Journal profile · Neurosciences
Brain Research
ISSN 0006-8993 · eISSN 1872-6240 · Elsevier · NETHERLANDS · Weekly
Brain Research: CAS Zone 4 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.16; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,360; median 103 days to acceptance (115 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: about 77.5%; 513 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Brain Research is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 4 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research, Neuropeptides and Animal Physiology and Receptor Mechanisms and Signaling, together about 31.2% of its articles. Its main subfields are Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Brain Research is dedicated to publishing the highest quality and greatest impact articles within the ever-evolving field of Neuroscience. We recognize how technology has changed the way scientific breakthroughs are communicated and Brain Research is committed to serving as a dynamic journal meeting the needs of the neuroscience research community. We now offer multiple formats for scientists to share their work with the community. These include Short Reports, Technology Developments, and Commentaries, in addition to standard research articles and reviews that the journal has published in its storied 50-year history.Brain Research is a broad-format journal accepting manuscripts from across the international neuroscience community that range in scope from issues in fundamental neurobiology to translational and clinical neuroscience, there are contemporary themes within neuroscience that our Editorial Board has identified that are of particular innovation and interest because of their innovation and importance, highlighted below. The journal is further committed to studies that investigate sex-differences as a powerful cross-cutting variable within these high-interest areas. Consistent with our mission, however, Brain Research remains enthusiastic to publish any neuroscience-oriented work that advances the field in a meaningful way.Neurodegenerative Diseases and Dementia - molecular insights into the mechanism of disease and preclinical modelsPsychiatric diseases, autism spectrum disorders - preclinical models and insights into mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric disordersNeuromodulation - optogenetics, DREADDs, deep brain stimulation, TMS, tDCS are all creating new levels of control and intervention in brain function in both the preclinical and clinical settingsfMRI, ERP and other "windows into the brain" - quantitative approaches to cognitive neuroscience and real-time measures are rapidly advancing our understanding of the brainStem cell biology/neurodevelopment - Emerging developments in stem cell biology are changing the way we view, and study, neurodevelopment, and represent an exciting interface of technology and biologyArticle Types:Research Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure max, expedited review, one-round only, can be moved to Research Article if major revisions are requested and interest is strong, graphical abstract requiredNeurotech Report - A methods paper whose impact is based purely on a technical or methodological advance, does not need to be hypothesis-driven science, graphical abstract requiredPoint-Counterpoint - A pair of articles addressing a contemporary debate or controversy within a field - can be broad or very focused in nature, merged graphical abstract requiredRegistered ReportsThis journal supports Registered Reports as article type, allowing you to have your research reviewed and pre-registered prior to conducting your experiments. Publishing your research as a Registered Report will reduce the chances of publication bias, provide an opportunity for receiving early feedback on your study design, allow you to stake an early claim on your research hypothesis and align with the increasing demand for greater transparency and reproducibility.Submissions outside of the scope: Brain Research does not publish case reports, bibliometric analyses, epidemiological studies of disease factors, or engineering papers targeting classification of different disease or cognitive states. Studies of medical or clinical treatments will only be considered if there is a neural explanation for the efficacy of the treatment. If using Mendelian Randomization, the research needs to provide substantive insights into neural function, structure, disease mechanisms, or behavior.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Neurosciences
Editor-in-chief Jose Francisco AbisambraPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 12 in mainland China (about 9%); most named United States 75, Mainland China 12, Canada 9, Brazil 7, Taiwan, China 6 (132 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchNeuroscience19.5%
- Neuropeptides and Animal PhysiologyNeuroscience6.1%
- Receptor Mechanisms and SignalingBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.7%
- Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on BehaviorNeuroscience5.5%
- Neuroendocrine regulation and behaviorPsychology4.9%
- Ion channel regulation and functionBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.8%
- Pain Mechanisms and TreatmentsMedicine4.7%
- Neural dynamics and brain functionNeuroscience4.2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
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
- Impact factor
- 3.16LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 3.2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.4LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 4.4Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.89LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.76LetPub ·
- h-index
- 188LetPub ·
- h-index
- 401OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 50,432OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.53OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 3.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 20.29%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 463LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 66,268 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 294 | 84 | 97 |
| 2025 | 513 | 157 | 1,474 |
| 2024 | 495 | 155 | 3,022 |
| 2023 | 340 | 110 | 3,272 |
| 2022 | 292 | 91 | 3,369 |
| 2021 | 360 | 120 | 5,390 |
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
103 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 76 days – 136 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 2 days (115 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 106 days
- Sample
- 115 articles with submission and acceptance dates (1,044 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 3 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 77.5%LetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 12 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 46 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 116 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 2 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
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
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,360 / EUR 3,140 / GBP 2,690 / JPY 416,740 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,540 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
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
- 1–7
- Not considered
- case reports; bibliometric analyses; epidemiological studies of disease factors
Article types accepted10, with length limits
- case reportResearch Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure…Length not stated
- hypothesisResearch Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure…Length not stated
- methods paperResearch Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure…Length not stated
- neurotech reportNeurotech Report - A methods paper whose impact is based purely on a technical or methodological advance, does not need to be hypothesis-driven science, graphic…Length not stated
- point-counterpointPoint-Counterpoint - A pair of articles addressing a contemporary debate or controversy within a field - can be broad or very focused in nature, merged graphica…Length not stated
- registered reportResearch Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure…Length not stated
- registered reportsThis journal supports Registered Reports as article type, allowing you to have your research reviewed and pre-registered prior to conducting your experiments.Length not stated
- research articleResearch Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure…Length not stated
- reviewResearch Article - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredReview - Standard submission, graphical abstract requiredShort Report - High impact, 3 figure…main text ≤ 7,000 words · figures and tables ≤ 4
- short reportShort Report - High impact, 3 figure max, expedited review, one-round only, can be moved to Research Article if major revisions are requested and interest is st…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Peer review policy Model summary
This journal follows a single anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication. In support of Open Science, this journal offers its authors a free preprint posting service on SSRN, Elsevier’s preprint and early research …
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
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- NETHERLANDS
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Weekly
- ISSN
- 0006-8993
- Electronic ISSN
- 1872-6240
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Brain Research
What CAS zone is Brain Research in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Brain Research is in Zone 4 of Medicine, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Neurosciences. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Brain Research?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.16; CiteScore 4.4, h-index 401.
How long does peer review take at Brain Research?
Based on the dates recorded on 115 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 103 days (interquartile range 76–136 days); authors report an average review time of about 3 months; the community-reported acceptance is “about 77.5%”. 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 Brain Research?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7. 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 Brain Research based?
Of the 132 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 12 (about 9%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (75), Mainland China (12) and Canada (9). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Brain Research?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Brain Research is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Brain Research open access, and what is the APC?
Brain Research is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,360.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; 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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .