Frequently Asked Questions
What is mSystems®?
mSystems is a new, open-access (OA) journal for research that achieves insights into the metabolic and regulatory systems on the scale of both a single cell and entire microbial communities. mSystems is published by the American Society for Microbiology, the oldest life sciences membership organization in the United States.
Why was mSystems developed?
The ASM realized that the explosion in systems microbiology research called for a new venue that could capture the major new developments and significant advances in this field. Creating this new journal as an OA-only publication also caters to the changing dynamic of the research community.
What areas of research does mSystems publish?
mSystems considers cutting-edge, significant advances in research associated with metabolic and regulatory systems on the scale of both a single cell and entire microbial communities. This includes multi-omic analyses with large data sets, single-cell studies of regulatory function, and microbial community ecology studies that involve modeling of ecosystem processes. In short, we publish significant advances in systems microbiology.
The ASM already publishes mBio®. How is mSystems different?
mBio® deals with broad microbiological disciplines, whereas mSystems fits within the cadre of specialized journals.
Does mSystems accept LaTeX files?
ASM is collaborating with Overleaf, a free cloud-based, collaborative authoring tool, as a pilot project to provide a LaTeX authoring template to mSystems authors. The template allows authors to easily prepare and edit their manuscripts using Overleaf and then submit manuscripts to mSystems with one click directly from within Overleaf. Templates for Research Articles, Resource Reports, and Methods and Protocols are available at https://www.overleaf.com/latex/templates/sample-template-for-american-society-for-microbiology-asm-journal-articles/mcxqmhmtjgbb. See "Overleaf Pilot" for more information about this collaboration.
Does mSystems charge a submission fee?
No.
Does mSystems consider submissions of manuscripts that have previously appeared on preprint servers?
Yes. For more information, please review the ASM journals preprint policy.
What will it cost to publish in mSystems?
ASM has adopted an "author pays" open-access model to cover publishing costs. Authors (or their funding agencies or institutions) pay a flat publication fee for each article published. This fee includes immediate open access and unlimited color figures.
Publication feesa
| Fee type | 2019 Fee ($) for all members except supporting members |
2019 Fee ($) for supporting members and nonmembers |
2020 Fee ($) for all members except supporting members |
2020 Fee ($) for supporting members and nonmembers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research paper APC | 2,400 | 3,300 | 2,500 | 3,500 |
| Short article (i.e., Observation or Opinion/Hypothesis) APC |
1,300 | 1,900 | 1,360 | 1,990 |
| Supplemental material (flat fee) | 220 | 340 | 230 | 355 |
aPublication fees do not apply to Minireviews, Commentaries, Perspectives, Editorials, Letters to the Editor, or corrections.
*Member discount rates apply if the corresponding author is an active member of ASM at any level other than the Supporting level (Become an ASM member to get the best available rate. If you are currently a member of ASM and wish to change your membership level, please contact customer service at Service@asmusa.org.)
We encourage you to review the Instructions to Authors for more information about publication fees (please note that fees are subject to change without notice).
Will authors retain copyright of research published in mSystems?
Yes, authors retain copyright. To allow for maximum dissemination of research, articles in mSystems are published under the Creative Commons CC BY license, which allows unrestricted reuse of the material with proper attribution. Users have the right to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of these articles.
I recently submitted my manuscript to mSystems; when should I expect to receive a decision?
The average time to first decision of an mSystems manuscript is 32 calendar days.
When will the final version of my article be published?
Unfortunately, sometimes it's difficult to provide a definitive date until the article is near the end of the production process. For an update on your article's status, contact the production editor.
Are mSystems citations available in PubMed?
As a PMC-participating journal, mSystems citations are included and searchable in PubMed. ASM has submitted an application to the National Library of Medicine for mSystems to be considered for indexing and inclusion in the MEDLINE database.