Journal profile · CELL BIOLOGY
Skeletal Muscle
ISSN 2044-5040 · BioMed Central · ENGLAND · Founded 2011
Skeletal Muscle: CAS Zone 2 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.9; fully open access; APC about USD 2,990; median 138 days to acceptance (92 articles, last 24 months); 38 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Skeletal Muscle is published by BioMed Central and is in Zone 2 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Muscle Physiology and Disorders, Cardiomyopathy and Myosin Studies and Adipose Tissue and Metabolism, together about 55.4% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The only open access journal in its field, Skeletal Muscle publishes novel, cutting-edge research and technological advancements that investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the biology of skeletal muscle. Reflecting the breadth of research in this area, the journal welcomes manuscripts about the development, metabolism, the regulation of mass and function, aging, degeneration, dystrophy and regeneration of skeletal muscle, with an emphasis on understanding skeletal muscle, its maintenance, and its interactions with non-muscle cell types and regulatory modulators. We are particularly interested in mechanistic work on skeletal muscle using animal or iPSC-derived models. We also welcome Methods and Resource papers, within the research article category, to the journal. Main areas of interest include: differentiation of skeletal muscle atrophy and hypertrophy of skeletal muscle aging of skeletal muscle regeneration and degeneration of skeletal muscle biology of muscle stem cells and other muscle resident cell types dystrophic degeneration of skeletal muscle energy and glucose homeostasis in skeletal muscle neuromuscular diseases, ranging from congenital diseases such as Spinal Muscular Atrophy to acquired diseases such as inflammatory myopathies. maintenance of neuromuscular junctions other relevant aspects of skeletal muscle biology In addition, articles on translational work or clinical studies that address molecular and cellular mechanisms of skeletal muscle will be published. Work that describes new methods to assess skeletal muscle function and pathology is welcome. Skeletal Muscle reflects the breadth of research on skeletal muscle and bridges gaps between diverse areas of science for example cardiac cell biology and neurobiology, which share common features with respect to cell differentiation, excitatory membranes, cell-cell communication, and maintenance. Suitable articles are model and mechanism-driven, and apply statistical principles where appropriate; purely descriptive and studies that rely only on C2C12 or similar myogenic cell lines are of lesser interest.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): CELL BIOLOGY
Editor-in-chief Robert S. KraussPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 2 in mainland China (about 4%); most named United States 26, Canada 6, France 5, Italy 4, Mainland China 2 (49 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Muscle Physiology and DisordersBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology38.9%
- Cardiomyopathy and Myosin StudiesMedicine9.3%
- Adipose Tissue and MetabolismMedicine7.2%
- Neurogenetic and Muscular Disorders ResearchMedicine4.8%
- Mesenchymal stem cell researchMedicine4.6%
- Genetic Neurodegenerative DiseasesNeuroscience4.2%
- Exercise and Physiological ResponsesMedicine3.9%
- Nutrition and Health in AgingMedicine3.5%
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 | Cell Biology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Cell Biology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Cell Biology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
MEDLINECASPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
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
- 3.9LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 3.9Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 5.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 6.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.62LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.22LetPub ·
- h-index
- 32LetPub ·
- h-index
- 76OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 384OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.2OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 97.96%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 39LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 609,700Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 547 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 43 | 43 | 20 |
| 2025 | 38 | 38 | 152 |
| 2024 | 37 | 37 | 324 |
| 2023 | 23 | 23 | 345 |
| 2022 | 26 | 26 | 689 |
| 2021 | 28 | 28 | 1,196 |
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 Crossref · to
138 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 98 days – 182 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 18 days (92 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 159 days
- Sample
- 92 articles with submission and acceptance dates (97 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 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 9 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 | EUR 2,590 / USD 2,990 / GBP 2,290 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 2,890 / EUR 2,490 / GBP 2,190 | — | — | |
| LetPub | GBP 2,090 / USD 2,790 / EUR 2,390 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
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)
Open calls for papers2, by deadline
Publisher websiteExcerpts 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
- BioMed Central
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Founded
- 2011
- ISSN
- 2044-5040
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Skeletal Muscle
What CAS zone is Skeletal Muscle in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Skeletal Muscle is in Zone 2 of Medicine, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Cell Biology. 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 Skeletal Muscle?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.9; CiteScore 6.9, h-index 76.
How long does peer review take at Skeletal Muscle?
Based on the dates recorded on 92 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 138 days (interquartile range 98–182 days); authors report an average review time of about 12 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Skeletal Muscle based?
Of the 49 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 2 (about 4%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (26), Canada (6) and France (5). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Skeletal Muscle?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Skeletal Muscle is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists MEDLINE and CAS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Skeletal Muscle open access, and what is the APC?
Skeletal Muscle is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,990.
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: .