statement . First,  website . They ar website .Journal of Neuroinflammation. The USA-based Public Library of Science (PLoS) is a new, non-profit organization that, like BioMed Central, is dedicated to online, Open Access publishing. PLoS has started two new Open Access journals, with APCs of US$1500 for each accepted article [APC-funded Open Access is not unique to BioMed Central or to the  article . PLoS ha article , providiJournal of Neuroinflammation. The benefits from such Open Access will accrue to readers, through unrestricted access; to authors, through the widest possible dissemination of their work; and to science and society in general, through facilitation of information availability and scientific advancement. We ask for your support in this important movement by submitting your next article to Journal of Neuroinflammation or to another Open Access journal.Article-processing charges will enable full, immediate, and continued Open Access for all work published in At Journal of Neuroinflammation, the work of the Editors-in-Chief, the Editorial Board, and of all invited outside peer reviewers is entirely voluntary, without tangible remuneration of any kind. Our goal is publication of biomedical research of the highest quality, and our (intangible) rewards lie in the achievement of these goals. Decisions about manuscripts are based entirely on the quality of the work, and not on the ability of authors to pay article-processing charges.APC = article-processing charge.


It is widely acknowledged that there is a global divide on health care and health research known as the 10/90 divide.A retrospective survey of articles published in the BMJ, Lancet, NEJM, Annals of Internal Medicine & JAMA in a calendar year to examine the contribution of the developing world to medical literature. We categorized countries into four regions: UK, USA, Other Euro-American countries (OEAC) and (RoW). OEAC were European countries other than the UK but including Australia, New Zealand and Canada. RoW comprised all other countries.The average contribution of the RoW to the research literature in the five journals was 6.5%. In the two British journals 7.6% of the articles were from the RoW; in the three American journals 4.8% of articles were from RoW. The highest proportion of papers from the RoW was in the Lancet (12%). An analysis of the authorship of 151 articles from RoW showed that 104 (68.9%) involved authorship with developed countries in Europe or North America. There were 15 original papers in these journals with data from RoW but without any authors from RoW.There is a marked under-representation of countries in high-impact general medical journals. The ethical implications of this inequity and ways of reducing it are discussed. National and international bodies concerned with research ethics need to confront the greatest ethical challenge-the enormous inequities in global health research . Thus, lThe aim of this study is to investigate the publication bias beyond the field of psychiatry to determine the overall contribution of different regions of the world to the medical literature published in high-impact journals and, in particular, to quantify the developing world's contribution.The method used is the same as that which was used by two of the authors (AS and VP) in a recent survey of the international representation in the psychiatric literature . A retroFor the allocation of regions of the world, we categorized countries into four regions: UK, USA, OEAC (Other Euro-American countries) and RoW (Rest of the World). OEAC were European countries other than the UK but including Australia, New Zealand and Canada. RoW comprised all other countries including Eastern Europe, Central and South America, Asia and Africa. We scrutinized each article to examine the country of the authors' affiliation address with a view to categorizing them into relevant regions of the world. All authors were noted including multiple authors in large multi-center studies. We also scrutinized the methods section of all the original articles to ascertain the origin of data with special emphasis on whether the research was carried out in RoW countries. The affiliation of the first, last and corresponding authors was also noted. We worked with a negative bias against the USA and the UK from where the journals originated. Therefore articles, which included authors from the RoW, were considered as arising from the RoW even if the first author is from the UK, USA or OEAC. Similarly, articles from the OEAC, which involved collaborations from the UK or USA, were included in the OEAC category. In the event of a collaborative study between the USA and the UK, the allocation to region was based on the institutional affiliation of the first author. The RoW category included collaborative studies between any country in the RoW and developed nations.In some cases the origin of the author was difficult, particularly when there were two places named as their attached institutions. For an example when one was in USA while the other is in Kenya. We used our best guess in these instances. For an example the two authors AS and VP in this paper were based in RoW at the time we did this research but were employed in UK but with strong affiliations to the RoW countries where they were born and did their research. Attempts to analyse the nationality of the authors was therefore abandoned.The contribution of the RoW to the research literature surveyed in these five high-impact journals was 6.5%. In the two British journals, 7.6% of the articles were from the RoW, whilst the proportion in the three American journals was 4.8%. This averages hides the fact that there is considerable variation between journals; thus, around 3.5% of articles in the two journals of national medical associations of the UK (BMJ) and USA (JAMA) were from the RoW as compared to 12% in the Lancet articles  while the proportion of articles from the USA was highest in the three journals published in the USA. Table There were 118 original papers with at least one author from the RoW. Forty-five (38%) of them had a first author from the RoW; 32 (27%) had a last author from the RoW; and 36 (30%) had a corresponding author from the RoW. Only 25 (21%) of them had first, last and corresponding authors all from the RoW. There were 15 original papers in these journals with data from the RoW but without any authors from the RoW; of these 15, nine were in Lancet, four in BMJ and one each in JAMA and NEJM. Thus, the majority of the original articles originating from the RoW had contribution from the developed world authors.This study presents findings of a survey of articles published in five high-impact general medical journals with the objective of describing the developing world's contribution to research literature over a single calendar year.Our way of classifying countries into developed  and developing countries (RoW) has obvious inadequacies but we followed the same method adopted in an earlier paper . Other eThe key finding of our survey is that, only 6.5% of the publications in these journals have authors from countries where 90% of the world's population lives. There is a severe under representation of biomedical research from a vast section of the world in these five journals. In addition, there are a small but significant number of articles with data from the developing world without a single author from these countries. This is a troublesome finding that some would refer as 'safari research'. It is a separate ethical issue and journal editors need to look at it carefully.The reasons for under representation of researchers based in developing countries may include research barriers such as lack of funding, poor facilities, limited technical support and inadequate training. Many researchers from developing countries do not speak English as their first language. Fear of rejection by the journals, uncertainty about which journal would be best to publish research, a lack of the culture of publication, competing clinical commitments, different ministry and donor driven agendas for research, are some of the unseen barriers facing developing country researchers (10). The editors of leading medical journals may not have paid sufficient attention to these barriers, real and perceived, that clinical researcher in developing countries face .We acknowledge that many developing country researchers choose to publish their work in national or regional journals that are not as high-impact as the journals we have reviewed. However, many researchers, irrespective of the country of their origin, also prefer to publish their work in journals with a high impact factor and circulation. This, inevitably, leads to a focus on leading journals published from the UK or USA. However, journals may be under some pressure to publish material, which is relevant to the majority of their readership. Thus, it is not surprising that journals from the UK have the majority of articles from UK institutions and similarly, journals from the USA tend to have most of their articles from US institutions. The BMJ admits that although the BMJ aspires to be more international, they cannot forget that they reach 80% doctors in Britain . HoweverOur findings are in agreement with other published findings in this area . In a stThere are many reasons to strive for a more just international distribution of biomedical research in leading journals. The burden of disease in the world falls heavily on developing countries and the pattern of this burden is likely to change in the next twenty years. Diseases like TB, HIV, Malaria, Dengue, and viral hemorrhagic fevers are now no longer tropical with increase in international travel, global warming, refugees, economic and military intervention and conflicts. Newly emerging infections from tropics such as SARS and bird flu can have devastating effects far away from tropics. In addition, diseases such as diabetes and obesity can no longer be considered as diseases in the developed world. As the impact and burden of these diseases are more in developing countries more research publications are needed from South.Clinicians and policy makers in many developing countries have limited access to international journals because medical libraries often need to make a choice from a number of journals due to financial constraints. Often, it is the high-impact journal, which is subscribed to. Thus, the proportion of international representation in these leading journals may be a crucial factor in influencing health policies in many countries. The importance of research goes well beyond its impact on health policies . Thus, rProviding free journals electronically to the developing countries is a commendable step in correcting the thirst for new information . HoweverUltimately, we believe that strengthening the health research capacity in developing world and providing reasonable opportunities for publications arising from the developing world are critical, not only for achieving biomedical research publication equity, but also advancing medical science.We would like to state here that our conflict of interest if at all would be due to the fact that we come from the developing world.All authors were involved in all the components of this paper, right from the start, in formulating and developing the idea, collecting the data, drafting the first version and revising it and approving the final version.The pre-publication history for this paper can be accessed here:


CytoJournal! We would like to introduce you to your journal, one that is run by and for the scientific cytopathology community with incontestable benefits of Open Access, and support from Cytopathology Foundation, Inc. CytoJournal is a peer-reviewed, PubMed indexed, online journal, publishing research in the field of cytopathology and related areas, with world wide free access. Authors submitting to CytoJournal retain the copyright to their hard earned work.Welcome to  CytoJournal is a peer-reviewed cytopathology journal is owned and supported by Cytopathology Fondation, Inc.  It is a PubMed indexed, online journal, publishing research in the field of cytopathology and related areas with world wide free access. Authors submitting to CytoJournal retain the copyright to their hard earned work.Welcome to CytoJournal One could argue whether we need more journals in cytopathology, but without a shadow of doubt there is a global need for greater access to scientific information in this field. As an Open Access journal CytoJournal will meet this need, by removing subscription barriers.Communication in general has been revolutionized in the last decade. With the emergence of the internet, entire libraries of scientific information are potentially just a mouse click away. Open Access to quality controlled, scientific information to the general public and scientific community alike is extremely valuable for harvesting the fruits of hard work by academicians.However, to date little has been done to realize the potential of this technological revolution. It is now affordable to make our hard earned scientific information available to a much wider audience. Millions of students, teachers, physicians, scientists, general public, and other potential readers can have free access to the gold mine of this scientific information.The traditional model for journal publication has performed an admirable job of disseminating research and advancing science. Unfortunately, it neither can fully utilize recent technology nor extend its benefits to the scientific community and the general public. Principally, why should scientific information generated by academicians and published without charge, not be freely available? Giving away the copyrights to the original research reports and then paying for access of the same material is paradoxically anachronistic.CytoJournal with increasing support to open access philosophy by some of the existing leading journals.With the advent of the internet and image digitization, the time has come for the development and implementation of a new model – a model beneficial to the scientific community and general public, alike. The recent adoption of an Open Access model by the Public Library of Science (PLoS)  and its The benefits of an online journal can include rapid turnaround time, real time publication, significant cost savings, and a reduction in the environmental burden engendered in the production and disposal of a print publication. Presumably in the future, the majority of research publications will be of this type .Free flow of scientific information is crucial for advancements in diagnosis and management of diseases in both the developed and developing world. Simply providing a conduit of information is not enough. There is one matter involving the human element that must be dealt with – peer review. We do not see a future where authors post their manuscripts on the web without peer-review. Science requires that publications be properly vetted (peer-reviewed) and experimental findings logically presented.In brief, standards must be maintained! This critical role is played by peer review. Acting on behalf of the scientific community, it is peer review that helps the scientific community distinguish between legitimate scientific work and quackery -7. Thus,The peer-review process at CytoJournal combines the expertise of both professional editors, who are available to survey the broad landscape of cytopathology, and academic editors, who understand deeply the strengths and limitations of their specific area of research. Every article that is published in CytoJournal will be reviewed carefully by selected reviewers, in addition to evaluation by a managing/academic editor and professional editor, who work together throughout the editorial process. A summary of your peer review process is illustrated in Figure CytoJournal's Open Access policy changes the way in which articles are published. First, all articles become freely and universally accessible online, and so an author's work can be read by anyone, free of charge. Second, the authors hold copyright for their work and grant anyone the right to reproduce and disseminate the article, provided that it is correctly cited and no errors are introduced [CytoJournal's articles are archived in PubMed Central [troduced . Third,  Central , the US  Central  in Germa Central  in Franc Central .Open Access has four broad benefits for science and the general public. First, authors are assured that their work is disseminated to the widest possible audience, given that there are no barriers to their work. This is accentuated by the authors being free to reproduce and distribute their work, for example by placing it on their institution's website. It has been suggested that free online articles are more highly cited because of their easier availability . Second,Open Access facilitates the transformation of scientific literature from rows of printed journals on library shelves to an instantly searchable archive of data. Liberating scientific literature from the vestiges of paper publication introduces the potential of various opportunities such as navigating, integrating, mining, annotating, and mapping connections in the high-dimensional space of scientific knowledge.CytoJournal will use a new business model. Our editorial expenses  will be supported by corporate sponsors through Cytopathology Foundation, Inc.  and honorary pro bono services by the academicians (Figure To provide Open Access, s Figure . The pubCytoJournal and it's editorial and publication decisions. However, they will be acknowledged and their links will be displayed on the home page of CytoJournal as a thank you note.Our sponsors do not influence in any way the content of . We never want our publication charges to be a barrier to publication and are committed to publishing any manuscript that our editors and reviewers deem to be appropriate for the journal; we will treat the costs of handling these papers as a fundamental expense of running a high-quality journal through support from Cytopathology Foundation Inc.We understand that there are many scientists who might wish to publish in our journal but do not have access to grant funds or institutional support. For such authors, a decision can be made by the Editors-in-Chief to waive publication fees. Furthermore, the fee will automatically be waived for authors from institutes that are members of BioMed Central CytoJournal is your journal and you can lead the way. However, we have to face and overcome a few traditional obstacles. First, an unfamiliarity to the Open Access model. Second, lack of the benefits of an established "brand name" aura. Because of this, despite stringent standards and an extraordinary editorial team, CytoJournal may have an uphill task.CytoJournal. Other individuals and organizations  have also provided generous and welcome support. The start-up support made it possible to assemble an outstanding editorial board and staff, who have accomplished an extraordinary feat of launching this new premiere journal in cytopathology.Private foundations with a commitment to science and education have contributed generously to the cause. Like any new business, Cytopathology Foundation Inc. needed to raise funds to cover our startup costs. Initial support from Cytopathology Foundation Inc. and the publisher, BioMed Central, has enabled us to launch CytoJournal. In the end, it is the contributions by authors like you that will make CytoJournal a collective success. We encourage you to participate in the future of CytoJournal by reading, citing, submitting manuscript, sending any suggestions, and joining the panel of core reviewers.We wish to thank and applaud the efforts and spirit of the pioneering authors who chose to send their articles to Cytojournal  for your quick reference! You may also link CytoJournal web site or recommend its linking through various other web sites.Bookmark the home page of


Rostatus quo of traditional publishing paradigms [Biomedical Digital Libraries.Biomedical scientific communities increasingly articulate concern about the unsustainable aradigms , feedingaradigms . SeizingWhile traditional biomedical library concern revolves around the role of collection stewardship and delivering published knowledge to students, scholars, researchers, and clinicians, information professionals in library or information center settings are also concerned with the cultivation of their own knowledge domains and evidence-based library practice ,5. PerhaOpen access scientific literature arrived in several pre-print guises over the previous two decades and in a recent contemporary commercial model with BioMed Central  (BMC). SBMC now has 425 institutional members in 40 countries . ResearcBiomedical Digital Libraries is the conviction that open access will push biomedical librarianship forward in new and improved ways. Biomedical Digital Libraries provides a legitimate alternative to traditional specialty journals in the field, which have subscription fees and assumption of copyright by the publisher. This journal will stress peer-reviewed open access to research and practice in digital collection and services settings and will permit rapid and unimpeded dissemination of knowledge, only weeks after manuscript submission. Over 30 information professionals and biomedical scholars will be engaged as editorial staff to conduct blinded peer review reports for original research, as well as integrate commentaries, resource reviews, and debates into a forum for the discussion of unique considerations of biomedical information needs. These include both opportunities and constraints presented by health care settings, including collaborative initiatives with information technology and informatics partners.The decision to found a BMC journal for the world of organized biomedical information was both spontaneous and practical. At the core of the founding of Biomedical Digital Libraries. Beyond our immediate narrow spheres of digital library practice and service, the community of open knowledge has the immediate and timely potential to inspire, inform, and create value on a global scale through permanent, uninhibited access.We hope the advocates, philosophers, caretakers, and architects of biomedical library digital content take immediate advantage of rapid peer-review and publication, extensive BMC content promotion, permanent URL, redundant public archiving, and retention of copyright when they submit to Some seek good in authority, others in scientific research, others in pleasure. Others, who are in fact nearer the truth, have considered it necessary that the universal good, which all men desire, should not consist in any of the particular things which can only be possessed by one man, and which, when shared, afflict their possessor more by the want of the part he has not, than they please him by the possession of what he has. They have learned that the true good should be such as all can possess at once, without diminution and without envy, and which no one can lose against his will .– Blaise Pascal(1623–1662)


Primary scientific and medical literature is written for academic communities and the public good -- so should be governed by copyright licenses that permit the full range of uses that could benefit stakeholders in research. This is the third installment in a series of editorials on the implications of open-access publishing for established publishing practices and stakeholders in scientific and medical research.The questions, tensions, and social concerns surrounding copyright and the Internet are very different for scientific and medical literature than for other kinds of easily reproducible digital works. Peer-reviewed publications are often the sole tangible products of the tremendously time-consuming and expensive process of conducting primary research in biology and medicine. Who should own the primary research articles that are the culmination of years of work by scientists and staggering financial investments by governments, universities, and tax-exempt foundations? What uses should the documents' owners permit?In practice, academic authors typically assign full copyrights to their articles to the publishers of the journals in which the works appear. Scientists do not benefit financially from the transaction; indeed, they often subsidize the cost of their articles' publication in the form of page charges, color charges, and other fees levied by publishers. The prestige associated with publishing in a selective journal is sufficiently valuable that scientists are generally willing to abdicate the legal rights to their own work without remuneration.www.creativecommons.org), for example, allow copyright holders to mark their work with freedoms—to permit a work's reproduction for any noncommercial purpose  or for any purpose at all provided that the original authorship is properly attributed (the Attribution License).In recent years, however, several technological and legal innovations have led a growing number of scientists to begin to question the sagacity of this arrangement. The advent of electronic publishing and the Internet itself have made technically possible a slew of novel uses of primary research papers. Simultaneously, the traditional “all rights reserved” copyright license has been supplemented by a variety of alternative licenses—of equal legal validity and available at no charge to anyone who wants them—that allow copyright holders to prevent some uses of a work without permission, but to authorize others. Different licenses created by the nonprofit organization Creative Commons  When a document is “freely available,” someone who comes across it may be permitted to do nothing more than read it online on a publisher's Web site; the right to use the article in any other way is typically granted only at the publisher's discretion. When a document is open access, however, a wide range of additional uses are perpetually and irrevocably allowed— from the reproduction and distribution of the paper by a professor for his or her students to the archiving of the paper in a searchable online repository available to anyone in the world with an Internet connection, and more.One implication of the variety of copyright licenses now widely available is that the right to use an article in one way or another is largely independent of its accessibility online. A paper that is touted as “freely available” or “free access” is very different from one that is “open access.” . The CCAL also ensures that institutions are permitted to archive not only articles written by their own faculty, but all other works published under the same legal terms as well, thereby facilitating their permanent accessibility and preservation. For example, the LOCKSS (“Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe”) program (http://lockss.stanford.edu/projectdescbrief.htm), an ongoing project to support libraries' efforts to “create, preserve, and archive local electronic collections,” is viable only insofar as institutions are permitted to store information themselves, rather than access it exclusively via publishers' Web sites. Many collaborative projects between libraries and publishers have been complicated by legal constraints, including the stipulation that archives remain “dark,” or inaccessible to users, until any commercial incentive for restricting access to articles has been exhausted—clearly a suboptimal arrangement for researchers, and one that is unnecessary for collections of works governed by the CCAL.The Creative Commons Attribution License (CCAL), which governs this editorial and all other content in One of the truly revolutionary implications of open-access articles, however, is that we simply do not know the full range of their potential applications. They are available for any use that any entrepreneur can envision, so long as the authors of the papers are properly credited. The only certainty, then, is that the utility of open-access research articles will be limited solely by the imagination of those that are inspired by the possibilities—rather than by legal constraints.PLoS Biology and license their works under nonexclusive terms that reserve only some—rather than all—rights. There are several common objections, generally leveled by publishers, against this practice. For example, it is sometimes argued that the traditional copyright arrangement in scientific publishing protects against uses of articles that authors would object to—while the CCAL permits such uses and renders authors helpless to prevent them.Authors retain the copyright to all articles in To the extent that the uses in question are for academic or archival purposes, such as those discussed above, it is certainly true that the CCAL permits practices that “all rights reserved” licenses do not. Indeed, the expanded range of legitimate academic uses of articles is among the primary selling points of the CCAL in the context of scientific publishing. To the extent that the ostensibly objectionable uses are commercial, the problem is easily remedied with the Creative Commons Noncommercial License, which prohibits commercial reuse of a work without the copyright holder's consent.PLoS has chosen, for reasons both philosophical and pragmatic, to permit the commercial use of works we publish. As a matter of principle, all of our policies reflect the view that scientific publishers are service providers and should not themselves restrict the potential applications of the largely publicly funded work in their journals. More concretely, if a commercial enterprise is interested in repackaging the articles that PLoS has published, we are loath to prevent an author's work from wider distribution. Any risk that a company will use an article for a purpose its author would be uncomfortable with is, in our view, substantially outweighed by the benefits of allowing—not on a case-by-case basis, but across the board—the reproduction of the article for inclusion in online encyclopedias, or for distribution in countries in which Internet access is unreliable, or, indeed, for creative uses we hope to inspire by making primary research articles legally available to commercial interests.Another recurring objection to the copyright arrangement that PLoS employs is that authors are inappropriate copyright holders because they are ill-equipped to protect their own works against plagiarism, misattribution, and other misuse. Most scientists, however, have enough familiarity with cases of plagiarism in their own field to know that their strongest protection against mis- or nonattribution is derived not from the threat of prosecution for copyright infringement, but from community standards of conduct. Furthermore, among the benefits of open-access articles is the fact that their full texts, rather than just their abstracts, are searchable—which, as any teacher knows, makes plagiarism much easier to detect.Beyond plagiarism and misattribution, it is not clear what uses of primary research articles authors would actually want to prevent . Scientists do not receive royalties for their published work. The more widely their articles are read and cited, the more their professional reputations are bolstered. Certainly, research articles have a wide range of uses that publishers typically object to— and indeed often file suit over—such as their compilation in coursepacks by copy shops. Those applications, however, tend not to constitute “misuse” in many authors' eyes.There is no question that the licensing arrangement PLoS employs is relatively novel—and therefore untested over the long term—in biomedical publishing. However, it hardly takes a radical understanding of the interests of authors and users of primary research articles to conclude that the open-access terms of copyright promise substantial benefits for both groups.What, then, can scientists do to encourage other publishers to follow suit and strike similar legal arrangements with authors as a matter of course? One answer is to “vote with your submissions;” that is, authors should submit their work preferentially to journals with copyright and licensing practices that genuinely serve their interests. Another equally important action for scientists is to raise the issue with their professional societies. Scholarly associations exist, among other reasons, to serve the needs of their members—and society members should actively urge their society journals to employ the CCAL or a similar license for their research articles.Scientific and medical literature is different from fiction or movies or music. The United States government invests more than $28 billion per year in the National Institutes of Health alone to fund research in biology and medicine. The scientists who conduct that research and the research paid for by other public-minded institutions in the United States and abroad have an affirmative moral obligation to share the knowledge they create—not just with students and faculty at elite Western universities, but with everyone who could use it and build upon it. When authors publish their work in journals with restrictive copyright practices, it becomes illegal (often for even the authors themselves) to store primary research articles in many archives or include them in coursepacks or use them for other responsible purposes. Those obstacles to sharing knowledge can be avoided without legislative intervention, however, if scientists and publishers alike embrace a legal paradigm for disseminating new discoveries that maximizes their utility.