Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology – Choose an exciting venture for the scientific future

Abstract

The Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology (RB&E) journal was established by devoted reproductive scientists from around the world during the spring of 2002 in response to the gap in electronic publishing in this field among the journals associated with BioMed Central, London, United Kingdom (http://www.biomedcentral.com), and elsewhere. I am proud of being the initiator of the birth of our journal and have had the honor of being elected Editor-in-Chief by board members. Between the time of the birth of the journal and its launching, the RB&E Editorial Board, in cooperation with our publisher, BioMed Central, gradually developed important aspects of the journal's scope and peer review policy, and other rules required for the successful launch of this revolutionary journal. Prior to its launch, the RB&E already had 20 research articles to be published. They were contributed by board members and other scientists, and have passed the two- or three-step process of peer review by three experts in the field. Additional manuscripts are under review/re-review or pending resubmission, and several have been rejected. Yet, such is our principal rule – only good science will be distributed globally. Our peer-review policy is that the reviewer's comments provide constructive criticism with the intent to help the authors improve their manuscript. These are exciting times for revolution in scientific communication through electronic journals. Emerging electronic journals are the basis for the purely electronic distribution of scientific publications in the future. Just imagine no book shelves and mountains of unorganized reprints, no work nights or secretaries required to organize and search for articles of interest. Yet, this will become reality in the very near future for most active scientists. To do science without a web connection is not imaginable nowadays, and most 'top ranked' conventional journals offer web access to recent publications and to less or more distant archives. However, not everyone has the luxury of full access through a University or his/her prepaid subscription, or can afford to pay $35 per electronic reprint. Hence, the traditional journals develop electronic scientific communication through resources from individual subscribers and private and state owned Institutions, page charges from authors, and charges for color illustrations. Altogether, the conventional science publishing industry limits access to scientific contributions to scientists in developed countries while, in many cases, leaving the rest of the world unattended. In launching the new RB&E electronic journal that aspires to join the 'top tier' of reproductive science and reproductive medicine publications, we have chosen an approach that differs noticeably from traditional journals in several ways. The most important journal rules follow: