The Importance of Peer Review

As Biology Open (BiO) completes its first full year of publication, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our reviewers for their hard work (a full list of our reviewers can be found below). All these people have given us their valuable time for free and BiO could not exist without them; we are very grateful for all their efforts.Peer review is a precious thing. Without it, Open Access journals such as BiO could end up being little more than ‘vanity’ publishers, publishing more or less any paper because to do so increases profits. Critics of author-pays Open Access are right to point out that such journals exist, but they are wrong to suggest that we will all end up drowning in a quagmire of irrelevant and irreproducible data as a result. Scientists are not fools and any journal that adopted this policy would rapidly lose credibility. For the record, 250 papers were submitted to BiO in 2012; so far, 137 have been accepted and 79 rejected (a rejection rate of ∼40%).Indeed, I would argue that peer review at BiO might actually be more effective than it is at some of the very high-impact factor journals. Our reviewers are asked to focus only on whether the conclusions of a paper are justified by the data presented. I have been amazed at how good our reviewers are at spotting any important deficiencies in a paper and suggesting how these can be addressed – often simply by performing an essential control or by toning down a particular conclusion. It is very rare that we accept a paper at BiO without asking for some changes or additional work to be done, but this is always aimed at ensuring that the conclusions are properly backed up by the data.Several of our authors have commented on how refreshing it is to be able to write a paper honestly and openly, without having to stretch and/or omit data to ensure that an important and definitive conclusion is reached. As I have discussed before (Raff, 2012), given the extreme pressures on scientists to publish in journals with high impact factors, it is perhaps no surprise to learn that other scientists often find the data published in these journals difficult to reproduce (Begley and Ellis, 2012; Mullard, 2011). Thanks to our reviewers, I am very hopeful that this will be less of a problem for papers published in BiO.Jordan W. Raff, Editor-in-ChiefUniversity of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3RE, UKbio.editor@biologists.comIn January 2012, the first issue of BiO was published online. As we mark our first anniversary, we have published 154 articles. None of this would have been possible without the invaluable contribution of the more than 200 peer reviewers.BiO is demanding of its reviewers in that we ask for reviews to be completed within seven working days. That more than 60% of them do so, with 90% within two weeks, is a testament to their dedication and professionalism.As Publisher, we recognise the vital nature of the work that they do and acknowledge the fact that peer review is a cornerstone of scientific advancement. In 2011, the UK parliament discussed the issue of rewarding and incentivising reviewers (http://bit.ly/TWYdbG). One way to reward reviewers is to publicly thank them by name. We have chosen the first anniversary of our first issue to do just that. We thank them for their hard work and for managing to fit just one more task into their busy schedules.Rachel Hackett, Managing Editor BiOThe Company of Biologists, 140 Cowley Road, Cambridge CB4 0DL, UKbio@biologists.comReviewers in 2012Ian Adams, MRC Human Genetics Unit, United KingdomAhmed Ashour Ahmed, University of Oxford, United KingdomTakahiko Akematsu, York University, Toronto, CanadaEnrique Amaya, University of Manchester, United KingdomKristin Artinger, University of Colorado Denver, USASophie Astrof, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, USANafisa Balasinor, National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, IndiaBetsy Bancroft, Southern Utah University, USAAndrew Bannister, University of Cambridge, United KingdomOrit Barneah, Ruppin Academic Center, IsraelMark Bass, University of Bristol, United KingdomBernd Baumann, Ulm University, GermanyGreg Beitel, Northwestern University, USARobert Belshaw, University of Oxford, United KingdomTimothy Bender, University of Virginia, USARegina Bestbier, University of British Columbia, CanadaGeir Bjørkøy, HiST, NorwayJurgen Bolz, University of Jena, GermanyUrsula Bommhardt, University of Magdeburg, GermanyThilo Borchardt, Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, GermanyGerhard Braus, Georg-August-University Gottingen, GermanyW. Ted Brown, New York State Institute for Basic Research, USAColin Brown, University of Newcastle, United KingdomKeith Brown, University of Bristol, United KingdomJulia Buck, Oregon State University, USABrian Calvi, Indiana University, USAMarina Campione, University of Padova, ItalyFernando Casares, University Pablo de Olavide, SpainMichael Cheetham, University College London Institute of Ophthalmology, United KingdomRuth Chiquet-Ehrismann, Friedrich Miescher Institute, Basel, SwitzerlandJean Cohen, CNRS, FranceEric Cole, St Olaf College, USAJoan Comella, Vall d'Hebron Research Institute, SpainDavid Costantini, University of Glasgow, United KingdomDavid Crews, University of Texas at Austin, USAGiovanni D'Angelo, Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine, ItalyKim Dale, University of Dundee, United KingdomJamie Davies, University of Edinburgh, United KingdomHelen Dawe, Exeter University, United KingdomJohan De Rooij, Hubrecht Institute, The NetherlandsMauro Degli Esposti, University of Manchester, United KingdomRobert Denver, University of Michigan, USAJacqueline Deschamps, Netherlands Institute for Developmental Biology, The NetherlandsEileen Devaney, University of Glasgow, United KingdomMary Donohoe, Cornell University, USACarlos Dotti, VIB Center for the Biology of Disease, BelgiumCynthia Downs, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, IsraelViji Draviam, University of Cambridge, United KingdomWolfgang Driever, University of Freiburg, GermanyKyle Elliott, University of Manitoba, CanadaTodd Evans, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, USASusan Evans, University of Adelaide, AustraliaCaroline Fabre, University of Oxford, United KingdomAnna Ferrer, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, USAAnn Foley, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, USAVelia Fowler, The Scripps Research Institute, USARobert Friesel, Maine Medical Center Research Institute, USAFabrizio Gabbiani, Baylor College of Medicine, USAAlejandra Garcia-Gasca, CIAD, MexicoArieh Gertler, The Hebrew University, IsraelPietro Ghezzi, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United KingdomAllen Gibbs, University of Nevada, USAMarco Giovannini, House Research Institute, USAJean-Antoine Girault, Institut du Fer, Moulin, INSERM, FranceMary Goll, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, USAYukiko Gotoh, University of Tokyo, JapanTamar Goulet, University of Mississippi, USADimitris Grammatopoulos, University of Warwick, United KingdomPaul Greenwood, Colby College, USAChrissy Hammond, University of Bristol, United KingdomTony Harris, University of Toronto, CanadaKevin Harvatine, Penn State University, USAShigetsugu Hatakeyama, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, JapanDana Hawley, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, USABernd Heinrich, University of Vermont, USAJan Hemmi, University of Western Australia, AustraliaClarissa Henry, University of Maine, USAThomas Holstein, Heidelberg University, GermanyMarko Horb, Marine Biologial Laboratory, USADouglas Houston, University of Iowa, USAAlan Howe, University of Vermont, USADanwei Huangfu, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, USAMasahito Ikawa, Osaka University, JapanJavier Irazoqui, Massachusetts General Hospital-Harvard Medical School, USAAntonio Jacinto, University of Lisbon, PortugalDagan Jenkins, University College London, United KingdomAnton Jetten, NIEHS, NIH, USATian Jin, NIAID, NIH, USAWang Jiqiu, Ruijin Hospital, ChinaZhu Jun, University of Wyoming, USAPhilipp Kahle, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, GermanyChrysi Kanellopoulou, NIH, USAAnna Kashina, University of Pennsylvania, USANancy Kedersha, Brigham and Women's Hospital-Harvard Medical School, USAVladimir Kostal, Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Czech RepublicJustin Kumar, Indiana University, USATilo Kunath, MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine, United KingdomAlexander Kurze, University of Oxford, United KingdomPavithra Lakshminarasimhan, University of Cambridge, United KingdomTommy Lam, University of Oxford, United KingdomIrina Larina, Baylor College of Medicine, USARoberto Latini, Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, ItalyRudolf Leube, RWTH Aachen University, GermanyBrian Lewis, NCI-CCR, NIH, USALawrence Loeb, University of Washington, USAHernan Lopez-Schier, HelmholtzZentrum Munchen, GermanyMartin Lowe, University of Manchester, United KingdomYuchun Luo, University of Colorado Denver, USAGiuseppe Lupo, University of Rome La Sapienza, ItalySamantha Lycett, University of Edinburgh, United KingdomLaura Machesky, CRUK Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, United KingdomJesse Mager, University of Massachusetts, USAWilliam Mair, Harvard School of Public Health, USAArindam Majumdar, Karolinska Institute, SwedenJean-Bernard Manent, INSERM, FranceMeghan McGee-Lawrence, Mayo Clinic, USATimothy Megraw, Florida State University, USABjoern Menger, Medical School Hannover, GermanyRalph Meyer, University of Pennsylvania, USADomenico Migliorini, University of Geneva, SwitzerlandTakashi Mikawa, University of California San Francisco, USAMarco Milan, IRB Barcelona, SpainDana Miller, University of Washington, USAJustin Molloy, MRC-NIMR, United KingdomIgnacio Moore, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, USAAndrea Morash, McMaster University, CanadaWerner Muller, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, GermanyMonnMonn Myat, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, USAKinichi Nakashima, Nara Institute of Science and Technology, JapanJan Nedergaard, Stockholm University, SwedenJuergen Neesen, Medical University of Vienna, AustriaErich Nigg, University of Basel, SwitzerlandLeo Nijtmans, Nijmegen Center for Mitochondrial Disorders, The NetherlandsJeremy Niven, University of Sussex, United KingdomStefania Nobili, University of Florence, ItalyScott Nowak, Kennesaw State University, USATomasz Nowakowski, University of Edinburgh, United KingdomSonja Nowotschin, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, USAKathleen O'Connor, University of Kentucky, USAEdel O'Toole, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, United KingdomMichela Ori, University of Pisa, ItalyMaddy Parsons, Kings College London, United KingdomGianandrea Pasquinelli, University of Bologna, ItalyAndrew Peden, University of Sheffield, USAIsabel Peset, University of Cambridge, United KingdomBjorn Pieper, University of Oxford, United KingdomRaymond Poot, Erasmus MC, The NetherlandsEdwin Price, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USAWilliam Prinz, NIH-NIDDK, USAIan Prior, University of Liverpool, USAAutun Purser, Jacobs University, GermanyTerence Rabbitts, University of Oxford, United KingdomIsaac Rabinovitz, BIDMC-Harvard Medical School, USADavid Raible, University of Washington, USAVesna Rajkovic, University of Novi Sad, SerbiaPraveen Raju, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, USAThomas Rando, Stanford University, USAJoshua Rappoport, Birmingham University, United KingdomChristina Rathke, Philipps-University Marburg, GermanyAngel Raya, The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia, SpainNicole Rebscher, Marburg University, GermanyMichael Reed, Tufts University, USAMonique Rijnkels, Baylor College of Medicine, USAHenry Roehl, University of Sheffield, United KingdomNela Rosic, The University of Queensland, AustraliaTatiana Rostovtseva, NICHD, NIH, USAAurelien Roux, University of Geneva, SwitzerlandAimee Ryan, Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, CanadaStefan Schulte-Merker, Hubrecht Institute, The NetherlandsTaiichiro Seki, Nihon University, JapanNenad Sestan, Yale University School of Medicine, USAChristopher Shaw, Institute of Psychiatry, United KingdomGuojun Sheng, RIKEN, JapanTakashi Shimizu, Hokkaido University, JapanGordon Simpson, University of Dundee, United KingdomShankar Srinivas, University of Oxford, United KingdomKlaus Steger, University of Giessen, GermanyReimer Stick, University of Bremen, GermanyBrian Storrie, University of Arkansas, USABrian Stramer, Kings College London, United KingdomXin Sun, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USAAtsushi Suzuki, Kyushu University, JapanDavid Swanson, University of South Dakota, USAJi Sze, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, USAKazufumi Takamune, Kumamoto University, JapanKoji Tamura, Tohoku University, JapanJohn Tattersall, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, United KingdomGerhard Technau, University of Mainz, GermanyDavid Turner, University of Michigan, USAAkiyoshi Uemura, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, JapanTaro Uyeda, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, JapanTeresa Valencak, Veterinary University Vienna, AustriaDouglas Vernimmen, The Roslin Institute, United KingdomChristoph Viebahn, Gottingen University, GermanyChristian Voigt, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wilflife Research, GermanyNaoki Watanabe, Tohoku University, JapanRoland Wedlich-Soldner, Max-Planck-Institute of Biochemistry, GermanyScott Weed, West Virginia University Health Sciences Center, USABrant Weinstein, NICHD, NIH, USADeneen Wellik, Univeristy of Michigan Medical Center, USAAndreas Winterpacht, University Hospital Erlangen, GermanyDieter Wolf, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, USARobert Wootton, University of Aberystwyth, United KingdomHoward Worman, Columbia University, USAMichiaki Yamashita, National Research Institute of Fisheries Science, JapanDeborah Yelon, University of California San Diego, USAJeanne Zeh, University of Nevada, USAYong Zhang, Chinese Academy of Sciences, ChinaBiology Open 2, 1-5

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