The Journal of Biological Chemistry welcomes high-quality science that seeks to elucidate the molecular and cellular basis of biological processes. Papers published in JBC can therefore fall under the umbrellas of not only biological chemistry, chemical biology, or biochemistry, but also allied disciplines such as biophysics, systems biology, RNA biology, immunology, microbiology, neurobiology, epigenetics, computational biology, ’omics, and many more. The outcome of our focus on papers that contribute novel and important mechanistic insights, rather than on a particular topic area, is that JBC is truly a melting pot for scientists across disciplines. In addition, JBC welcomes papers that describe methods that will help scientists push their biochemical inquiries forward and resources that will be of use to the research community. Learn more about JBC’s scope here.

Beyond the consideration of any one particular article, our mission as a journal is to bring significant, enduring research to the scientific community. We believe it is our responsibility to safeguard the research we publish by providing high-quality review and maintaining strict standards on data presentation and deposition. It is our goal to help scientists disclose their findings in the most efficient and effective way possible by keeping review times short, providing editorial feedback on manuscript text and promoting papers after publication. It is our aspiration to facilitate scientific discovery in new ways by exploring new technologies and forging new partnerships. Please read more at jbc.org/mission.

The heart of this mission is the publication of original research in the form of Articles and Accelerated Communications, a subset of JBC’s articles that succinctly report particularly compelling advances across biological chemistry. Some JBC papers are also selected as Editors’ Picks, which represent top content in the journal and are highlighted with additional coverage. The journal publishes JBC Reviews to keep readers up to speed with the latest advances across diverse scientific topics; Thematic Series are collections of reviews that cover multiple aspects of a particular field. JBC also publishes Editorials and eLetters to facilitate communication within the biological chemistry community, Meeting Reports to discuss findings presented at conferences, Virtual Issues to help readers find collections of papers on their favorite topics, and Classics and Reflections that honor the papers and people that have shaped scientific progress. Find more information and instructions about these content types here. Finally, JBC administers an award program established in honor of Herbert Tabor, JBC’s editor-in-chief from 1971-2012.

The review process at JBC relies predominantly on editorial board members who have been vetted and appointed by the editor-in-chief and associate editors. Our editorial board members undergo a comprehensive training process to make our reviews as consistent, thoughtful and fair as possible for our authors.

The author versions of accepted research papers and JBC Reviews are posted and freely available within 24 hours of acceptance as Papers in Press. All other content (Editorials, Editors’ Picks Highlights, etc.) appears only in our weekly issues, where it is also freely available. The redacted version of research articles may also be made freely available through our Author’s Choice option.

JBC is owned and published by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.