Journal profile · ENDOCRINOLOGY & METABOLISM
Molecular Metabolism
ISSN 2212-8778 · Elsevier GmbH · NETHERLANDS
Molecular Metabolism: CAS Zone 2 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 6.26; fully open access; APC about USD 4,560; median 78 days to acceptance (109 articles, last 24 months); 209 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Molecular Metabolism is published by Elsevier GmbH and is in Zone 2 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Adipose Tissue and Metabolism, Regulation of Appetite and Obesity and Adipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic Diseases, together about 37.8% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Molecular Metabolism is included in PubMed and PMCMolecular Metabolism is committed to reporting breakthrough discoveries in energy homeostasis and in the etiology, development, and treatment of metabolic disorders, including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, metabolic reprogramming in cancer, and the intersection of metabolism with aging and longevity. While committed to a rapid publication process, the journal publishes research generated with the highest standards that paves the way to mechanistic understanding and/or clinical and epidemiological insights into energy homeostasis and associated physiology and pathophysiology.Molecular Metabolism publishes interdisciplinary research spanning the full spectrum of metabolic science, from molecular studies to human investigations throughout the lifespan. The journal also welcomes computational and machine learning approaches developed for, or applied to, metabolic research that have the potential to transform the field and advance the prognosis, prevention, and eventual cure of metabolic disorders and their long-term complications.We invite original research articles, reviews, and resource papers in these areas to support our goals. Curated datasets, validated animal or human cohorts, multi-omics atlases, reproducible experimental protocols, and negative or replication studies are encouraged, as these are foundational contributions to metabolic research.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): ENDOCRINOLOGY & METABOLISM
Editor-in-chief Stephan HerzigPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 1%); most named United States 29, Germany 23, United Kingdom 8, Switzerland 4, France 3 (83 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Adipose Tissue and MetabolismMedicine14.1%
- Regulation of Appetite and ObesityNeuroscience13%
- Adipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic DiseasesMedicine10.8%
- Pancreatic function and diabetesMedicine9.7%
- Diabetes Treatment and ManagementMedicine5%
- Metabolism, Diabetes, and CancerBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4%
- Liver Disease Diagnosis and TreatmentMedicine3.6%
- Diabetes and associated disordersBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Endocrinology & Metabolism | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Endocrinology & Metabolism | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Endocrinology & Metabolism | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
PMCPubMedPublisher 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
- Impact factor
- 6.26LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 6.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 11.9LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 11.9Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 2.92LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.53LetPub ·
- h-index
- 43LetPub ·
- h-index
- 142OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,665OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 7.12OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 1.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 191LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,396 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 132 | 132 | 73 |
| 2025 | 209 | 209 | 1,014 |
| 2024 | 214 | 214 | 2,863 |
| 2023 | 184 | 184 | 3,474 |
| 2022 | 214 | 214 | 6,705 |
| 2021 | 235 | 235 | 11,663 |
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
78 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 59 days – 105 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 6 days (109 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 86 days
- Sample
- 109 articles with submission and acceptance dates (419 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 8 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 2 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 24 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 70 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 12 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous 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 | USD 4,560 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 4,270 / EUR 3,990 / GBP 3,420 / JPY 529,610 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 3,630 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 4,480 | — | — |
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 prepare6 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 8,500 words
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- Highlights
- Required
- Graphical abstract
- Required
Article types accepted5, with length limits
- brief communicationA brief description of each article type is provided below. Suggested word counts are provided although not strictly enforced.Full-length Article: These present…main text ≤ 3,500 words
- full-length articleFull-length Article: These present conceptual advances regarding a biological/clinical question of wide interest to the journal's readership. These manuscripts …Length not stated
- original research articleA brief description of each article type is provided below. Suggested word counts are provided although not strictly enforced.Full-length Article: These present…Length not stated
- reviewA brief description of each article type is provided below. Suggested word counts are provided although not strictly enforced.Full-length Article: These present…Length not stated
- review articleA brief description of each article type is provided below. Suggested word counts are provided although not strictly enforced.Full-length Article: These present…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
single anonymized review process 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 sharing allowed, not prior publication Model summary
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.
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 GmbH
- Country or region
- NETHERLANDS
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2212-8778
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Molecular Metabolism
What CAS zone is Molecular Metabolism in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Molecular Metabolism is in Zone 2 of Medicine, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Endocrinology & Metabolism; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Molecular Metabolism?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 6.26; CiteScore 11.9, h-index 142.
How long does peer review take at Molecular Metabolism?
Based on the dates recorded on 109 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 78 days (interquartile range 59–105 days); authors report an average review time of about 8 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 Molecular Metabolism?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Manuscript length: ≤ 8,500 words; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; Highlights: Required; Graphical abstract: Required. 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 Molecular Metabolism based?
Of the 83 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 1%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (29), Germany (23) and United Kingdom (8). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Molecular Metabolism?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Molecular Metabolism is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists PMC and PubMed; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Molecular Metabolism open access, and what is the APC?
Molecular Metabolism is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 4,560.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; 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 2026-08-28). Last updated: .