biology

Molecular Biology and Evolution

Molecular Biology and Evolution is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Molecular Biology and Evolution rather than just read about it. In short: Molecular Biology and Evolution (MBE) is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. It publishes work in the intersection of molecular biology and evolutionary biology.

Key takeaways

Molecular Biology and Evolution belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Molecular Biology and Evolution to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Molecular Biology and Evolution from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Molecular Biology and Evolution (MBE) is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. It publishes work in the intersection of molecular biology and evolutionary biology. The founding editors were Walter Fitch and Masatoshi Nei; the present editors-in-chief are Brandon Gaut and Claudia Russo.

Subject matter Evolution is the most fundamental of biological processes. MBE publishes patterns and processes that impact the evolution of life at molecular levels, across a full breadth of taxonomy, genomic organization, and functions, forms, and phenotypes. MBE's Methods, Resource, and Protocol sections include research tools that enable discoveries, while the Reviews and Perspectives synthesize different aspects of the evolutionary thought.

Editorial process All MBE manuscripts are peer-reviewed. Decisions to publish are made by the Board of Editors, led by the Editors-in-Chief (EiCs) that oversee processing and set the direction of the journal. The board also includes Associate Editors (AEs) who solicit peer reviews and make an initial recommendation and the Senior Editors (SEs) who make the final recommendation that lead to the decision for each manuscript.

Management MBE is entirely owned by The Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution (SMBE). The SMBE Council appoints the Editor-in-Chief. The Journal is published by Oxford University Press. MBE has transitioned to full Open Access, with all papers free to access from 1 January 2021. All articles accepted for publication from 1 August 2020 have been published as Open Access.

Impact According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2017 Impact Factor of 10.217, a 2018 Impact Factor of 14.797, a 2019 Impact Factor of 11.062, a 2022 Impact Factor of 10.700, a 2023 Impact Factor of 11.00, and a 2024 Impact Factor of 5.3. In 2023, MBE was ranked 8th out of the 172 journals in the Genetics & Heredity category, 16th out of 285 journals within the Biochemistry & Molecular Biology category and 4th  out of 54 in the Evolutionary Biology category.

References

External links Official website

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Molecular Biology and Evolution

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Molecular Biology and Evolution claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Molecular Biology and Evolution before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Molecular Biology and Evolution ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Molecular Biology and Evolution

In research: Molecular Biology and Evolution appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Molecular Biology and Evolution in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Molecular Biology and Evolution is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Academic journals associated with learned and professional societies, English-language journals, Evolutionary biology journals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Molecular Biology and Evolution outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Molecular Biology and Evolution in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Molecular Biology and Evolution means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Molecular Biology and Evolution out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Molecular Biology and Evolution in simple terms?

Why does Molecular Biology and Evolution matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Molecular Biology and Evolution?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Molecular Biology and Evolution.