WASHINGTON, DC – May 18, 2010 -- The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) today launched the inaugural issue of mBio™, a new open access online journal designed to make microbiology research broadly accessible. The focus of the journal is on rapid publication of cutting-edge research spanning the entire spectrum of microbiology and related fields.
"The microbial world is a highly interconnected one in which microbes interact with living and nonliving matter to produce outcomes that range from symbiosis to pathogenesis, energy acquisition and conversion, climate change, geologic change, food and drug production, and even animal behavioral change. The goal for mBio™ is to publish the very best science in microbiology for all individuals interested in any aspect of the microbial world," says Editor in Chief Arturo Casadevall. Casadevall is the Leo and Julia Forchheimer Professor and Chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York
Among the articles being published in the inaugural issue:
- A new influenza vaccine strategy represents a significant step towards a universal influenza vaccine
- A perspective article on the move towards universal vaccines for other diseases
- The simple sari worn by women on the Subcontinent protects families and neighbors from cholera
- Nearly 1 in 5 infections with the life threatening fungus Cryptococcus neoformans is caused by multiple strains.
- Will global warming bring new fungal diseases for mammals?
The inaugural issue of mBio™ can be found online at http://mbio.asm.org beginning Tuesday, May 18, 2010. As new articles are finalized they will be posted to the website weekly and will be archived as monthly issues. Readers can also follow the publication via its blog, RSS feeds, Twitter stream and Facebook page, all accessible from the main homepage.
One unique feature of mBio™ is every published research article will be accompanied by a brief non-technical summary written by the author in language that conveys the importance of the work to non-specialists in that area of research.
A new term "ASM Access™" has been coined to reference mBio™'s particular definition of Open Access, which otherwise varies among scientific publications. Full text of mBio™ articles and supplemental materials are accessible by the public immediately upon publication. Full text of mBio™ articles also will be deposited in PubMed Central with access immediately upon publication. mBio™ authors are asked to sign a licensing agreement granting publishing rights to ASM and permitting unrestricted non-commercial reuse by others.
ASM journals have long been recognized as important venues for dissemination of significant, high-quality microbiological research. The launch of mBio™ will complement the excellence of ASM's 9 specialized primary research journals. Like the rest of the ASM journals program, mBio™ will also be hosted on the HighWire platform at http://journals.asm.org.
The American Society for Microbiology, headquartered in Washington, D.C., is the largest single life science association, with 40,000 members worldwide. Its members work in educational, research, industrial, and government settings on issues such as the environment, the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, laboratory and diagnostic medicine, and food and water safety. The ASM's mission is to gain a better understanding of basic life processes and to promote the application of this knowledge for improved health and economic and environmental well-being.
Journal
mBio