Announcements

At MDPI we have slightly revised the layout for articles to be published in the 2021 Volume, starting at the end of December 2020. As of today, the article templates available for download on ‘Instructions for Authors’ pages have been updated.

The most noticeable change can be found on the first page of the article, where a left-hand column has been created to include the following front matter elements: (i) the recommended citation style for the article, (ii) the publishing history, (iii) as well as the Creative Commons Attribution license used (iv) a standard note regarding affiliations. At the same time, the extra spacing on the left means the authors’ affiliations are now more clearly set apart than before. Other front matter key elements such as journal logo, article type, article title, authors, abstract and keywords remain unchanged.

The blank column on the left runs through all pages in an article; as a result, the main text is slightly more condensed, which improve reader friendliness for smaller screens. Small figures/tables are aligned on the left with standard indenture, while large figures/tables are centered and covering the full width of the page. The revised layout was applied in the article pictured below, to serve as an example:

1) Information is displayed in the left information bar.

2) In the main text, there is a blank column on the left.

3) Small tables/figures are aligned on the left, large tables/figures are centered.

We are pleased to acknowledge that many academic editors who have made an impact on MDPI journals as editorial board members, editors-in-chief, or section editors, are recognized as 2020 Highly Cited Researchers by Clarivate.

Highly Cited Researchers highlights the top 1% of researchers, by citations, in one or more of the 22 fields used in Clarivate Analytics Essential Science Indicators. We offer our congratulations to 279 academic editors of MDPI journals who were recognized as the most influential scholars in their fields in 2020.

The full list of 2020 Highly Cited Researchers  can be accessed on https://recognition.webofsciencegroup.com/awards/highly-cited/2020/

--- Highly Cited Researchers (HCR) is a Clarivate product.

We are pleased to announce that the 1st International Electronic Conference on Nutrients (IECN)—Nutritional and Microbiota Effects on Chronic Disease, chaired by Prof. Dr. Maria Luz Fernandez, from University of Connecticut, USA, and Prof. Dr. Michael E. Symonds, from University of Nottingham, UK, will be held 2–15 November 2020 at Sciforum (https://iecn2020.sciforum.net/).

These are some of the topics that we expect to cover:

1. Interrelationships among microbiota, poor nutrition choices, and chronic disease.
   • Simple sugars, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome;
   • Saturated fat and heart disease;
   • Increased caloric intake and obesity;
   • Interactive effects of physical activity.
2. Potential nutraceutical effects of nutrients, phytochemicals, and microbiota in chronic metabolic disorders.
   • Obesity;
   • Inflammation;
   • Metabolic syndrome;
   • Insulin resistance and diabetes;
   • Hypertension and dyslipidemias;
   • Fatty liver disease.
3. Brain–gut axis and chronic disease.
   • Nutrients;
   • Phytochemicals;
   • Gastrointestinal health;
   • Food/eating addiction;
   • Interrelationship between gut–brain axis and gut–lung axis.

The conference will be completely free of charge, both to attend and for scholars to upload and present their latest work on the conference platform. There will also be the possibility to submit selected extended papers to the Special Issue of the conference entitled "Selected Papers from the 1st International Electronic Conference on Nutrients—Nutritional and Microbiota Effects on Chronic Disease" (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrients/special_issues/Nutritional_Microbiota) in Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643, 4.546/Q1; https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrients), with a 20% discount on the Article Processing Charge

Important Dates

• Abstract Submission: 15 September, 2020;
• Acceptance Notification: 1 October, 2020;
• Full Paper Submission: 15 October, 2020;
• Conference Open: 2–15 November, 2020.

For more information on IECN, please visit the conference website (https://iecn2020.sciforum.net/) or contact us by email (iecn2020@mdpi.com).

We are delighted to announce the establishment of our Open Access agreement with Jisc Collections, which will allow UK institutions to benefit from access to article processing charge (APC) discounts and streamlined payment workflows.

All institutions participating in the agreement will also gain access to the MDPI online submission system where they can find full article metadata and pricing information for easy identification and additional transparency.

Eligible authors affiliated with the participating institutions are prompted to choose the corresponding Institutional Open Access Program (IOAP) when they submit an article via our online submission system.

About Jisc

Jisc's vision is for the UK to be the most digitally advanced education and research nation in the world. At its heart is the super-fast national research and education network, Janet, with built-in cyber security protection.  Jisc also provides technology solutions for its members (colleges, universities and research centres) and customers (public sector bodies), helps members save time and money by negotiating sector-wide deals and provides advice and practical assistance on digital technology. Jisc is funded by the UK higher and further education and research funding bodies and member institutions.

For more information, contact helen.dobson@jisc.ac.uk.

About MDPI

MDPI is a publisher of fully peer-reviewed, Open Access journals with a focus on thorough and rapid editorial processing. Its aim is to ensure that high-quality research is verified and made available to the research community as quickly as possible. MDPI stands at the forefront of the Open Access movement, having launched its first online journal Molecules in 1996. Today, MDPI is a leader in Open Access publishing with over 250 journals across all research disciplines, and all content published under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).

For any questions about this agreement, please contact the MDPI IOAP team at ioap@mdpi.com.

The updated citation metrics have been released in the Journal Citation Reports (JCR), published by Clarivate. The recent release of the JCR includes seventy-one MDPI titles. Out of these, 18 titles are newcomers, receiving a first Journal Impact Factor which is based on citation activity in 2019: Actuators, Agriculture, Biology, Biomedicines, Biosensors, Chemosensors, Children, Healthcare, Journal of Fungi, Journal of Personalized Medicine (JPM), Land, Life, Magnetochemistry, Membranes, Pharmaceuticals, Photonics, Separations and Toxics.

• Out of the previously listed journals, a total of 72 percent boast an increased Impact Factor.
• 25 journals are ranked among the top 25% of journals in at least one of the categories they are ranked for.
• Articles published in 2019 in MDPI journals account for approximately 17 percent of of articles published in gold Open Access journals covered in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI).
  
  

First Impact Factors

Updated Impact Factors

In June 2020, the Spanish Nutrition Society (SEÑ) became affiliated to Nutrients. As part of this collaboration, all members of SEÑ enjoy a discount on the article processing charges (APC) when submitting articles to Nutrients.

The Spanish Nutrition Society (SEÑ) was founded in 1978 to promote the development, innovation, research and education of Nutrition in Spain. It organizes scientific meetings and seeks other means of establishing and maintaining contact between Spanish nutritionists as well as between them and foreign scientists.

SEÑ is a professional organization whose functions are highly relevant to the scope of Nutrients. We look forward to collaborating with SEÑ and publishing state-of-the-art research from its members in this field.

MDPI has provided several Free Open Platforms that may help to accelerate scientific exchange and provide support to academics during this particularly tough period. Thanks to our brilliant technical support, we are pleased to report that the first Nutrients webinar on Diet and CKD: Old and New Concepts is coming soon.

Date: Wednesday 8 June 2020 | 03:00 pm (CEST) | 09:00am (EDT) | 09:00pm (CST)

Duration: Maximum 2 hours

Webinar ID: 886 7523 9724

Register for Free Here: https://sciforum.net/conference/Nutrients-1

Chair:

Speakers:

For any questions about the webinar, please send an email to webinars@mdpi.com.

Since 1996, MDPI has been committed to supporting the research community by providing the latest research freely available and making relevant and useful research available as quickly as possible. The world is current experiencing a pandemic of COVID-19, and researchers are working extremely hard to understand it and find a cure.

The values MDPI holds strongly are particularly important at the moment, and we will continue to publish relevant, peer-reviewed research as quickly as possible in open access format. This means that it will immediately be available for researchers, health professionals, and the general public to read, distribute, and reuse. We believe that scientific advancements will be crucial to overcoming this pandemic, and will do everything we can to support researchers working looking for solutions.

COVID-19 Academic Resources Center contains a variety of information related to COVID-19 available from MDPI, including journal articles, special issues, and preprints, among others.

For more information, please visit: https://www.mdpi.com/covid-19

MDPI will be attending 2020 IAFP Annual Meeting, held in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, 25–28 October 2020.

Each year, the International Association for Food Protection hosts an Annual Meeting, providing attendees with information on current and emerging food safety issues, the latest science, innovative solutions to new and recurring problems, and the opportunity to network with thousands of food safety professionals from around the globe. Held in various locations throughout North America, this meeting has grown over the years to become the leading food safety conference worldwide. IAFP 2020 will be held at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland in Cleveland, Ohio. 

The IAFP Annual Meeting is attended by more than 3,800 of the top industry, academic and governmental food safety professionals from six continents. This renowned event owes its reputation and success to the quantity, quality, and diversity of each year’s program; the quality and relevance of exhibits sharing the latest in available technologies; leading experts speaking on a variety of timely topics; and special recognition of outstanding professionals and students for their contributions in the food safety field.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Foods (Leading journal)
• Microorganisms (co-leading)
• Nutrients
• Sustainability
• Safety
• Applied Sciences
• Antioxidants

If you are also attending this conference, feel free to stop by our booth (Booth #736). Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person to answer any questions you may have. For more information about the conference, please see the following link: http://www.foodprotection.org/annualmeeting/

As a leading Open Access publisher, MDPI is committed to fostering open scientific exchange in all forms across all disciplines. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, many researchers have to stay at home and many academic conferences have been cancelled or postponed. In light of these changes, MDPI has adopted numerous initiatives that may help accelerate scientific exchange and provide support to the academics during this period.

Scholarly Community—Encyclopedia

Encyclopedia is an online reference created and curated by active scholars. It aims to highlight the latest research results as well as providing benchmark information for researchers and the general public interested in accurate and advanced knowledge on specific topics.

Comprehensive and Free Literature Database—Scilit

Scilit is a comprehensive, free database for scientists that uses a new method to collate data and index scientific material. Our crawlers extract the latest data from CrossRef and PubMed on a daily basis. This means that newly published articles are immediately added to Scilit.

Display Academic Achievements—SciProfiles

SciProfiles is an innovative social network for researchers and scholars that is developed by MDPI. In line with our broad mission, the purpose of SciProfiles is to accelerate discovery and innovation by facilitating immediate access to research results and providing opportunities for academic networking.

Organize and Participate in Conferences Online—Sciforum

Sciforum is an event planning platform that supports open science by offering the opportunity to host and participate in academic conferences. It provides an environment for scholarly exchange, discussion of topics of current interest, building of networks, and establishing collaborations.

Post Early Versions of Research Outputs—Preprints

Preprints is a platform dedicated to making early versions of research outputs permanently available and citable. We post original research articles and comprehensive reviews, and papers can be updated by authors at any time. Content on Preprints is not peer-reviewed, and feedback can be received from readers.

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MDPI remains committed to open science and open data and has signed a statement, along with more than thirty scholarly publishers, showing our intention to facilitate sharing of new research findings as early on as possible. The initiative sees publishers collectively removing barriers to new research, in the face of a global healthcare crisis.