Journal profile · IMMUNOLOGY-MICROBIOLOGY
Virulence
ISSN 2150-5594 · eISSN 2150-5608 · Landes Bioscience · UNITED STATES · Founded 2010
Virulence: CAS Zone 1 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 6.83; JCR Q1 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,990; median 189 days to acceptance (107 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 341 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Virulence is published by Landes Bioscience and is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Antifungal resistance and susceptibility, Antibiotic Resistance in Bacteria and Fungal Infections and Studies, together about 22.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Infectious Diseases. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Virulence is a peer-reviewed journal dedicated to advancing understanding of how pathogens cause disease and how hosts respond. Since its launch in 2010, the journal has provided a forum for research that bridges basic molecular biology, translational science, and clinical infectious disease research. Central to the journal's mission is the recognition that virulence is not simply an intrinsic property of a microorganism, but a dynamic outcome of interactions between pathogen, host, and environment. Accordingly, Virulence publishes research spanning the full continuum of infection biology, from molecular mechanisms and experimental models to public health and clinical interventions. Pathogenesis Across the Microbial World The journal welcomes studies on bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic pathogens, including research addressing: Host-pathogen interactions Colonization, invasion, and transmission Virulence factors, toxins, and secretion systems Immune evasion strategies Biofilm formation and microbial communities Emerging and zoonotic infectious diseases Host Response and Infection Biology Understanding disease requires equal consideration of the host. We therefore encourage submissions investigating: Innate and adaptive immune responses Immunopathology and disease outcomes Microbiome-pathogen interactions Host susceptibility and resistance Human, veterinary, agricultural, and plant infection systems Mammalian and non-mammalian infection models Genomics, Evolution, and Antimicrobial Resistance The journal publishes research exploring the genetic and evolutionary drivers of virulence, including: Pathogen genomics and functional genetics Evolution of virulence traits Genomic epidemiology and surveillance Antimicrobial resistance mechanisms Emergence, transmission, and tracking of resistant pathogens Translation to Practice Virulence is committed to connecting mechanistic discoveries with practical solutions. Areas of interest include: Vaccine development and evaluation Antivirulence and antimicrobial therapies Diagnostic and monitoring technologies Clinical and translational infection research Studies that inform prevention, treatment, and disease management By integrating molecular, ecological, clinical, and population-level perspectives, Virulence provides a platform for research that advances understanding of infectious disease across the entire host-pathogen continuum. Virulence accepts original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, protoc
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): IMMUNOLOGY-MICROBIOLOGY
Editor-in-chief Kevin TylerPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 1, India 1, France 1, Israel 1 (4 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Antifungal resistance and susceptibilityMedicine9%
- Antibiotic Resistance in BacteriaBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology6.9%
- Fungal Infections and StudiesMedicine6.6%
- Bacterial biofilms and quorum sensingBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.9%
- Vibrio bacteria research studiesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.7%
- Streptococcal Infections and TreatmentsMedicine5.1%
- Antimicrobial Resistance in StaphylococcusMedicine5%
- Escherichia coli research studiesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Immunology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Infectious Diseases | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Microbiology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Immunology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Infectious Diseases | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Microbiology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Immunology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Infectious Diseases | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Microbiology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q1 · best quartile · 2025
- CiteScore Q1 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
MEDLINEPMCEmbasePublisher website
Other: CABI, EBSCOhost
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
- 6.83LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 6.8Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 6.9Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 7.2LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 7.2Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.63LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 1.63Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.81LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 1.81Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 52LetPub ·
- h-index
- 129OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,464OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.26OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.9%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 315LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 1,600,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,561 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 251 | 251 | 103 |
| 2025 | 341 | 341 | 1,601 |
| 2024 | 171 | 171 | 2,306 |
| 2023 | 111 | 111 | 2,080 |
| 2022 | 136 | 136 | 3,507 |
| 2021 | 187 | 187 | 8,285 |
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
189 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 134 days – 251 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 12 days (107 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 207 days
- Sample
- 107 articles with submission and acceptance dates (650 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)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 38%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 32 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 82 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 10 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 16 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 2,875 / USD 2,990 / GBP 2,392 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC | |
| OpenAlex | GBP 2,085 | — | — | |
| LetPub | EUR 2,875 / USD 2,990 / GBP 2,392 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
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)
Article types accepted5
- narrative reviewsVirulence accepts original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, protocols and perspectives.Length not stated
- original researchVirulence accepts original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, protocols and perspectives.Length not stated
- perspectivesVirulence accepts original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, protocols and perspectives.Length not stated
- protocolsVirulence accepts original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, protocols and perspectives.Length not stated
- systematic reviewsVirulence accepts original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, protocols and perspectives.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review, Self-archiving
- Open access Open access
Supports Open Science Badges. Model summary
Virulence is an open access journal and only publishes open access articles. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discoverability and readership of your article Make an impact and reach new readers, not just those with easy acc…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Single anonymized peer review policy Model summary
The journal operates a single anonymized peer review policy.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Self-archiving
Affiliated with the American Society for Virology. Model summary
Affiliated with the American Society for Virology
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
- Landes Bioscience
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Founded
- 2010
- ISSN
- 2150-5594
- Electronic ISSN
- 2150-5608
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 17, Issue 1 (2026)
- 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 Virulence
What CAS zone is Virulence in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Virulence is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Immunology / Infectious Diseases / Microbiology; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Virulence?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 6.83; CiteScore 7.2, h-index 129.
How long does peer review take at Virulence?
Based on the dates recorded on 107 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 189 days (interquartile range 134–251 days); authors report an average review time of 6–12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 38%. 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 JCR quartile is Virulence in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q1 (best quartile). JCR quartiles are Clarivate's to confirm and a different system from the CAS zones; in the CAS ranking the journal is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences.
Where are the editorial board members of Virulence based?
Of the 4 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (1), India (1) and France (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Virulence?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Virulence is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists MEDLINE, PMC and Embase; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Virulence open access, and what is the APC?
Virulence is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,990.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .