Announcements

Five new journals covering multiple subjects have launched their inaugural issue in June 2024. We are excited to be able to share with you the newest research rooted in the value of open access.

We would like to express our deepest appreciation to all the Editorial Board Members and each journal will ensure its high-quality output using excellent editorial and rigorous peer review processes, to ensure that the articles achieve high impact and visibility.

Please feel free to browse and discover more about the new journals below.

Journal	Founding Editor-in-Chief	Journal Topics (Selected)
	Prof. Dr. Marco Ranucci, IRCCS Policlinico San Donato, Italy | Editorial | view inaugural issue	anaesthetic medications; blood and fluid management; pain management; critical care; critical illness | view journal scope | submit an article
	Dr. Giovanni E. Cacciamani, University of Southern California, USA | Editorial | view inaugural issue	surgical/procedural complications; complications; perioperative adverse events; postoperative adverse events | view journal scope | submit an article
	Prof. Dr.  Gassan Hodaifa, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Spain | Editorial | view inaugural issue	laboratory management; laboratory safety; protective equipment; laboratory problems and challenges; laboratory Innovation | view journal scope | submit an article
	Prof. Dr. Jan S. Suchodolski, Texas A&M University, USA | Editorial | view inaugural issue	companion animals health and disease; veterinary care and nutrition; genetics and genomics; behavior and welfare; human-animal relations | view journal scope | submit an article
	Prof. Dr. Pierfrancesco De Paola, University of Naples Federico II, Italy | Editorial | view inaugural issue	real estate appraisal; economic and financial valuation of real estate projects; sustainable real estate; housing and urban economics | view journal scope | submit an article

We wish to thank everyone who has supported the development of open access publishing. You are welcome to send an application here, or contact the New Journal Committee (newjournal-committee@mdpi.com) if you would like to create more new journals.

Conference: the CRS 2024 Annual Meeting and Expo (CRS 2024)
Date: 8–12 July 2024
Location: Bologna, Italy

This conference will be the 51st annual conference of the Controlled Release Society. The annual CRS conference is the most important one in the pharmaceutics field. The main topics of the conference include Nanomedicine and Nanoscale Delivery, Immuno Delivery, Oral Delivery, Skin and Mucosal Delivery, Ocular Delivery, Bioengineering, Gene Delivery and Gene Editing, Alternative Methods to Animal Testing, Long-Acting Drug Delivery Formulations, Delivery to the Nervous System, Artificial Intelligence, and Predictive Models in Pharmaceutical Technologies.

MDPI will be attending the CRS 2024 Annual Meeting and Expo (CRS 2024). We welcome researchers from different backgrounds to visit and share their latest ideas with us.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Pharmaceutics;
• Molecules;
• Pharmaceuticals;
• Future Pharmacology;
• Applied Biosciences;
• IJMS;
• Gels;
• BioMedInformatics;
• CIMB;
• JNT;
• Life;
• Biomolecules.

If you plan to attend this conference, please contact us online. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person at booth #29 and answering any questions you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website:  https://2024crsannualmeeting.eventscribe.net/.

We are thrilled to welcome you to our upcoming webinar “Advances in Natural Products and Their Derivatives for Metabolic and Chronic Inflammatory Disease Therapy" that promises to be a pivotal event under the Special Issue “Advances in Natural Products and Their Derivatives for Metabolic and Chronic Inflammatory Disease Therapy”.

In this engaging webinar, we will shed light on the critical role of the NRF-2 transcription factor (nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2) in modulating inflammatory diseases and how natural compounds offer valuable insights for research and development of effective therapies.

Join us as we delve into the latest discoveries and insights surrounding NRF-2, a pivotal protein in stress response and inflammation regulation, and explore the potential implications for therapeutic interventions.

Register now to secure your spot!

Date: 28 June 2024 at 03:00 p.m. CEST | 09:00 a.m. EDT | 09:00 p.m. CST Asia
Webinar ID: 854 8025 5074
Webinar link: https://sciforum.net/event/Topics-24

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the webinar. Registrations with academic institutional email addresses will be prioritized.

Register now for free!

Webinar Chair and Keynote Speakers:

• Marisa Freitas, LAQV-REQUIMTE, Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy of University of Porto, Portugal;
• Paulo Matafome, Instituto Politécnico de Coimbra, Escola Superior de Tecnologia da Saúde de Coimbra, Portugal;
• Alexandre Borbely, Institute of Biological and Health Sciences, Federal University of Alagoas, Brazil;
• Prof. Maria Teresa Cruz, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra, Portugal.

Relevant Special Issue:
“Advances in Natural Products and Their Derivatives for Metabolic and Chronic Inflammatory Disease Therapy, 2nd Edition”
Guest Editors: Eduarda Fernandes, Marisa Freitas and Ana Teresa Rufino
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 July 2024 

MDPI is pleased to announce the inclusion of 237 journals in the 2024 release of the Journal Citation Reports (JCR) and share the key results (see above).

This year, journals covered in the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) received category ranks together with journals in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI). Overall, 139 MDPI journals indexed in ESCI are included in the new unified rankings for the first time.

Enhanced Comparability of Data

According to Clarivate, "the creation of unified category rankings [provides] a simpler and more complete category view for the evaluation of journal performance. [...] The category-first approach simplifies journal performance assessment with a holistic view of all journals in each subject category."

We are thrilled to announce that 72% of our ranked MDPI journals (171 of 237) are above average, in Q1 or Q2. Twenty-nine of our journals received their first Impact Factor this year, accounting for more than 5% of the journals accepted into the Web of Science last year.

MDPI Journals Ranked in JCR

The following data includes all MDPI journals indexed in SCIE, SSCI, ESCI and AHCI.

Source: 2023 Journal Impact Factors, Journal Citation Reports ^TM (Clarivate, 2024)

About MDPI

A pioneer in scholarly, open access publishing, MDPI has supported academic communities since 1996. MDPI is leading the transition to open science by making more research free and accessible to everyone. Over 3.5 million researchers have entrusted MDPI with publishing their scientific discoveries. MDPI’s editorial process is bolstered by a network of dedicated reviewers, a team of 6000 professional, well-trained staff members, and an in-house article submission platform that was designed to ensure efficient processes within its 440 fully open access titles.

1. “Ionotropic Gelation and Chemical Crosslinking as Methods for Fabrication of Modified-Release Gellan Gum-Based Drug Delivery Systems”
by Piotr Gadziński, Anna Froelich, Barbara Jadach, Monika Wojtyłko, Adam Tatarek, Antoni Białek, Julia Krysztofiak, Michał Gackowski, Filip Otto and Tomasz Osmałek
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(1), 108; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15010108
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/1/108

2. “Tri-Layer Core–Shell Fibers from Coaxial Electrospinning for a Modified Release of Metronidazole”
by Ying Wang, Lin Liu, Yuanjie Zhu, Liangzhe Wang, Deng-Guang Yu, and Li-ying Liu
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(11), 561; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15112561
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/11/2561

3. “Liposomal Amphotericin B for Treatment of Leishmaniasis: From the Identification of Critical Physicochemical Attributes to the Design of Effective Topical and Oral Formulations”
by Frédéric Frézard, Marta M. G. Aguiar, Lucas A. M. Ferreira, Guilherme S. Ramos, Thais T. Santos, Gabriel S. M. Borges, Virgínia M. R. Vallejos and Helane L. O. De Morais
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(1), 99; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15010099
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/1/99

4. “GelMA, Click-Chemistry Gelatin and Bioprinted Polyethylene Glycol-Based Hydrogels as 3D Ex Vivo Drug Testing Platforms for Patient-Derived Breast Cancer Organoids”
by Nathalie Bock, Farzaneh Forouz, Luke Hipwood, Julien Clegg, Penny Jeffery, Madeline Gough, Tirsa van Wyngaard, Christopher Pyke, Mark N. Adams, Laura J. Bray et al.
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(1), 261; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15010261
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/1/261

5. “A Review of Protein- and Peptide-Based Chemical Conjugates: Past, Present, and Future”
by Emily Holz, Martine Darwish, Devin B. Tesar and Whitney Shatz-Binder
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(2), 600; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15020600
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/2/600

6. “Antibacterial Activity of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Loaded with Essential Oils”
by Ludmila Motelica, Bogdan-Stefan Vasile, Anton Ficai, Adrian-Vasile Surdu, Denisa Ficai, Ovidiu-Cristian Oprea, Ecaterina Andronescu, Gabriel Mustățea, Elena Loredana Ungureanu and Alina Alexandra Dobre
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(10), 2470; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15102470
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/10/2470

7. “Formulation and Characterisation of Carbamazepine Orodispersible 3D-Printed Mini-Tablets for Paediatric Use”
by Jiayu Hu, Rawan Fitaihi, Shorooq Abukhamees and Hend E. Abdelhakim
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(1), 250; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15010250
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/1/250

8. “Impact of Tablet Size and Shape on the Swallowability in Older Adults”
by Henriette Hummler, Cordula Stillhart, Lisa Meilicke, Michael Grimm, Elischa Krause, Marwan Mannaa, Maik Gollasch, Werner Weitschies and Susanne Page
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(4), 1042; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15041042
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/4/1042

9. “Evaluating the Skin Interactions and Permeation of Alginate/Fucoidan Hydrogels Per Se and Associated with Different Essential Oils”
by Ana Isabel Barbosa, Sofia A. Costa Lima, Ibraheem Yousef and Salette Reis
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(1), 190; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15010190
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/1/190

10. “Recent Advances in Co-Former Screening and Formation Prediction of Multicomponent Solid Forms of Low Molecular Weight Drugs”
by Yuehua Deng, Shiyuan Liu, Yanbin Jiang, Inês C. B. Martins and Thomas Rades
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(9), 2174; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15092174
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/15/9/2174

We are pleased to inform you that Pharmaceutics (ISSN: 1999-4923) has received a heightened CiteScore of 7.9.

Pharmaceutics’ CiteScore ranks 32 among 183 titles (Q1) in the “Pharmaceutical Science” category.

CiteScore provides transparent metrics that enable well-informed publishing strategies, library collection development, and the benchmarking of journal performance. It is now a standard citation metric alongside SNIP and SJR that gives an up-to-date view of a journal’s impact. The 2023 CiteScore provides an assessment of the scientific influence of journals in the 2020 to 2023 period.

This result is a reflection of the excellent performance, support, and dedication of all journal editors, reviewers, authors, and readers.

For more journal statistics, please visit https://www.mdpi.com/journal/pharmaceutics/stats.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the journal.

Pharmaceutics Editorial Office

On UNESCO’s 2024 Oceans Day, MDPI encourages the scientific community to increase the accessibility of ocean research to accelerate ocean conservation.

Basel, Switzerland, June 7, 2024: MDPI, a leading open access (OA) publisher, is proud to announce its active support for World Oceans Day 2024, celebrated under UNESCO’s Ocean Decade framework. MDPI’s CEO, Stefan Tochev hopes that “the latest ocean research can be made freely accessible to help empower scientists and communities at large to save our oceans,” under UNESCO’s Ocean Decade until 2030.

Open Access: A Catalyst for Ocean Action

MDPI’s presence at the UNESCO Ocean Decade Conference 2024 highlights our unwavering commitment to using OA to advance ocean science, support research communities, and promote sustainable ocean management.

"Our involvement in the UNESCO Ocean Decade Conference underscores MDPI's commitment to the underfunded Ocean SDG. By promoting OA to scientific articles and books on SDGs, we aim to inspire critical actions," said Tochev. "Our initiatives, like the World Sustainability Award and Emerging Sustainability Award, further demonstrate our dedication to advancing sustainability.”

Showcasing MDPI’s Contributions to Ocean Research

Over the past three years, MDPI has published 30,000 papers focused on ocean research and related topics. Key MDPI journals contributing to this body of work include:

• Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (4.9k papers)
• Remote Sensing (2.6k papers)
• Sustainability (2k papers)
• International Journal of Molecular Sciences (IJMS) (1.7k papers)
• Marine Drugs (1.5k papers)
• Water (1.5k papers)

These publications highlight MDPI’s contributions to ocean science, reinforcing our role in the broader sustainability agenda by promoting blue innovation and economy.

Additionally, MDPI has launched Oceans, an international, peer-reviewed forum specifically aimed at publishing studies related to all branches of oceanography with an emphasis on the functioning of the ocean and the sustainable use of its resources and ecosystem services.

Affirming MDPI’s Commitment to Ocean Science

MDPI’s commitment to OA is pivotal in addressing critical global challenges, from climate change to ocean sustainability. Our efforts resonate with Outcome 4 of the UNESCO Ocean Decade action roadmap: an accessible ocean with open and equitable access to data, information, technology, and innovation. By aligning with UNESCO’s goals, MDPI continues to contribute to shaping a sustainable future for our oceans, reinforcing our position as a forward-thinking publisher dedicated to environmental stewardship and scientific excellence.

For more information, contact Rui Duarte at rui.duarte@mdpi.com or +41764313242.

About MDPI

95% of authors rate MDPI’s publication process as excellent or good, setting a new benchmark in scientific publishing – reveals 2023 Annual Report. 

Basel, Switzerland, June 4, 2024: MDPI, the leading open access (OA) publisher, proudly announces the release of its 2023 Annual Report, detailing remarkable achievements and reaffirming its leadership in advancing OA publishing. In 2023, MDPI received 655,065 submissions, of which 285,244 articles were published. The company now commands a 17% market share in gold open access articles, with a median publication time of six weeks.

Stefan Tochev, MDPI's CEO, stated, "As a pioneer in open access publishing, MDPI has long been a game-changer in the scholarly community, serving millions of authors around the world to ensure the latest research is freely available. Reflecting on our incredible journey at MDPI, 2023 has been marked by growth in paper submissions, ambitious projects and initiatives aimed at improving our internal processes and delivering top-notch services to our scientists."

MDPI's 2023 Annual Report highlights several key achievements:

• 17% market share in gold open access articles across all disciplines.
• Record satisfaction rates: 95% of authors, 82% of reviewers, and 85% of guest editors.
• Enhanced editorial standards and feedback processes.
• Increased reach and impact with 54 new MDPI journal inclusions in Scopus, 29 in Web of Science, and 77 in DOAJ.

MDPI’s unwavering commitment to advancing OA has transformed the landscape of scholarly publishing, making high-quality research freely accessible to the global scientific community. The continuous improvement in our editorial standards and feedback processes underscores MDPI’s dedication to ensuring academic integrity and excellence.

Global Reach and Collaboration

MDPI’s global footprint continues to expand, with authors from diverse regions: 37% from Asia/Pacific, 36% from Europe, 15% from the Americas, and 12% from other parts of the world. The company’s fully OA platform attracted nearly 14 million monthly visitors in 2023, reflecting its widespread influence in the scientific community.

Commitment to Partnerships

With over 800 institutional partners, MDPI continues to demonstrate its dedication to providing reliable and collaborative publishing services. The introduction of a transparent flat-fee model highlights MDPI's ongoing efforts to enhance affordability and support to the academic community. For more details read our 2023 Annual Report.

For more information, contact Rui Duarte at rui.duarte@mdpi.com or +41764313242.

About MDPI

The ESMO Congress is a globally influential oncology platform that unites clinicians, researchers, patient advocates, journalists and healthcare industry representatives from all over the world. ESMO 2024 will disseminate the latest cutting-edge data, providing high-quality education and excellent networking opportunities for oncologists and other stakeholders on an international level.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Cancers;
• JCM;
• Healthcare;
• Pharmaceutics;
• Applied Biosciences;
• Dermatopathology;
• Onco;
• Biomedicines;
• Cells;
• Diagnostics;
• Current Oncology;
• Immuno;
• Hemato;
• Gastrointestinal Disorders;
• Biologics;
• Biomolecules;
• Clinics and Practice;
• Medical Sciences.

If you are participating in this conference, please feel free to engage with us online prior to attendance. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person at booth #P627 and answering any questions you may have. For more information regarding the conference, please visit the following link: https://www.esmo.org/meeting-calendar/esmo-congress-2024.

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Wei Wu has been appointed Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Nanomedicine and Nanotechnology” Section in Pharmaceutics (ISSN: 1999-4923). With his extensive background in scientific research and publishing, he will bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to this prestigious role.

Prof. Dr. Wu is a professor at the Fudan University School of Pharmacy, Shanghai, China, and the director of the Fudan-Ruixing Joint Laboratories of Pharmaceutical Nanotechnology. He was the Vice Dean of his school and Deputy Director of the Institute of Pharmacy. He is currently the Vice President of Pharmaceutics and Particle Design Chapter of the China Particuology Society and the Vice President of Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Committee of the World Union of TCM. His expertise is in nanomedicine, biopharmaceutics, and pharmaceutical nanotechnology. He has published more than 300 peer-reviewed publications in prestigious journals on pharmaceutics, drug delivery, and nanomedicines. A full list of his publications can be found here.

Prof. Dr. Wu and coworkers developed new types of NIR-I and NIR-II fluorophores with absolute aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) properties for accurate bioimaging and quantification of drug nanocarriers. His group established the basic concepts and methodologies regarding nanocarrier analysis and particokinetics. He has also been among the World's Top 2% Scientists (annual and career) for several consecutive years in pharmacology and toxicology, according to the list created by researchers from Stanford University. He has also been awarded for his research and academic excellence, including New Century Excellent Talent of Ministry of Education, Shanghai Excellent Discipline Leaders, Shanghai Twilight Scholars, and Distinguished Lectureship by the Nagai Foundation Tokyo.

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Wei Wu, who shared his vision for the journal with us, as well as his views on the research area and open access publishing:

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to become its Section Editor-in-Chief?
Pharmaceutics has established a platform for communication and dissemination of knowledge within and outside of the pharmaceutics and drug delivery community. In the past, I benefited significantly from Pharmaceutics as an author, and I am satisfied for contributing to the scientific community in the role of a reviewer or an Editorial Board Member. To be a Section Editor-in-Chief, I regard it as a great opportunity to better serve the pharmaceutics and drug delivery community.

2. What are your plans and vision for the Section and the journal?
As Pharmaceutics has established its place and influence in the cross-field of pharmaceutics, drug delivery, and nanomedicines, my vision for it is steady growth, serving the scientific community with more high-quality contributions, more open access publications, and continuously increasing impact. In view of the booming research trends in nanomedicine and nanotechnology, my vision is to continuously lead the Sections and make growing contributions to the development of Pharmaceutics.

3. What does the future of this field of research look like?
Against the backdrop of the rapid development of innovative drugs and delivery systems, the field of pharmaceutics has experienced continuous growth in recent decades, and this trend will surely continue because of the demands of precision medicine for delicately orchestrated delivery strategies and delivery systems. That said, all endeavors in the discovery stages will only lead to the prosperity of pharmaceutics. Nonetheless, in the future, pharmaceutics may welcome new active ingredients spanning from small molecules to biomacromolecules and to new combinations and compounds with multiple components, which may challenge and push forward the development of theories, mindsets, and technologies in pharmaceutics and drug delivery.

4. What do you think of the development of open access in the publishing field?
Open access publication definitely benefits the scientific community by offering free access. However, excessive commercialization by compromising article quality would stymie the development of open access scientific publishing. By adhering to strict peer review standards, open access publishing may flourish, switching to a virtuous circle.

We warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Wei Wu as the new Section Editor-in-Chief and we look forward to him leading Pharmaceutics to many more milestones.