Peer review is the system used to assess the quality of a manuscript before it is published. Independent researchers in the relevant research area assess submitted manuscripts for originality, validity and significance to help Editors determine whether the manuscript should be published in their journal. You can read more about the peer-review process here.
Genome Medicine operates a single-blind peer-review system, where the reviewers are aware of the names and affiliations of the authors, but the reviewer reports provided to authors are anonymous. The benefit of single-blind peer review is that it is the traditional model of peer review that many reviewers are comfortable with, and it facilitates a dispassionate critique of a manuscript.
Manuscripts submitted to Genome Medicine are assessed by our experienced in-house editorial team, who make all decisions based on extensive and rigorous peer review by academic experts who specialize in the manuscript topic. Editorial Board Members may provide advice on manuscripts submitted to the journal but are not involved in the final decisions. The overall editorial responsibility for the journal is with the Chief Editor.
We aim to provide our readership with the highest quality research and information in genomic and post-genomic medicine, and will therefore focus on articles of general and outstanding interest. We welcome presubmission enquiries by email.
Transferred manuscripts
A manuscript submitted to Genome Medicine might not meet the expectations for publication, but could be well-suited for another at Springer Nature. To help authors publish their work quickly, we offer a transfer service between our journals. Please note that if a manuscript you reviewed is transferred by the authors to another journal, your identity and report will also be transferred, where it will be assessed by the in-house editorial team. If you are asked to review a revised version of the manuscript post-transfer, we ask that you do your best to adapt your expectations to the standards of the new journal in relation to perceived significance and interest.
Portable peer review policy
To improve the efficiency of peer review, we are open to considering manuscripts on the basis of reviews received at other journals, including those outside of Springer Nature. Authors wishing to transfer papers with reviews to Genome Medicine should email us at editorial@genomemedicine.com to enquire about the suitability of the manuscript, and provide the previous journal’s identity and all reviews, alongside a point-by-point response to the reviewers’ comments. We typically ask the previous journal to share with us the reviews and reviewers’ identities, and - subject to agreement from all parties - original reviewers may be consulted if deemed appropriate. We aim to expedite the decision-making process in these cases, but reserve the right to seek additional advice from experts when needed.
We are also happy to facilitate transfers to journals within and outside Springer Nature by sharing reviews and reviewers’ identities at the authors’ request. Authors can request that reviews are passed on, and inform the receiving journal’s editors that they can contact us for further information.
Please note that sharing of reviews and reviewers’ identities is subject to reviewers’ approval.