Cell (journal)

Cell is a peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing research papers across a broad range of disciplines within the life sciences. Areas covered include molecular biology, cell biology, systems biology, stem cells, developmental biology, genetics and genomics, proteomics, cancer research, immunology, neuroscience, structural biology, microbiology, virology, physiology, biophysics, and computational biology. The journal was established in 1974 by Benjamin Lewin and is is published twice monthly by Cell Press, an imprint of Elsevier.

History
Benjamin Lewin founded Cell in January 1974, under the aegis of MIT Press. He then bought the title and established an independent Cell Press in 1986. In April 1999, Lewin sold Cell Press to Elsevier.

The "Article of the Future" feature was the recipient of a 2011 PROSE Award for Excellence in Biological & Life Sciences presented by the Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division of the Association of American Publishers.

Impact factor
According to ScienceWatch, the journal was ranked first overall in the category of highest-impact journals (all fields) over 1995–2005 with an average of 161.2 citations per paper. According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2010 impact factor of 32.401, ranking it 14th out of 8005 indexed journals.

Contents and features
In addition to original research articles, Cell's "Leading Edge" section publishes previews, minireviews, reviews, analysis articles, commentaries, essays, correspondence, and Snapshot (a reference tool presenting up-to-date tables of nomenclature, glossaries, full signaling pathways and schematic diagrams of cellular processes). Features include "PaperClips" (short conversations between a Cell editor and an author exploring the rationale and implications of research findings) and "PaperFlicks" (video summaries of a Cell paper).

Availability
Content over 12 months old is freely accessible, starting from the January 1995 issue.

Editors

 * Emilie Marcus, 2003-present
 * Vivian Siegel, 1999-2003
 * Benjamin Lewin, 1974-1999