From January 2008 Molecular BioSystems will form its very own strand of science as a solo monthly journal, becoming available to readers and subscribers independently of its host journal. 

'We're proud of the progress Molecular BioSystems has made since its launch in 2005,' said Robert Parker, managing director at RSC Publishing. 'The journal has grown, the quality of science is excellent and feedback from readers has been overwhelmingly positive. Now is an appropriate time for this success to be translated into a solo publication.' 

Since the publication of the first issue in 2005, Molecular BioSystems has been paired with Chemical Communications. This interaction with the host has resulted in an excellent communication channel for the published content, which reaches a wide and interdisciplinary audience. Online pairing with four other complementary publications (Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry, Lab on a Chip, The Analyst and Analytical Abstracts) ensured optimum visibility to the relevant audiences. The success was confirmed by the announcement of the first (partial) Impact Factor for the journal of 2.45. 

'Now is the perfect time to unzip Molecular BioSystems from its hosts,' commented Michael Smith, commissioning editor. 'We believe the journal has more to offer to the chemical biology community than any other journal.' 

The publishing innovations recently introduced by RSC Publishing's Project Prospect are proving particularly exciting for the journal. Enhanced HTML articles provide:

• links from ontology terms to definitions and related papers
• hyperlinked compound information within the text
• links to terms from the IUPAC Gold Book       

Enthusiastically received by authors and readers alike, the enhancements are described as invaluable for students and scientists new to the area. "I think this is a terrific idea!" commented Brian Shoichet, Professor at University of California, San Francisco and member of the editorial board. 

In a related development, Molecular BioSystems' RSS feeds are enhanced with not only the graphical abstract but also structured subject and compound information. Users can see at-a-glance whether the paper is relevant to their research. 

These enhancements, plus 3D visualisation of complex molecules, short times to publication and the high standards associated with journals from RSC Publishing, show that Molecular BioSystems is set to serve the chemical biology community for years to come.