Nature Chemical Biology

Nature Chemical Biology
Title	Nature Chemical Biology
Discipline	Chemical biology
Abbreviation	Nat. Chem. Biol.
Publisher	Nature Research
Country	United Kingdom
Frequency	Monthly
History	2005–present
Impact	14.1 (2023)

Nature Chemical Biology

Nature Chemical Biology is a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing research at the interface of chemistry and biology. It features original research articles, reviews, and commentary that bridge molecular synthesis, biochemical mechanism, and biological function. The journal serves as a forum linking researchers across institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Stanford University, University of Cambridge, and Max Planck Society-affiliated institutes.

Overview

The journal emphasizes interdisciplinary work connecting chemical synthesis, enzymology, structural biology, and cellular signaling, attracting contributions from laboratories associated with California Institute of Technology, University of Oxford, ETH Zurich, Princeton University, Columbia University, Yale University, University of California, Berkeley, and University of Tokyo. It often publishes studies that employ techniques developed in groups at Broad Institute, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Scripps Research, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and Riken. Editorial emphasis includes advances in probe development from teams at Whitehead Institute, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, CNRS, Weizmann Institute of Science, and Rudolf Virchow Center.

History and Development

Launched in 2005 by Nature Publishing Group, the journal's early issues showcased work from laboratories led by investigators affiliated with Richard A. Lerner-linked institutions, groups in the tradition of Jacques Dubochet, and innovators connected to Ada Yonath and Venki Ramakrishnan-style structural biology. Over time the title expanded coverage to include chemical genetics influenced by researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine, and University of California, San Francisco. Special issues and themed collections have highlighted contributions from conferences such as Gordon Research Conferences, Keystone Symposia, and meetings at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. The journal's development paralleled initiatives at organizations including Wellcome Trust, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, European Research Council, National Institutes of Health, and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

Scope and Content

Articles span small-molecule probe design linked to structural work from groups at Brookhaven National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory, mechanistic enzymology connected to laboratories at Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry and Salk Institute for Biological Studies, and chemical proteomics with contributions aligned to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Reviews frequently cite milestones from investigators associated with Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Wolf Prize in Chemistry, Lasker Award recipients, and programs at Institute Pasteur, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, and Shanghai Institute of Chemistry. Content also includes methodological advances using technologies from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Diamond Light Source, and cryo-EM centers named for Ernst Ruska. The journal has published work intersecting with translational studies at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, and biotech companies often spun out from Cambridge, Massachusetts and Silicon Valley incubators.

Editorial Board and Policies

The editorial board comprises senior scientists from institutions including Imperial College London, University College London, University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, University of Michigan, Utrecht University, Karolinska Institutet, University of Toronto, McGill University, Monash University, Seoul National University, and Tsinghua University. Policies reflect standards consistent with members of committees such as Committee on Publication Ethics-aligned groups and grant agencies like National Science Foundation, Medical Research Council (United Kingdom), and European Molecular Biology Organization. Peer review practices engage external referees from departments at Cornell University, Rice University, University of British Columbia, University of Melbourne, University of Sydney, King's College London, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Heidelberg University, and University of São Paulo. Data and materials policies coordinate with repositories and initiatives at Protein Data Bank, UniProt, GenBank, Chemical Abstracts Service, Dryad, and Figshare.

Abstracting and Indexing

The journal is indexed in major services including Science Citation Index Expanded, Scopus, PubMed Central, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Chemical Abstracts Service. Bibliometric tracking is available via Journal Citation Reports and Google Scholar profiles maintained by institutional libraries at New York University, University of Washington, University of California, Los Angeles, and University of Edinburgh. Aggregation and discovery tools often integrate feeds from CrossRef, ORCID, ResearchGate, Mendeley, and Zotero. Archiving arrangements engage national libraries such as British Library and collaborations with CLOCKSS and Portico.

Reception and Impact

The journal has been cited in landmark studies from laboratories associated with Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureates and has influenced translational programs at companies with origins linked to Genentech, Amgen, Biogen Idec, Pfizer, Novartis, Roche, GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Merck & Co., Sanofi, and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company. Its articles inform curricula and seminars at universities including Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Brown University, Vanderbilt University, Northwestern University, and Georgia Institute of Technology. Citation analyses by groups at Clarivate Analytics and entries in bibliographies compiled by Royal Society of Chemistry specialists demonstrate the journal's role in shaping directions in chemical biology, probe development, and molecular therapeutics.

Category:Academic journals