Aims & Scope
Journal of Skeletal Muscle (JSM) publishes mechanistic research on skeletal muscle pathophysiology, focusing on molecular pathways, disease mechanisms, and cellular processes underlying muscle dysfunction and disease progression.
Molecular Mechanisms
Disease Pathogenesis
Cellular Pathways
Biomarker Discovery
Disease Models
Core Research Domains
Tier 1: Priority
Molecular Pathophysiology
- Calcium signaling dysregulation in muscle disease
- Endoplasmic reticulum stress pathways
- Ryanodine receptor dysfunction mechanisms
- Protein degradation pathways in muscle wasting
- Gene expression alterations in myopathies
- Molecular mechanisms of muscle atrophy
Typical Fit Example:
"Identification of novel ER stress markers in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: mechanistic insights into calcium homeostasis disruption"
Tier 1: Priority
Disease Mechanisms & Models
- Muscular dystrophy pathogenesis pathways
- Myopathy disease progression mechanisms
- Spinal muscular atrophy molecular targets
- Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy mechanisms
- Animal models of neuromuscular disorders
- Cellular models for mechanistic studies
Typical Fit Example:
"Novel mouse model reveals mitochondrial dysfunction as primary driver in limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2B"
Tier 1: Priority
Metabolic Dysregulation
- Energy metabolism defects in muscle disease
- Lipid metabolism alterations in myopathies
- Protein metabolism disruption mechanisms
- Insulin signaling pathway dysfunction
- Mitochondrial pathophysiology in muscle disorders
- Metabolic biomarkers for disease progression
Typical Fit Example:
"Metabolomic profiling identifies lipid accumulation pathways as early biomarkers in sarcopenic obesity pathogenesis"
Tier 1: Priority
Cellular Pathophysiology
- Satellite cell dysfunction in disease states
- Myogenic cell differentiation defects
- Muscle regeneration failure mechanisms
- Stem cell niche alterations in pathology
- Cellular senescence in muscle aging
- Inflammatory signaling in muscle disease
Typical Fit Example:
"Impaired satellite cell activation in aged muscle: role of Notch signaling dysregulation in regenerative failure"
Secondary Focus Areas
Structural Pathology
- Muscle fiber type alterations in disease
- Histopathological markers of muscle disorders
- Fatty degeneration mechanisms
- Intramuscular adipose tissue pathogenesis
- Extracellular matrix remodeling in myopathies
Biomarker Development
- Molecular biomarkers for disease diagnosis
- Prognostic markers in muscle disorders
- Serum biomarkers for disease monitoring
- Imaging biomarkers using MRI/CT analysis
- Genetic markers for disease susceptibility
Mechanistic Techniques
- Advanced muscle biopsy analysis methods
- Electromyography for mechanistic insights
- Molecular imaging approaches
- Omics technologies in muscle pathology
- In vitro disease modeling systems
Molecular Pharmacology
- Drug target identification in muscle disease
- Molecular mechanisms of drug action
- Pharmacological pathway modulation
- Compound screening in disease models
- Mechanism-based drug discovery
Emerging Research Areas
Computational Pathophysiology
- AI-driven disease mechanism prediction
- Machine learning for biomarker discovery
- Computational modeling of disease pathways
- Systems biology approaches to muscle disease
Molecular Aging Mechanisms
- Cellular senescence pathways in sarcopenia
- Molecular mechanisms of age-related muscle loss
- Mitochondrial dysfunction in muscle aging
- Epigenetic alterations in aged muscle
⚠ Editorial Note: Submissions in emerging areas undergo additional editorial review to ensure strong mechanistic focus and alignment with pathophysiology scope. Preliminary data and clear mechanistic hypotheses are required.
Article Types & Priorities
Priority 1: Fast-Track
Expedited Review
Original Research Articles
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Methods & Protocols
Mechanistic Studies
Priority 2: Standard
Regular Review Timeline
Short Communications
Data Notes
Technical Notes
Perspectives
Rarely Considered
Selective Acceptance
Opinion Pieces (by invitation)
Commentaries (exceptional cases)
Editorial Standards
Reporting Guidelines
All submissions must adhere to appropriate reporting standards:
- ARRIVE 2.0 for animal studies
- STROBE for observational studies
- PRISMA for systematic reviews
- MIQE for qPCR experiments
- MIAME for microarray data
Data Transparency
We require open data practices:
- Raw data deposition in public repositories
- Code availability for computational analyses
- Reagent and antibody validation details
- Statistical analysis transparency
- Reproducibility documentation
Ethics Requirements
Mandatory ethical compliance:
- IRB/Ethics committee approval for human studies
- IACUC approval for animal research
- Informed consent documentation
- Conflict of interest disclosure
- Funding source transparency
Preprint Policy
We support preprint sharing:
- Preprints allowed on recognized servers
- Does not affect consideration
- Must be disclosed at submission
- Version control required
- Final version must cite journal publication
Decision Metrics
21 days
Average Time to First Decision
55%
Acceptance Rate
45 days
Time to Publication
Open
Access Model
Ready to Submit Your Research?
If your work focuses on molecular mechanisms of skeletal muscle disease, we invite you to submit your manuscript for consideration.
Contact Editorial Office
