Perspectives in Biology and Medicine

Hopkins Press does not require potential contributors to pay an article submission fee to be considered for publication in any of the scholarly academic Journals that we publish. The literary publications that we publish (The Hopkins Review, The Sewanee Review and The Yale Review) do require a submission fee. Websites that purport to be affiliated with a Hopkins Press Journal and that require payment of an article submission fee, other than the literary journals mentioned above, are fraudulent. Do not provide payment information. Instead, we ask that you contact William Breichner, Hopkins Press Journals Publisher: [email protected].

I. Editorial Policy

Perspectives in Biology and Medicine is an interdisciplinary journal published by The Johns Hopkins University Press. Our readers include scientists, physicians, students, and scholars in many disciplines who are interested in the intersections of biology and medicine. We publish essays that place biological and medical topics within broad scientific, social, or humanistic contexts. We also publish short articles, critical assessments of books, and, occasionally, personal essays and short stories. Although some of our essays are invited, we welcome voluntary contributions. Please note that we do not publish primary scientific research or works prepared using AI tools.

Essays should be preceded by an abstract of up to 200 words. The essays we publish generally range from 4,000 to 7,000 words. We encourage authors to use a personal, informal writing style that preserves the humanity, excitement, and color of the biological and medical sciences.

All essays are subject to peer review before publication, and all manuscripts are edited according to The Chicago Manualof Style, 18th ed. (Univ. of Chicago Press). For questions about editorial policy or the content of prospective submissions, please contact Dr. Olaf Dammann, Editor, at [email protected].

II. Preparation of Manuscripts

Manuscripts must be submitted in digital format as Word (.doc) files, via the ScholarOne system at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/pbm. To preserve confidentiality during peer review, author names should be omitted from title pages and manuscript metadata. Text should be in Times Roman font and doublespaced throughout. When an abbreviation is peculiar to any field, the complete word(s) should be used at first mention in the text, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses. Tables and illustrations will be accepted when necessary for the presentation of ideas and should be submitted as separate digital images (highquality .jpeg, .tiff, or .eps files), not in the main manuscript or as PowerPoint slides; specific submission details are available on ScholarOne.

Footnotes are discouraged. If required, they should be numbered consecutively within the text and appear at the end of the document.

Authors should use the minimum number of references consistent with good scholarship and should cite them according to Chicago Manual authordate format, using initials for given names, “et al.” for references with four or more authors, and Medline abbreviations for journal titles. Citations should be given as (Author Year); multiple citations should be listed in alphabetical rather than chronological order and separated by semicolons (Cheruvalath et al. 2022; Woolf and Schoomaker 2019).

Journal references should include author(s), year, title, journal title (abbreviated according to Medline, without periods), volume, issue (if available), and inclusive pagination; DOI is optional:

Akinyemi, R. O., et al. 2021. “Stroke in Africa: Profile, Progress, Prospects and Priorities.” Nat Rev Neurol 17 (10): 634. DOI: 10.1038/S41582021005424.

Cheruvalath, H., et al. 2022. “Associations Between Residential Greenspace, Socioeconomic Status, and Stroke: A Matched CaseControl Study.” J Patient Cent Res Rev 9 (2): 89– 97. DOI: 10.17294/23300698.1886.

Woolf, S. H., and H. Schoomaker. 2019. “Life Expectancy and Mortality Rates in the United States, 1959–2017.” JAMA 322 (20): 1996–2016. DOI: 10.1001/jama.2019.16932.

Book references should include author(s), year, chapter title, book title, edition, editor(s), inclusive page numbers, and publisher:

Bennett, M. 2020. War Against Smallpox: Edward Jenner and the Global Spread of Vaccination. Cambridge University Press.

Dean, W., and S. Talbot. 2023. If I Betray These Words: Moral Injury in Medicine and Why It’s So Hard for Clinicians to Put Patients First. Steerforth Press.

Neitzke, A. B. 2021. “Critical Theoretical Methodology for Nonideal Contributions to Bioethics.” In Applying Nonideal Theory to Bioethics, ed. L. K. Guidry-Grimes and E. Victor, 71–97. Springer International. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-72503-7_4.

Internet references should include URL but no “accessed” date:

Buzelli, L., et al. 2022. “Public Perceptions of Health and Social Care.” The Health Foundation. https://www.health.org.uk/reports-and-analysis/reports/public-perceptions-of-health-and-social-care-what-the-new-government.

CBH (Center for Bioethics and Humanities). 2024. Advanced Ethics in Leadership Program. University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. https://www.cuanshutz.edu/centers/bioethicshumanities/education/advanced-ethical-leadership-program.

For questions regarding manuscript formatting, contact Solveig Robinson, Managing Editor, at [email protected].

III. Manuscript Acceptance Policy

While it is our policy to require the assignment of copyright for most essays, we do not usually request assignment of copyright for other contributions. Although the copyright to such a contribution may remain with the author, it is understood that, in return for publication, the journal has the nonexclusive right to publish the contribution and the continuing right, without limit, to include the contribution as part of any reprinting of the issue and/or volume of the journal in which the contribution first appeared by any means and in any format, including computer-assisted storage and readout, in which the issue and/or volume may be reproduced by the publisher or by its licensed agencies.

Offprint purchase information will be sent after manuscripts are accepted.

The Hopkins Press Journals Ethics and Malpractice Statement can be found at the ethics-and-malpractice page.

Peer Review Policy

Essays submitted to Perspectives in Biology and Medicine should be original, unpublished work not under consideration for publication elsewhere. The Editors do an initial review to determine suitability for the journal and select submissions to be sent out for full peer review. Peer review is double-blind.  Manuscripts are generally reviewed by two to four peer reviewers. The journal seeks well-written essays that target a wide interdisciplinary readership and place important biological or medical topics in a broad scientific or medical context. The editors privilege an informal style of writing. While we encourage interdisciplinary engagement, the journal does not publish basic scientific research, reviews of the literature, or reports on empirical studies. Manuscripts that receive a “revise and resubmit” decision are reviewed again upon resubmission, often by the original referees and sometimes by new referees, at the editors’ discretion. For manuscripts sent out for peer review, the review process generally takes about two months.

Editor

Olaf Dammann, Tufts University

Managing Editor

Solveig C. Robinson, Tacoma, WA

Editors Emeriti

Martha Montello, Harvard Medical School  
Robert L. Perlman, Chicago, IL  

Editorial Interns

Kayla Peters, Tacoma, WA

Advisory Board

Allan M. Brandt, Boston, MA  
Edward M. Hundert, Boston, MA  
Mark Siegler, Chicago, IL  
Robert D. Truog, Boston, MA

Editorial Board

Catherine Belling, Chicago, IL
Rebecca Weintraub Brendel ,Boston, MA
Tod S. Chambers, Chicago, IL
A. Mark Clarfield Beer-sheva, Israel
Jeffrey S. Flier, Boston, MA
Arthur W. Frank, Calgary, Canada
D. Micah Hester, Little Rock, AR
Anne Hudson Jones, Galveston, TX
Annemarie Jutel, Wellington, New Zealand
Jonathan Kimmelman, Montreal, Canada
Susan E. Lederer, Madison, WI
Richard Leiter, Boston, MA
Franklin G. Miller, Chevy Chase, MD
Aimee Milliken, Boston, MA
Debjani Mukherjee, New York, NY
Scott Harris Podolsky, Boston, MA
Lainie Friedman, Ross Chicago, IL
Daniel P. Sulmasy, Washington, DC

Abstracting & Indexing Databases

• Adis International Ltd.
  • Reactions Weekly (Online)
• CABI
  • Abstracts on Hygiene and Communicable Diseases (Online)
  • AgBiotechNet
  • Agricultural Economics Database, coverage dropped
  • Animal Science Database
  • CAB Abstracts (Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux)
  • Dairy Science Abstracts (Online)
  • Forest Science Database
  • Global Health
  • Helminthological Abstracts (Online)
  • Horticultural Science
  • Index Veterinarius (Online)
  • Leisure Tourism
  • Nutrition Abstracts and Reviews. Series A: Human and Experimental (Online)
  • Nutrition and Food Sciences Database
  • Tropical Diseases Bulletin (Online)
• Clarivate
  • Biological Abstracts (Online)
  • BIOSIS Previews
  • Current Contents
  • Essential Science Indicators
  • Web of Science
• Current Contents: Agriculture, Biology & Environmental Sciences
• Current Contents: Life Sciences
• De Gruyter Saur
  • Dietrich's Index Philosophicus
  • IBZ - Internationale Bibliographie der Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaftlichen Zeitschriftenliteratur
  • Internationale Bibliographie der Rezensionen Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaftlicher Literatur
• EBSCOhost
  • Academic Search Alumni Edition, 6/1/1996-
  • Academic Search Complete, 06/1996-
  • Academic Search Elite, 6/1/1996-
  • Academic Search Premier, 6/1/1996-
  • America: History and Life, 6/1/2001-
  • Biography Index: Past and Present (H.W. Wilson), vol.26, 1983-vol.54, no.1, 2011
  • Biological & Agricultural Index Plus, 7/15/1983-
  • Biological Abstracts (Online)
  • Book Review Digest Plus (H.W. Wilson), Jul.1997-
  • Current Abstracts, 1/1/2000-
  • General Science Abstracts, 07/1997-
  • General Science Full Text (H.W. Wilson), 7/15/1997-
  • Historical Abstracts, 06/2001-
  • MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • OmniFile Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson), 7/15/1983-
  • OmniFile Full Text Select, 12/2011-
  • Poetry & Short Story Reference Center, 6/1/1996-
  • PsycINFO, 1966-, dropped
  • RILM Abstracts of Music Literature (Repertoire International de Litterature Musicale)
  • SocINDEX, 06/1972-
  • SocINDEX with Full Text, 6/1/1972-
  • Sociology Source Ultimate, 01/1975-
  • STM Source, 6/1/1996-
  • STM Source, 6/1/1996-
  • TOC Premier (Table of Contents), 6/1/1996-
• Elsevier BV
  • EMBASE
  • Scopus, 1957-
• Gale
  • Academic ASAP, 01/1992-
  • Advanced Placement Science Collection, 01/1992-
  • Gale Academic OneFile, 01/1992-
  • Gale Academic OneFile Select, 01/1992-
  • Gale General OneFile, 01/1992-
  • Gale Health and Wellness, 1/1992-, dropped
  • Gale In Context: Biography, 01/1992 - , dropped
  • Gale in Context: College
  • Gale in Context: Elementary, coverage dropped
  • Gale Literature: Book Review Index
  • Gale OneFile: High School Edition, 01/1992- , dropped
  • Gale OneFile: Popular Magazines, 01/1992- , dropped
  • General Reference Center, 01/1992-
  • General Reference Center Gold, 01/1992-
  • General Reference Centre International, 1/1992-
  • Health Reference Center Academic, 01/1992-
  • InfoTrac Custom, 1/1992-
  • MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • Student Resources in Context, 01/1992-
• Gale in Context: High School, coverage dropped
• H.W. Wilson
  • General Science Index, 1997/07-
• International Atomic Energy Agency
  • INIS Repository (International Nuclear Information System)
• Mosby, Inc.
  • Dental Abstracts (Online)
• OCLC
  • ArticleFirst, vol.23, no.2, Pt 1, 1980-vol.54, no.1, 2011
  • Biological & Agricultural Index, vol.26, 1983-vol.54, no.2, 2011
  • Chemical Abstracts (Student Edition), vol.10, no.2, 1967-vol.53, no.4, 2010
  • Electronic Collections Online, vol.23, no.2, Pt 1, 1980-vol.54, no.1, 2011
  • General Science Index, 1997/07-
  • Periodical Abstracts, v.35, n.2, 1992-v.54, n.1, 2011
  • PsycFIRST, vol.17, no.4, 1974-vol.52, no.1, 2009
• Ovid
  • Ovid MEDLINE
  • PsycINFO, 1966-, dropped
• Personal Alert (E-mail)
• Plexus Publishing, Inc.
  • Biology Digest
• ProQuest
  • Biological Science Collection, 1/1/1992-
  • Consumer Health Database, 01/1992-
  • Health & Medical Collection, 1/1/1992-
  • Health Research Premium Collection, 01/1992-
  • Hospital Premium Collection, 1/1/1992-
  • Medical Database, 01/01/1992-
  • MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • Natural Science Collection, 1/1/1992-
  • PAIS Index (Public Affairs Information Service), Selective
  • Professional ProQuest Central, 01/01/1992-
  • ProQuest 5000, 01/01/1992-
  • ProQuest 5000 International, 01/01/1992-
  • ProQuest Central, 01/01/1992-
  • ProQuest SciTech Collection, 1/1/1992-
  • PsycINFO, 1966-, dropped
  • Research Library, 01/01/1992-
  • RILM Abstracts of Music Literature (Repertoire International de Litterature Musicale)
  • Science Database, 01/01/1992-
  • SciTech Premium Collection, 01/01/1992-
  • Social Science Database, 1/1/1992-
  • Social Science Premium Collection, 04/01/1992-
  • Sociology Collection, 4/1/1992-
  • Sociology Database, 04/01/1992-
• Sage Publications, Inc.
  • Abstracts in Anthropology (Online)
• Small Animals
• U.S. National Library of Medicine
  • MEDLINE
  • PubMed
• VINITI RAN
  • Referativnyi Zhurnal

Abstracting & Indexing Sources

• Abstracts of Mycology (Ceased) (Print)
• Chemical Abstracts (Print) (Ceased) (Print)
• Chemical Titles (Ceased) (Print)
• Index Medicus (Ceased) (Print)
• Index to Dental Literature (Ceased) (Print)
• Index to Scientific Reviews (Ceased) (Print)
• Index Veterinarius (Ceased) (Print)
• Inpharma Weekly (Ceased) (Print)
• Psychological Abstracts (Ceased) (Print)
• Social Planning - Policy & Development Abstracts (Ceased) (Print)

Source: Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory.

0.7 (2024)
1.2 (Five-Year Impact Factor)
0.00076 (Eigenfactor™ Score)

Rank in Category (by Journal Impact Factor):
39 of 112 journals, in “History & Philosophy of Science”
170 of 195 journals, in “Medicine, Research & Experimental”

© Clarivate Analytics 2025

Published quarterly

Readers include: Research scientists, biologists, scientists, clinical doctors, and university and research library patrons

Print circulation: 81

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eTOC (Electronic Table of Contents) alerts can be delivered to your inbox when this or any Hopkins Press journal is published via your ProjectMUSE MyMUSE account. Visit the eTOC instructions page for detailed instructions on setting up your MyMUSE account and alerts.  

The article “Ethical Maxims for a Marginally Inhabitable Planet,” Perspectives in Biology and Medicine 64, no. 4 (Autumn 2021), 494-510, by David Schenck and Larry R. Churchill was featured by environmentalist Joanna Macy in an international zoom conference entitled "Climate Change as Spiritual Practice” hosted by Jonathan Gustin, June 2022. This article was also a major impetus for the upcoming Autumn 2022 issue of Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, edited by Elizabeth Lanphier and Larry R. Churchill, entitled “The Translational Work of Bioethics,” which describes the practical uses of bioethics in a rapidly changing world.