Announcements

22 December 2022
Special Issue Mentor Program

We are pleased to announce the launch of a new initiative—the MDPI Special Issue Mentor Program.

This program will enable early career researchers (who must hold a Ph.D. in a related field) to experience editing a Special Issue in MDPI journals, under the mentorship of our experienced Editorial Board Members or other experienced scientists. The mentor program will provide an excellent opportunity for early career scientists to gain editorial experience, and to cultivate their ability to edit scientific research.

The mentee’s responsibilities include:

  • Proposing a Special Issue title and assisting the mentor in preparing a summary (around 200–400 words) and 3–10 keywords describing the background, importance, and goal of the Issue;
  • Writing a brief promotion plan for the Special Issue;
  • Preparing a list of scholars who may be interested in the Issue and personally e-mailing invitations on behalf of Guest Editors;
  • Writing an editorial for the online Special Issue together with the mentor.

The mentor’s responsibilities include:

  • Conducting a final check before the Special Issue is published online;
  • Performing editorial control of the Special Issue and quality control of the publications, both of which must be carried out in a timely manner;
  • Providing suggestions to younger scholars if they have any doubts or concerns regarding submissions;
  • Organizing video calls with young scholars and the Editorial Office regularly to discuss problems and improvement suggestions for the Special Issue;
  • Making and submitting decisions regarding submissions with the assistance of mentees.

Certificates and awards:
After the Special Issue closes, the Editorial Office will provide official certificates for all the mentors and early career researchers.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please send your Special Issue proposal to the Editorial Office of a journal you choose, and we will discuss the process (i.e., mentor collaboration, Special Issue topic feasibility analysis, etc.) in further detail. The full list of MDPI journals is as follows: https://www.mdpi.com/about/journals.

In addition to the new Special Issue Mentor Program, we will continue to welcome all Special Issue proposals focusing on hot research topics.

14 December 2022
"Thanks a Million!" – One Million Articles Published in MDPI Journals

MDPI has just become the first open access (OA) publisher to reach the milestone of one million articles published. That is one million articles freely available to all, to circulate and build upon! We are proud to share this special moment with the global scientific community.

This landmark has been reached thanks to the immeasurable support of more than 600,000 expert reviewers, 66,000 editorial board members and 6700 hard-working colleagues across MDPI’s global offices.

Within more than 25 years of publishing, our journals received 2.1 million manuscripts and generated 4.6 million peer review reports to get to one million papers published.

1 Million Infographic

Reaching the milestone of one million articles published reinforces our mission to remove any existing barriers and to make scientific research accessible to all. Since its inception, MDPI’s goal has been to create reliable processes to make science open. This is a path towards facilitating the dissemination of novel insights in scientific communities.

Regular feedback from authors and reviewers shows that our service is greatly appreciated and needed. At the same time, the feedback helps us identify areas for further improvement.

As it stands, a significant share of published research findings remain closed access. More than half of the content published with the most well-known legacy publishers stays behind a paywall, and that is not including articles published in hybrid OA journals, or made available months or years after publication.

A new policy announced by the US administration in August 2022 requires that, as of January 2026, all US federally funded research be made freely and immediately available after publication. While the new policy does not mandate articles be published under an open access license, it is aligned with the open access movement in removing all barriers to research. Similarly, some of the most advanced research institutions in the world intend to have all funded research articles published in open access by 2025.

MDPI is proud to be the leading agent of the transition to open access.

"Thanks a Million" to all the contributors!

14 December 2022
Recruiting Editorial Board Members for Journals Covered in the Emerging Sources Citation Index (Web of Science)

We are currently recruiting Editorial Board Members (EBMs) for MDPI journals indexed in the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) in Web of Science. In particular, we are looking for experts who are interested in aiding in the development of our journals and safeguarding the scientific quality of the published findings.

Journals currently listed in the ESCI will receive an Impact Factor in June 2023, according to the changes announced by Web of Science (Clarivate). Therefore, this is an excellent time to become an Editorial Board Member for one of these fast-developing journals.

If you are interested in sharing your expertise in one of the journals listed below, please send us an application using this link.

The Editorial Office of the journal will contact you once the application has been approved.
Editorial Board Members are responsible for academic decisions on manuscripts in their field of expertise, will edit Special Issues, and may be invited to review manuscripts. The initial term lasts for two years, after which it can be renewed, and entails the following:

  • Prescreening and making decisions on new submissions related to your research interests;
  • Setting up at least one Special Issue during your term on a topic related to your research interests (or supervising Special Issues related to your research field);
  • Providing input or feedback regarding journal policies;
  • Helping to promote the journal among your peers or at conferences;
  • Attending Board meetings to suggest journal development strategies;
  • Reviewing manuscripts.

Editorial Board Members are entitled to a full waiver on one publication per year in the journal that they serve and need to be experts in their fields.

The list of ESCI journals can be found here: https://www.mdpi.com/about/journals/esci.

Please find the list of ESCI journals, categorized by subject, for which we are recruiting Editorial Board Members below.

Biology

Chemistry & Materials Science

 

Computer Science & Mathematics

Engineering

Environmental & Earth Sciences

Life Science

Medicine & Pharmacology

 

Physical Sciences

Social Sciences & Humanities

 

Society Journals

8 December 2022
MDPI Sustainability Foundation: New Look and Nominations for the 2023 Sustainability Awards Now Open

We are pleased to announce that the website of the MDPI Sustainability Foundation has been revamped! For the past couple of months, our UX UI team and front-end developers have been working hard to launch the website in time for the opening of the Sustainability Awards nominations.

The website is not the only thing that has had a remodeling. Indeed, the format of the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award (ESLA) has been updated. ESLA is now a competition open to individual researchers or start-ups founded by researchers under the age of 35. Nominee applications will go through 2 rounds of selection until the final 3 are decided. The finalists will then be invited to give pitch presentations during the Award Ceremony to win either first place (10,000 USD) or runner-up (2 x 5000 USD).

The World Sustainability Award, on the other hand, remains the same: a total prize money of 100,000 USD is up for grabs by senior individual researchers or groups of researchers from the international research community.

Nominations for both the World Sustainability Award and the Emerging Sustainability Leader award are now open! Check out our new website for more information on how to nominate.

6 December 2022
Cosmetics | Top 20 Cited Papers from 2020–2021


1. “The Beast of Beauty: Environmental and Health Concerns of Toxic Components in Cosmetics”
by Muhammad Bilal, Shahid Mehmood and Hafiz M. N. Iqbal.
Cosmetics 2020, 7(1), 13; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7010013
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/1/13

2. “Seaweeds Compounds: An Ecosustainable Source of Cosmetic Ingredients?”
by Tiago Morais, João Cotas, Diana Pacheco and Leonel Pereira
Cosmetics 2021, 8(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8010008
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/1/8

3. “New Insights on Unique Features and Role of Nanostructured Materials in Cosmetics”
by Muhammad Bilal and Hafiz M. N. Iqbal
Cosmetics 2020, 7(2), 24; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7020024
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/2/24

4. “Towards Optimal pH of the Skin and Topical Formulations: From the Current State of the Art to Tailored Products”
by Milica Lukić, Ivana Pantelić and Snežana D. Savić
Cosmetics 2021, 8(3), 69; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8030069
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/3/69

5.Rosmarinus officinalis L. (Rosemary): An Ancient Plant with Uses in Personal Healthcare and Cosmetics”
by González-Minero, Francisco José, Luis Bravo-Díaz and Antonio Ayala-Gómez
Cosmetics 2020, 7(4), 77; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7040077
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/4/77

6. “How to Use the Normalized Hydrophilic-Lipophilic Deviation (HLDN) Concept for the Formulation of Equilibrated and Emulsified Surfactant-Oil-Water Systems for Cosmetics and Pharmaceutical Products”
by Jean-Louis Salager, Raquel Antón, Johnny Bullón, Ana Forgiarini and Ronald Marquez
Cosmetics 2020, 7(3), 57; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7030057
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/3/57

7. “Insect Chitin-Based Nanomaterials for Innovative Cosmetics and Cosmeceuticals”
by Micaela Triunfo, Elena Tafi, Anna Guarnieri, Carmen Scieuzo, Thomas Hahn, Susanne Zibek, Rosanna Salvia and Patrizia Falabella
Cosmetics 2021, 8(2), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8020040
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/2/40

8. “Natural Antioxidants from Plant Extracts in Skincare Cosmetics: Recent Applications, Challenges and Perspectives”
by Hien Thi Hoang, Ju-Young Moon and Young-Chul Lee
Cosmetics 2021, 8(4), 106; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8040106
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/4/106

9. “Applications of Natural, Semi-Synthetic and Synthetic Polymers in Cosmetic Formulations”
by Thais F. R. Alves, Margreet Morsink, Fernando Batain, Marco V. Chaud, Taline Almeida, Dayane A. Fernandes, Classius F. da Silva, Eliana B. Souto and Patricia Severino
Cosmetics 2020, 7(4), 75; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7040075
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/4/75

10. “Topical Minoxidil-Loaded Nanotechnology Strategies for Alopecia”
by Ana Cláudia Santos, Ana Cláudia Miguel Pereira-Silva, Catarina Guerra, Diana Costa, Diana Peixoto, Irina Pereira, Inês Pita, António J. Ribeiro and Francisco Veiga
Cosmetics 2020, 7(2), 21; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7020021
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/2/21

11. “Design, Preparation and Characterization of Effective Dermal and Transdermal Lipid Nanoparticles: A Review”
by Dima Khater, Hamdi Nsairat, Fadwa Odeh, Mais Saleh, Areej Jaber, Walhan Alshaer, Abeer Al Bawab and Mohammad S. Mubarak
Cosmetics 2021, 8(2), 39; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8020039
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/2/39

12. “Essential Oils and Their Individual Components in Cosmetic Products”
by Eduardo Guzmán and Alejandro Lucia
Cosmetics 2021, 8(4), 114; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8040114
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/4/114

13. “Lecithins from Vegetable, Land and Marine Animal Sources and Their Potential Applications for Cosmetic, Food and Pharmaceutical Sectors”
by Maria J. Alhajj, Nicolle Montero, Cristhian J. Yarce and Constain H. Salamanca.
Cosmetics 2020, 7(4), 87; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7040087
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/4/87

14. “Natural Flavones and Flavonols: Relationships among Antioxidant Activity, Glycation and Metalloproteinase Inhibition”
by Simone Ronsisvalle, Federica Panarello, Giusy Longhitano, Edy Angela Siciliano, Lucia Montenegro and Annamaria Panico
Cosmetics 2020, 7(3), 71; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7030071
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/3/71

15. “Date Fruit and Seed in Nutricosmetics”
by Khlood Lafi Alharbi, Jegadeesh Raman and Hyun-Jae Shin
Cosmetics 2021, 8(3), 59; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics8030059
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/8/3/59

16. “The Chemical Composition, Antioxidant and Anti-Tyrosinase Activities and Irritation Properties of Sripanya Punica granatum Peel Extract”
by Nachtharinee Laosirisathian, Chalermpong Saenjum, Jakkapan Sirithunyalug, Sukum Eitssayeam, Busaban Sirithunyalug and Wantida Chaiyana
Cosmetics 2020, 7(1), 7; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7010007
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/1/7

17. “Enigmatic Microalgae from Aeroterrestrial and Extreme Habitats in Cosmetics: The Potential of the Untapped Natural Sources”
by Maya Stoyneva-Gärtner, Blagoy Uzunov and Georg Gärtner
Cosmetics 2020, 7(2), 27; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7020027
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/2/27

18. “Physicochemical Aspects of the Performance of Hair-Conditioning Formulations”
by Laura Fernández-Peña and Eduardo Guzmán
Cosmetics 2020, 7(2), 26; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7020026
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/2/26

19. “Trends in Surgical and Beauty Masks for a Cleaner Environment”
by Pierfrancesco Morganti, Vladimir E. Yudin, Gianluca Morganti and Maria-Beatrice Coltelli
Cosmetics 2020, 7(3), 68; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7030068
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/3/68

20. “Preliminary Studies on an Innovative Bioactive Skin Soluble Beauty Mask Made by Combining Electrospinning and Dry Powder Impregnation”
by Jorge Teno, María Pardo-Figuerez, Nancy Hummel, Vincent Bonin, Alessandra Fusco, Claudio Ricci, Giovanna Donnarumma, Maria-Beatrice Coltelli, Serena Danti and Jose María Lagaron
Cosmetics 2020, 7(4), 96; https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics7040096
Full text available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/7/4/96

28 September 2022
Peer Review Week 2022 – Research Integrity: Creating and Supporting Trust in Research

Peer Review Week began 19 September 2022 under the theme of “Research Integrity: Creating and Supporting Trust in Research”. Through various blog articles, podcast, and webinar, we discussed this crucial subject throughout the week, celebrating the essential role peer review plays in maintaining research quality.

To begin, we held a Webinar on the topic. Professor Peter W. Choate and Dr. Emmanuel Obeng-Gyasi joined Dr. Ioana Craciun, one of MDPI’s scientific officers, for an in-depth discussion.

We invite you to view the event recording:

During the week, the MDPI Blog in a series articles highlighted how good Peer Review safeguards research integrity. The following topics were covered:

In a new edition of Insight Faster, an MDPI podcast, we were delighted to talk to the co-chairs of the Peer Review Week committee, Jayashree Rajagopalan (Senior Manager of Global Community Engagement for CACTUS) and Danielle Padula (Head of Marketing and Community Development at Scholastica) to get their take on this year’s event and its related topics.

You can find the Podcast here.

We hope you enjoy the contents!

27 June 2022
MDPI’s 2021 Young Investigator Awards in “Chemistry & Materials Sciences”—Winners Announced

MDPI’s Young Investigator Awards recognize promising junior researchers, acknowledge their contributions, and enhance communication among scientists. We are proud to present the winners for the year 2021 in the “Chemistry & Materials Sciences” category. The winners were selected by the journals’ editors.

We warmly congratulate the awarded Young Investigators for their outstanding contributions.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Coatings:

  • Marta Mohedano, Complutense University of Madrid-UCM, Spain

Materials:

  • Edoardo Baldini, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA

Magnetochemistry:

  • Mauro Perfetti, University of Florence, Italy

Membranes:

  • Xu Hou, Xiamen University, China

Molecules:

  • Biplab Maji, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata, India

Nanomaterials:

  • Andres Castellanos-Gomez, Instituto de Ciencia de los Materiales de Madrid, Spain
  • Takuya Isono, Hokkaido University, Japan
  • Panbo Liu, Northwestern Polytechnical University, China

27 June 2022
MDPI’s 2021 Outstanding Reviewer Awards in “Chemistry & Materials Sciences”—Winners Announced

In order to acknowledge our reviewers, who so generously dedicate their time to reviewing papers and demonstrate diligence, professionalism, and timeliness when reviewing manuscripts, MDPI journals regularly offer outstanding reviewer awards to scholars who participate in the peer-review process.

We are proud to recognize the winners for the year 2021 in the “Chemistry & Materials Sciences” category for their outstanding contributions among extensive competition by presenting them with the Outstanding Reviewer Award.

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the winners on their achievement.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

Catalysts:

  • Rahat Javaid, Fukushima Renewable Energy Institute, Japan
  • Georgios Bampos, University of Patras, Greece
  • Esmail Doustkhah, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), Japan
  • Pawan Kumar, University of Alberta, Canada

Magnetochemistry:

  • Lorenzo Sorace, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy

Materials:

  • Khaled Giasin, University of Portsmouth, UK
  • Oldrich Sucharda, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Czech Republic
  • Danil Pimenov, South Ural State University, Russia
  • Marián Palcut, Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, Slovakia

Metals:

  • Khaled Giasin, University of Portsmouth, UK
  • Catalin Pruncu, University of Strathclyde, UK
  • Jacek Tomków, Gdańsk University of Technology, Poland
  • Alexander Yu Churyumov, National University of Science and Technology (MISiS), Russia
  • Hesam Pouraliakbar, Chungnam National University, South Korea

Nanomaterials:

  • George Kenanakis, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Greece
  • Goshtasp Cheraghian, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Germany
  • Oana Cadar, Research Institute for Analytical Instrumentation, Romania

Polymers:

  • Sawsan A. Zaitone, Suez Canal University, Saudi Arabia
  • Lucia Baldino, University of Salerno Via Giovanni Paolo II, Fisciano (SA) Italy
  • Gyorgy Szekely, University of Manchester, UK
  • Bin Jiang, Northeast Agricultural University, China
  • Haibao Lu, Harbin Institute of Technology, China

 

27 June 2022
MDPI’s 2021 Best Paper Awards in “Chemistry & Materials Sciences”—Winners Announced

The purpose of our Best Paper Awards is to promote and recognize the most impactful contributions published within MDPI journals.

The editors of each journal carefully selected reviews and research papers through a rigorous judging process based on criteria such as the scientific merit, overall impact, and the quality of presentation of the papers published in the journal last year.

We are honored to present the winners in the “Chemistry & Materials Sciences” category, who were selected amongst the extensive competition, and congratulate the authors for their outstanding scientific publications.

MDPI will continue to provide support and recognition to the academic community.

C — Journal of Carbon Research

Catalysts:

Ceramics:

Coatings:

Crystals:

Magnetochemistry:

Membranes:

Nanomaterials:

Polymers:

27 June 2022
MDPI’s 2021 Travel Awards in “Chemistry & Materials Sciences—Winners Announced

We are proud to recognize the winners of MDPI’s 2021 Travel Awards in the “Chemistry & Materials Sciences” category for their outstanding presentations.

MDPI journals regularly offer travel awards to encourage talented junior scientists to present their latest research at academic conferences in specific fields, which helps to increase their influence.

The winners mentioned below were carefully selected by the journal editors based on an outline of their research and the work to be presented at an academic conference.

We would like to warmly congratulate the winners of Travel Awards for the year 2021 and wish them the greatest success with their future research endeavors.

MDPI will continue to enhance communication among scientists.

Crystals:

  • Gaojun Mao, Paul Scherrer Institute, Switzerland
  • Lidia Bofill Herrera, University of Barcelona, Spain

Gels:

  • Demetra Giuri, University of Bologna, Italy
  • Martina Genta, Imperial College London, UK

Journal of Functional Biomaterials:

  • Anushree Seth, Washington University, USA

Magnetochemistry:

  • Fabio Ferreira, University of Coimbra, Portugal
  • Giulia Serrano, University of Florence, Italy

Materials

  • Giulia Fredi, University of Trento, Italy
  • Mattia Biesuz, Czech Academy of Science, Czech Republic

Metals:

  • Adriana Eres-Castellanos, Spanish National Center for Metallurgical Research, Spain
  • Pavel Shurkin, National University of Science and Technology, Russia

Nanomaterials:

  • Aleksandrs Leitis, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne, France
  • Ekaterina Kolesova, ITMO, Russia

Separations:

  • Christoph Gstoettner, Leiden University Medical Center, the Netherlands

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