Update on Procedures to Improve Quality of Published Papers

Scientific research in cosmetics is growing, and there is significant interest in new data related to active molecules, basic science, methods, and product development in this field. Cosmetics is growing rapidly, as shown by the global increase in views (Figure 1). The total number of downloads of Cosmetics papers from our website reached an impressive 711,693 in 2021 and 738,546 in 2022 (data as of 12 December 2022). Cosmetics is now indexed in Scopus and Web of Science, and our next goal is indexing in PubMed. To achieve this, we must strengthen our review process to achieve the best quality possible and ensure that our readers can discover high-quality scientific information within each issue of our journal. Indeed, the rejection rate of newly submitted papers has increased in recent years. We must only publish top-quality papers generated using flawless study protocols. Therefore, we ask our reviewers to pay particular attention to the ethical requirements of the study designs and to check for the robustness and scientific value of the data presented in the manuscripts. Reviewers are chosen according to their level of expertise in the field, and the review process will be handled according to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) ethical guidelines for reviewers that have been adopted by MDPI. Additionally, we ask reviewers to adhere to the guidelines outlined on MDPI’s website https://www.mdpi.com/reviewers (accessed on 2 December 2022). These guidelines cover matters of professional responsibility, competing interests and bias, timeliness, confidentiality, and dealing with suspicions of ethical violation. Reviewers are usually asked to submit their reports within two weeks of accepting the invitation [1,2]. An example of the MDPI reviewing process is shown in Figure 2.

It is important, of course, that all our Authors consider all of these aspects during manuscript preparation and submission both to speed up the reviewing process and to increase the quality of their articles. This will allow Cosmetics to have a higher level of impact and visibility in the scientific community and become a reference publication in the area.