ACS Journal Finder

ACS Bio & Med Chem Au is an open access journal publishing work on all aspects of biological and medicinal chemistry. Studies providing fundamental insights or describing novel syntheses, as well as clinical or other applications-based work, are welcomed. The broad scope includes experimental and theoretical studies on the chemical, physical, mechanistic, and/or structural basis of biological or cell function, as well as medicinal chemistry and infection disease research.

Biological chemistry and chemical biology

• Chemical biology
• Enzymology
• Metallobiochemistry
• Synthetic biology
• Disease biology
• Cell biology
• Agriculture and food
• Natural products research
• Nucleic acid biology
• Neuroscience
• Structural biology
• Biophysics

Medicinal Chemistry

• Compound design and optimization
• Biological evaluation
• Molecular mechanistic understanding of drug delivery and drug delivery systems
• Imaging agents
• Pharmacology and translational science of small and large bioactive molecules
• Novel computational, cheminformatics, and structural studies for the identification (or structure-activity relationship analysis) of bioactive molecules, ligands, and their targets
• Computational studies applying established methods will be considered only in combination with novel experimental data (e.g., in cases where new compounds have been designed and tested).

Infectious Disease Research

• Pathogens
• Host-pathogen interactions
• Therapeutics
• Diagnostics
• Vaccines
• Drug-delivery systems
• Other biomedical technology development pertaining to infectious diseases

The preeminent comprehensive catalysis journal. 

ACS Catalysis is dedicated to publishing original research on heterogeneous catalysis, homogeneous catalysis, and biocatalysis. ACS Catalysis includes both experimental and theoretical research on molecules, macromolecules and materials that are catalytic in nature, that is, they exhibit catalytic turnover.

Wide-ranging coverage of catalysis includes, but is not limited to:

• drug discovery and synthesis
• electrochemistry
• energy and fuels
• life sciences
• materials science
• organometallics and synthesis
• photochemistry
• polymer discovery and synthesis
• synthesis of organic, medicinal, and bio-organic molecules

Potential authors are encouraged to read our instructive Editorials for guidance as well as the manuscript submission requirements checklist.

• To Err is Human; To Reproduce Takes Time
• Best Practices in Pursuit of Topics in Heterogeneous Electrocatalysis
• The Scope of Papers Sought in Three Catalysis Subdisciplines: Biocatalysis and Enzymology, Molecular Catalysis for Organic Synthesis, and Heterogeneous Photocatalysis
• Organic Electrosynthesis: When is it Electrocatalysis?
• The Burden of Disproof
• A Matter of Life(time) and Death
• Superlative Scientific Writing
• Nano-Apples and Orange-Zymes
• New Guidelines for Presenting Electrochemical Data in All ACS Journals
• Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission to ACS Catalysis

All manuscripts are subject to critical, anonymous peer review. It is to be understood that the final decision relating to a manuscript’s suitability rests solely with the Editor.

ACS Chemical Biology provides an international forum for the rapid communication of research that broadly embraces the interface between chemistry and biology.

The journal also serves as a forum to facilitate the communication between biologists and chemists that will translate into new research opportunities and discoveries. Results will be published in which molecular reasoning has been used to probe questions through in vitro investigations, cell biological methods, or organismic studies.

We welcome mechanistic studies on proteins, nucleic acids, sugars, lipids, and nonbiological polymers. The journal serves a large scientific community, exploring cellular function from both chemical and biological perspectives. It is understood that submitted work is based upon original results and has not been published previously.

ACS Chemical Neuroscience publishes high-quality research articles and reviews that showcase chemical, quantitative biological, biophysical and bioengineering approaches to the understanding of the nervous system and to the development of new treatments for neurological disorders. Research in the journal focuses on aspects of chemical neurobiology and bio-neurochemistry such as the following:

• Neurotransmitters and receptors
• Neuropharmaceuticals and therapeutics
• Neural development—Plasticity, and degeneration
• Chemical, physical, and computational methods in neuroscience
• Neuronal diseases—basis, detection, and treatment
• Mechanism of aging, learning, memory, and behavior
• Pain and sensory processing
• Neurotoxins
• Neuroscience-inspired bioengineering
• Development of methods in chemical neurobiology
• Neuroimaging agents and technologies
• Animal models for central nervous system diseases
• Behavioral research

Research articles reporting the identification of general principles that govern how information is processed by neuronal circuits; or using genetic model systems in conjunction with computational biology, imaging, electrophysiological, and computational neuroscience (neuroinformatics) are also welcomed.

ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters is interested in receiving manuscripts that discuss various aspects of medicinal chemistry. The journal will publish studies that pertain to a broad range of subject matter, including compound design and optimization, biological evaluation, drug delivery, imaging agents, drug interactome studies, and pharmacology of both small and large bioactive molecules.

Specific areas include but are not limited to:

• Identification, synthesis, and optimization of lead biologically active molecules and drugs (small molecules and biologics)
• Biological characterization of new molecular entities in the context of drug discovery towards delineating structure-activity relationship (SAR) trends
• Computational, cheminformatics, and structural studies for the identification or SAR analysis of bioactive molecules, ligands, and their targets, etc.
• Use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in drug discovery
• Novel and improved methodologies, including radiation biochemistry, with broad application to medicinal chemistry if the methods have been tested on relevant molecules. (e.g., DNA-encoded libraries, high-throughput experimentation, high-throughput parallel synthesis- compound library production, fragment-based drug discovery, covalent modulators.)
• New developments in discovery screening and bioassay technologies for biologically active molecules from both synthetic and natural (plant and other) sources.
• Chemistry patents relevant to the medicinal chemistry field
• Studies involving proximity-inducing agents including targeted protein degradation and molecular glues.

ACS Omega publishes new peer-reviewed findings in chemistry and the interfacing sciences, including interdisciplinary studies. The editors seek content supported by sound scientific principles and robust experimental protocols, without a requirement for wider significance. Reports of negative results that meet these expectations are welcome. ACS Omega welcomes work on topics including (but not limited to):

• Core chemistry (inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry)
• Agriculture and food chemistry
• Applied chemistry
• Astrochemistry
• Chemical biology, biological chemistry, and medicinal chemistry
• Catalysis
• Chemical engineering and industrial chemistry
• Energy
• Environmental and sustainable chemistry
• Materials science
• Measurement science
• Nanoscience
• Polymer science
• Theoretical and computational chemistry

ACS Synthetic Biology is a monthly peer-reviewed journal dedicated to research across all areas of synthetic biology. The journal is particularly interested in studies on the design and synthesis of new biological or biohybrid systems; computational methods in the design of biological or biohybrid systems; and the application of synthetic biology in various areas.

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Design, engineering, and optimization of biological systems
• Design, characterization, and assembly of genetic circuits and parts
• DNA synthesis or assembly methodologies
• Robotic platforms or biofoundries for synthetic biology
• Creative and innovative applications of cellular programming
• In vitro and cell-free synthetic biology and molecular programming
• Minimal cell design and construction
• Genomics and genome replacement strategies
• Computational methods
• Natural product discovery, engineering, and production
• Mammalian synthetic biology
• Plant synthetic biology
• Food synthetic biology
• Engineered biomaterials
• Metagenomics and synthetic metagenomic analysis
• Environmental applications

Accounts of Chemical Research presents short, concise, and critical articles offering easy-to-read overviews of basic research and applications in all areas of chemistry and in allied fields in which chemical approaches play a key role. Each Account focuses on research from the author’s own laboratory, and they are designed to teach the reader about a research project. 

Each Account can be thought of as a “seminar in print,” as the authors tell the research story of their lab and give readers insight into both the science itself as well as the people behind it.

Accounts are only considered for publication by invitation, but prospective authors are encouraged to submit a Proposal which, if accepted, will result in an invitation to submit a full Account. The journal considers submissions in core fields such as, but not limited to:

• Analytical, physical, inorganic, and organic chemistry
• Biological and medicinal chemistry, and biotechnology
• Sustainable and environmental chemistry
• Computational and theoretical chemistry
• Materials and nanoscience
• Energy and catalysis
• Chemical engineering
• Earth, atmospheric and space chemistry
• Chemical education

Biochemistry provides an international forum for publishing exceptional, rigorous, high-impact research in all aspects of biological chemistry.

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• The structure, function, regulation, and/or dynamics of natural, designed, or evolved biopolymers (e.g., proteins, DNA, RNA, oligosaccharides)
• The chemical, physical, mechanistic, and/or structural basis of biological or cell function
• Research in molecular enzymology, chemical biology, synthetic biology, cell biology, disease biology, nucleic acid biology, neuroscience, structural biology, computational biology, membrane biology, and biophysics 

The Journal does NOT cover the following areas if they are presented as solitary topics and without making a strong connection to biochemical mechanisms or concepts:

• Clinical research
• Organismal biology

Bioconjugate Chemistry invites original contributions on all research at the interface between synthetic and biological materials. The journal intends to provide a forum for presentation of research relevant to all aspects of bioconjugates, including the preparation, properties, and applications of biomolecular conjugates.

The mission of the journal is to communicate to advances in fields including:

• Therapeutic delivery
• Imaging
• Bionanotechnology
• Synthetic biology

Chemical Reviews publishes comprehensive, authoritative, critical, and readable reviews of important recent research across all areas of chemistry.

Reviews are only considered for publication by invitation, but prospective authors are encouraged to submit a Proposal which, if accepted, will result in an invitation to submit a full Review. The journal considers submissions in core fields such as, but not limited to:

• Analytical, physical, inorganic, and organic chemistry
• Biological and medicinal chemistry, and biotechnology
• Sustainable and environmental chemistry
• Computational and theoretical chemistry
• Materials and nanoscience
• Energy and catalysis
• Chemical engineering
• Earth, atmospheric and space chemistry

Chemical education

JACS Au is a monthly open access multi-disciplinary journal devoted to the publication of manuscripts reporting significant research discoveries in all fields of chemistry. The journal considers submissions in traditional core fields including, but not limited to:

• Analytical, physical, inorganic, and organic chemistry
• Biological, medicinal, and environmental chemistry
• Computational and theoretical chemistry
• Materials and nanoscience
• Energy and catalysis
• Chemical engineering
• Chemical education
• Multidisciplinary research as it applies to chemistry

JACS Au considers submissions that are fully computational, fully experimental, and submissions that combine both

Journal of Medicinal Chemistry publishes studies that contribute to an understanding of the relationship between molecular structure and biological activity or mode of action.

Some specific areas that are appropriate include the following:

• Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of novel biologically active compounds, diagnostic agents, or labeled ligands employed as pharmacological tools.
• Molecular modifications of reported series that lead to a significantly improved understanding of their structure-activity relationships (SAR). Routine extensions of existing series that do not utilize novel chemical or biological approaches or do not add significantly to a basic understanding of the SAR of the series will normally not be accepted for publication.
• Structural biological studies (X-ray, NMR, etc.) of relevant ligands and targets with the aim of investigating molecular recognition processes in the action of biologically active compounds.
• Molecular biological studies (e.g., site-directed mutagenesis) of macromolecular targets that lead to an improved understanding of molecular recognition.
• Computational studies that provide fresh insight into the SAR of compound series that are of current general interest or analysis of other available data that subsequently advance medicinal chemistry knowledge.
• Substantially novel computational chemistry methods with demonstrated value for the identification, optimization, or target interaction analysis of bioactive molecules.
• Effect of molecular structure on the distribution, pharmacokinetics, and metabolic transformation of biologically active compounds. This may include design, synthesis, and evaluation of novel types of prodrugs.
• Novel methodology with broad application to medicinal chemistry, but only if the methods have been tested on relevant molecules.

The Journal of Natural Products invites and publishes papers that make substantial and scholarly contributions to the area of natural products research. Contributions may relate to the chemistry and/or biochemistry of naturally occurring compounds or the biology of living systems from which they are obtained. When new compounds are reported, manuscripts describing their biological activity are much preferred.

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Secondary metabolites of microorganisms, including antibiotics and mycotoxins
• Physiologically active compounds from terrestrial and marine plants and animals
• Biochemical studies, including biosynthesis and microbiological transformations
• Fermentation and plant tissue culture
• Isolation, structure elucidation, and chemical synthesis of novel compounds from nature
• Pharmacology of compounds of natural origin 

Manuscripts that focus on biological properties of chemically complex extracts, mixtures, or essential oils are outside the scope of the journal.

Journal of Proteome Research is a monthly peer-reviewed journal dedicated to research across all aspects of global protein and metabolite analysis and function. The emphasis of the journal is on a multidisciplinary approach to the life sciences through the synergy between the different types of "omics".

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Proteomics (bulk and single cell)
• Metabolomics (bulk and single cell)
• Mass Spectrometry Imaging (proteins, peptides, and metabolites)
• Proteogenomics
• Metaproteomics
• Lipidomics
• Interactomics- Affinity purification MS, Crosslinking MS, Proximity Analysis, Two Hybrid Methods
• Protein Footprinting, 3D Proteomics
• Multi-omics system analysis
• Computational methods including bioinformatics, artificial intelligence and machine learning, or other software tools to aid in data analysis and analysis of experimental systems.
• Methods for multi-omics analyses
• Development of methods and application to new areas, including studies in paleobiology, archeology, rare species (e.g., Komodo dragon), and forensic science, to name a few.

The Journal of the American Chemical Society, founded in 1879, is the flagship journal of the American Chemical Society and the world’s preeminent journal of chemistry and interfacing areas of science. The journal considers submissions in core fields such as, but not limited to:

• Analytical, physical, inorganic, and organic chemistry
• Biological and medicinal chemistry, and biotechnology
• Sustainable and environmental chemistry
• Computational and theoretical chemistry
• Materials and nanoscience
• Energy and catalysis
• Chemical engineering
• Earth, atmospheric and space chemistry
• Chemical education

Molecular Pharmaceutics publishes original theoretical and experimental research that contributes significantly to the molecular mechanistic understanding of drug delivery and drug delivery systems. Modalities of interest include small molecules, imaging agents, proteins, peptides, vaccines, cell and gene-based therapies, and their characterization, formulation, and delivery. Scientific areas within the scope of the journal include:

• Modelling and simulation to aid mechanistic insights into drug delivery
• Molecular understanding of formulations
• Formulation performance under physiological conditions
• Materials science as it relates to drug, excipients, and drug delivery system efficacy.
• Emerging techniques and technologies for drug delivery including theranostics, precision medicine, and artificial intelligence

Submission of a manuscript to Molecular Pharmaceutics implies that the same work has not been previously published, including as part of a public electronic database (preprint servers like bioRxiv and ChemRxiv are permissible), and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. In addition, there must be no legal restrictions to publication, e.g., patent activities, at the time of submission.

Chemical research focused on precision enables more controllable, predictable, and accurate outcomes, which in turn drive innovation in measurement science, sustainable materials, information materials, personalized medicines, energy, environmental science, and countless other fields requiring chemical insights.

Precision Chemistry is an open access journal that provides a unique and highly focused publishing venue for fundamental, applied, and interdisciplinary research aiming to achieve precision calculation, design, synthesis, manipulation, measurement, and manufacturing. It is committed to bringing together researchers from across the chemical sciences and the related scientific areas, to showcase original research and critical reviews of exceptional quality, significance, and interest to the broad chemistry and scientific community.

Specific topics of interest may include, but are not limited to:

• Precision and controllable chemical synthesis with high selectivity and efficiency
• Molecular engineering for highly-complex, multifunctional molecular systems (molecular machines and devices etc.)
• Controllable self-assembly strategy with precisely defined structures and dimensions
• Precision macromolecular and supramolecular systems
• Precision nanotechnology and nanomanufacturing
• Function-oriented design and fabrication of materials
• Tunable catalysis with high efficiency
• Precision sensing, imaging and characterization of molecules and chemical reactions
• Theoretical studies with high accuracy and computational efficiency (atomistic simulations of chemical, biological and materials systems)
• Precision Chemistry in life science and medicine (genome editing, protein and enzyme engineering, molecular diagnostics, targeted therapeutics, etc.)
• Precision Chemistry in energy and environmental science (energy conversion, energy storage, water resources, environmental remediation, carbon neutrality, etc.)

APCs are automatically waived for all articles submitted by December 31, 2025, if they are accepted after peer review.

The Journal of Physical Chemistry B: Biophysics, Biomaterials, Liquids, and Soft Matter

The Journal of Physical Chemistry B (JPC B) publishes experimental, theoretical, and computational research in the area of biophysics, biochemistry, biomaterials, liquids and soft matter. Examples of topics of special interest include:

• biomolecules (proteins, nucleic acids, membranes, enzyme catalysis)
• biomaterials (including nano-biomaterials)
• polymers and colloids
• liquids (properties of liquids, ionic liquids, deep eutectic solvents, fluid interfaces, and solid-liquid interfaces; bulk studies of electrolytes)
• surfactants
• glasses
• spectroscopy, charge, and energy transfer of molecules in solution

Sections:

• B1 Biophysical and Biochemical Systems and Processes
• B2 Biomaterials and Membranes
• B3 Liquids; Chemical and Dynamical Processes in Solution
• B4 Soft Matter, Fluid Interfaces, Colloids, Polymers, and Glassy Materials 

If you are unsure about whether your manuscript fits within the scope of JPC B, please contact the Editor-in-Chief (eic@jpc.acs.org). This Collection provides tips for creating high impact experimental and theory/computational manuscripts. This Editorial gives guidelines for computational and theory research.