Update from the JCI Insight Editor

Dr. Eickelberg

Allow me to introduce some of the initiatives our University of Pittsburgh team has implemented over the past several months after onboarding as the new Editorial Board for JCI Insight. The overarching aim for the University of Pittsburgh editorial team is to make publishing cutting-edge research and reviews easier, speedier, and less labor-intensive for our authors. At the same time, we intend to serve our constituency by publishing excellent and exciting science. Here are some of the new and upcoming efforts that our Board is undertaking.

  1. JCI Insight now publishes Research Letters. These short reports feature content with highly novel and impactful disease-relevant findings that may not have fully explored mechanistic insights expected from a full-length article. We trust that this new category will particularly appeal to our early-stage career faculty, such as K awardees or equivalents, as well as ASCI Emerging-Generation (E-Gen) Award and Young Physician-Scientist Award (YPSA) recipients.
  2. We are pleased to support early-stage investigators by including YPSA/E-Gen Award recipients as associate editors. The integration of early-stage career faculty into the editorial team of JCI Insight will grow their skill set, academic profile, and integration into the ASCI.
  3. We are very excited to feature our JCI–JCI Insight Dual-Journal Submission process, in partnership with the Journal of Clinical Investigation. Papers designated for the Dual-Journal Submission track will automatically be considered by JCI Insight in the event that the JCI rejects the manuscript, saving our authors and reviewers valuable time and allowing quick identification of the journal that is the best fit.
  4. We encourage authors to upload reviews from other journals with their submissions. The goal of this program is to streamline the review process, particularly when authors have completed revisions in response to prior peer reviews. The Editors will consider this information along with the manuscript in determining a priority fit for JCI Insight.
  5. Look for enhanced coverage of articles and author stories on social media. We will feature content on XBlueSkyLinkedInFacebook, and Instagram, so please tag us in your conversations about your work.

In addition, we are planning several other activities in the coming year. We will publish themed issues highlighting biological mechanisms that drive disease. Look for a call for papers in the coming month for our first themed issue, “Mechanisms of fibrosis across tissues.” Our team will also add monthly “office hours” to allow authors to discuss submissions with the editorial team, to facilitate the review process, and to manage expectations for potential revisions.

Finally, we have one very ambitious goal: Rapid Launch publications. Our editors plan to select a few submissions this year for expedited review and publication by JCI Insight, with a provisional acceptance decision within 15 days after submission. We hope that our authors will appreciate the competitive advantage of publishing in JCI Insight on highly novel and significant topics, without compromising on the quality of expert peer review. If you feel that your lab has exciting work that would be suitable for this track, we encourage you to contact us at editors@insight.jci.org.

Best regards,

Oliver Eickelberg, MD
Editor in Chief
JCI Insight
https://insight.jci.org

P.S. See publications in the last 3 months by ASCI-member corresponding authors:
https://the-asci.org/controllers/asci/Journals.php?#jci-insight