Journal profile · BIOPHYSICS
Biophysics and Physicobiology
ISSN 2189-4779 · The Biophysical Society of Japan · Japan
Biophysics and Physicobiology: CAS Zone 4 · Biology (2025 upgraded edition); fully open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 71 days to acceptance (73 articles, last 24 months); 42 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Biophysics and Physicobiology is published by The Biophysical Society of Japan and is in Zone 4 of Biology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Protein Structure and Dynamics, Photoreceptor and optogenetics research and Enzyme Structure and Function, together about 34.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Molecular Biology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Biophysics and Physicobiology (BPPB) is an international, peer-reviewed, open-access online journal that publishes articles in all areas of biophysics with the License of CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) or CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which is selected in accordance with the authors’ preference. Biophysics has long been developed in a field of physics using physical methods and theories to study the structures and functions of biological systems. The BSJ had originally published a journal, Biophysics, since 2005, but changed its name in 2015 because of the following reason. Biophysics now spans all scales of biological organization, from the molecular scale to whole organisms and ecosystems, and hence biophysical research demonstrates significant overlaps with biochemistry, physiology, cell biology, nanotechnology, bioengineering, computational biology, systems biology, theoretical biology and so forth. The current activity of biophysics has evidently grown over the first idea in "biophysics", the term originally introduced in the 19th century. BSJ would like to cover the current trend and the future direction of this field with a term “physicobiology”. Biological systems are bounded by the physical principles and laws, but at the same time the systems apparently exploit these principles and laws, reaching a compromise among them. Technology in biophysics has grown to the level of single molecule and omics analyses that can approach to clarify this detail balance in biology and physics. Physicobiology is going to be driven by de novo researches that clarify how physical factors, such as force, heat, electromagnetic field, stochasticity and so forth that completely obey the physical principles and laws, play a significant role in the biological systems. BSJ believes that the next direction of the biophysics is this physicobiology and would like to lead the direction by transforming the journal to Biophysics and Physicobiology.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): BIOPHYSICS
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 2, Singapore 2, Hong Kong, China 1, Taiwan, China 1, India 1 (9 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Protein Structure and DynamicsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology13.4%
- Photoreceptor and optogenetics researchNeuroscience12.4%
- Enzyme Structure and FunctionMaterials Science8.6%
- RNA and protein synthesis mechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology6.7%
- Photosynthetic Processes and MechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.2%
- Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchNeuroscience4.4%
- Advanced Fluorescence Microscopy TechniquesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.4%
- Cellular Mechanics and InteractionsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Biology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Biophysics | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Biology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Biophysics | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of SciencePublisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.6LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.56LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.47LetPub ·
- h-index
- 23OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 86OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.16OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 7.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 30LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 483 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 32 | 32 | 2 |
| 2025 | 42 | 42 | 29 |
| 2024 | 55 | 55 | 119 |
| 2023 | 71 | 71 | 242 |
| 2022 | 52 | 52 | 274 |
| 2021 | 49 | 49 | 279 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
71 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 35 days – 110 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 3 days (73 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 79 days
- Sample
- 73 articles with submission and acceptance dates (75 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 18 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 18 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Unspecified peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | JPY 40,000 | No | CC BY, CC BY-NC-SA | |
| OpenAlex | JPY 40,000 | — | — | |
| LetPub | JPY 40,000 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | JPY 18,000 | — | — |
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Submission fee
- Charged; see the journal's website for the amount
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- ≤ 5
- Templates
- LaTeX and Word
Article types accepted10
- announcementAnnouncementLength not stated
- commentary and perspective(6) Commentary and Perspective introduces hot topics in the field of biophysics and topics with global collaborations.Length not stated
- databases and computer programs(5) Databases and Computer Programs should be a description of the core data or software that would be useful for biophysics studies.Length not stated
- editorial(7) Editorial is written by the Editor-in-Chief, Editorial Board members and Guest Editor-in-Charge for Special Issues.Length not stated
- methodMethodLength not stated
- methods and protocols(4) Methods and Protocols cover new methods or significant new advancement of established methods that will be widely applicable to the field of experimental an…Length not stated
- notes(3) Notes are short articles that are not necessarily categorized as Regular Articles because of the content, and may contain important information on new devic…Length not stated
- regular articles(1) Regular Articles are the main category of the journal and must be prepared in accordance with the instructions provided below.Length not stated
- reviewReviewLength not stated
- review articles(2) Review Articles summarize a particular aspect of biophysical research.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteLicense & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- License & copyright 8. Proofs, reprints, and copyright
License policy Model summary
(1) Proofs: Proofs are sent as PDF files to the corresponding author by E-mail. The proofs should be corrected and returned to the office within three business days. Copy- editing adjustments will be made to the accepted manuscripts. During proof- reading, the corresponding author is required to check for any undesired changes that may have inadvertently occurred during copy-editing. Extensive cor…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access
Open data policy Model summary
In addition, BPPB promotes the idea of Open Data, where any raw data are openly available for confirming the results and conclusion of every article and for reuse and data mining by researchers other than the authors.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review 3. Peer review procedure
If a submitted manuscript does not conform to the journal scope, or other inadequacies are found, the Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to reject the manuscript without review. In particular, authors are required to provide sufficient details in the Materials and Methods section and the Results section of the submitted manuscript except in the categories of Editorial or Commentary and Perspective…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints
Preprint policy Model summary
BPPB supports the idea of posting a preprint to preprint servers, and hence the manuscript posted on servers such as arXiv (https://arxiv.org/), bioRxiv (https://www.biorxiv.org/), ChemRxiv (https://chemrxiv.org/engage/chemrxiv/public-dashboard), medRxiv (https://www.medrxiv.org/) or Jxiv (https://jxiv.jst.go.jp) before submission to BPPB is not considered as publication.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- The Biophysical Society of Japan
- Country or region
- Japan
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2189-4779
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Biophysics and Physicobiology
What CAS zone is Biophysics and Physicobiology in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Biophysics and Physicobiology is in Zone 4 of Biology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Biophysics. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Biology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
How long does peer review take at Biophysics and Physicobiology?
Based on the dates recorded on 73 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 71 days (interquartile range 35–110 days); authors report an average review time of about 18 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Biophysics and Physicobiology?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: ≤ 5; Templates: LaTeX and Word. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Biophysics and Physicobiology based?
Of the 9 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (2), Singapore (2) and Hong Kong, China (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Biophysics and Physicobiology?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Biophysics and Physicobiology is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists Web of Science; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Biophysics and Physicobiology open access, and what is the APC?
Biophysics and Physicobiology is a fully open-access journal. APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .