Aims and scope of journal
Sample issue
Editors and contact information
Relationship to other nature journals
Editorial and publishing policies
Impact factor
Abbreviation
ISSN and EISSN
Further editorial information
 The entire guide for authors and referees is available in PDF format.
AIMS AND SCOPE OF JOURNAL
Nature Methods is a forum for the publication of novel methods and significant improvements to tried-and-tested techniques in the life sciences and related area of chemistry. This monthly publication is aimed at a broad, interdisciplinary audience of academic and industry researchers actively involved in laboratory practice. It provides them with new tools to conduct their research and places a strong emphasis on the immediate practical relevance of the work presented.
The journal publishes primary research papers as well as overviews of recent technical and methodological developments, and detailed descriptions of important established methods. We are actively seeking primary method papers of relevance to the biological and biomedical sciences, including methods grounded in chemistry that have a practical application to the study of biological problems.
To enhance the practical relevance of each paper, description of the method must be accompanied by its validation, its application to an important biological question and results illustrating its performance in comparison to available approaches. Articles are selected for publication that present broad interest, thorough assessments of methodological performance and comprehensive technical descriptions that facilitate immediate application.
Specific areas of interest include but are not limited to:
- Recombinant DNA and protein technologies
- Construction and screening of libraries and arrays of nucleic acids, proteins and chemical compounds
Microarrays, display techniques, combinatorial chemistry, lab-on-a-chip technologies
- Isolation, purification and detection of biological molecules
Separation techniques, chromatography, chiral separation, labeling, epitope tagging, amplification of nucleic acids, single molecule detection and characterization
- Methods for analysis of structure and function of biological molecules
Molecular structure determination, mass spectrometry, binding assays, sequencing, detection of post-translational modifications, mutagenesis, chemical tagging of biomolecules
- Techniques of analysis and manipulation of gene expression
Gene targeting, transduction, RNA interference
- Methods for cell culture
- Imaging and probing technologies
Microscopy, optical spectroscopy, histology, labeling, hybridization techniques, probe scanning, chemical tagging of molecules, single cell manipulation
- Immunological techniques
Production of antibodies, antibody-based assays, immunolabeling
SAMPLE ISSUE
Free online access to the January 2005 issue.
EDITORS AND CONTACT INFORMATION
Like the other Nature titles, Nature Methods has no external editorial board. Instead, all editorial decisions are made by a team of full-time professional editors. Information about the scientific background of the editors may be found here.
A full list of journal staff appears on the masthead.
RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER NATURE JOURNALS
Nature Methods is editorially independent, and its editors make their own decisions, independent of the other Nature journals.
If a paper is rejected from one Nature journal, the authors
can use an automated manuscript transfer service to submit the paper to another Nature journal via a link
sent to them by the editor handling the manuscript. Authors should note that referees' comments
(including any confidential comments to the editor) and identities are transferred to the editor of the second journal along with the manuscript. In that case, the journal editors will take the previous reviews into account when making their decision, although in some
cases the editors may choose to take advice from additional or alternative referees.
Alternatively, authors may choose to request a fresh review, in which case
they should not use the automated transfer link, and
the editors will evaluate the paper without reference
to the previous review process.
Click here for details of
the manuscript transfer service, and for links to NPG journals and subject areas.
A general explanation of the relationships between Nature titles can be found
here.
EDITORIAL AND PUBLISHING POLICIES
The Nature journals, including Nature Methods, share a number of common policies including the following:
Relationship between Nature journals
License agreement and author copyright
Embargo policy and press releases
Use of experimental animals and human subjects
Competing financial interests
Availability of materials and data
Gene nomenclature
Security concerns
Refutations and complaints
Corrections
IMPACT FACTOR
The 2005 impact factor for Nature Methods is 6.741, according to the ISI Journal Citation Reports. This is the first impact factor for Nature Methods. The 2005 impact factor represents the number of citations in 2005 to papers published in 2003 and 2004, divided by the total number of papers published in 2003 and 2004. Nature Methods launched in October 2004, thus its first impact factor is based on three, rather than 24, months of publication . A more detailed explanation of impact factors appears on the ISI web site.
ABBREVIATION
The correct abbreviation for abstracting and indexing purposes is Nat.Methods
ISSN AND EISSN
The international standard serial number (ISSN) for Nature Methods is 1548-7091, and the electronic international standard serial number (EISSN) is 1548-7105.
FURTHER EDITORIAL INFORMATION
Please see the following editorials for more information on various aspects of journal policy.
Why did we launch Nature Methods?
Nature Methods and the interface between biology and chemistry
Purpose of the Correspondence section
Results of first readers' survey
What constitutes pre-publication and how to avoid it
Relationship between Nature Methods and Nature Protocols
The entire guide for authors and referees is available in PDF format.
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