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Using the SCI-expanded database, this study provides a quantitative description of the development of the research involving matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) over a period of 20 years. From 1986 to 2007 the scientific literature related to MMP increased sevenfold (397 papers in 1986-1987 and 2834 in 2006-2007). The number of countries participating in MMP-related research doubled during this period (33 in 1986-1987 to 67 in 2006-2007), and the USA continually remained the leader. Several industrialized nations (Japan, Germany, UK, Canada, and France) also continuously played important roles, with some emerging Asian countries joining the top 10 most productive countries in 2006-2007: China (ranked 5th), South Korea (6th), and Taiwan (10th). The MMP-related literature was distributed among a continuously growing number of journals (188 in 1986-1987, 527 in 1996-1997, and 913 in 2006-2007) and The Journal of Biological Chemistry remained the most prolific throughout the entire period. The development of the research involving MMPs during the past two decades was also characterized by a progressive transfer of interest from basic research to clinical medicine; cell biology and pharmacology were important routes of investigation generally pursued by researchers. Journals dedicated to oncology have progressively risen to the top 8 most prolific journals during the 20 year period analyzed. Menée sur la base de données SCI-expanded, cette étude présente une description quantitative du développement de la recherche sur les métalloprotéases matricielles sur une période de 20 ans. De 1986 à 2007, la littérature scientifique en lien avec les MMP s'est accrue d'un facteur 7 (397 articles en 1986-1987 à 2834 en 2006-2007). Durant la période 1986-2007, le nombre de pays participant à la recherche sur les MMP a doublé (33 en 1986-1987 et 67 en 2006-2007), et les États-Unis ont maintenu leur position de leader. Plusieurs pays industrialisés (Japon, Allemagne, Royaume-Uni, Canada et France) ont aussi joué un rôle important, avec quelques pays émergents d'Asie qui se sont joint aux dix pays les plus productifs en 2006-2007 : la Chine (5ième rang), la Corée du Sud (6ième) et Taiwan (10ième). La littérature reliée aux MMP était distribuée à travers un nombre croissant de revues scientifiques (188 en 1986-1987, 527 en 1996-1997 et 913 en 2006-2007), et The Journal of Biological Chemistry est demeurée la plus prolifique durant toute cette période. Le développement de la recherche sur les MMP au cours des deux dernières décennies a aussi été caractérisé par un transfert progressif de l'intérêt de la recherche fondamentale vers la médecine clinique ; la biologie cellulaire et la pharmacologie ont constitué des voies de recherche importantes généralement poursuivies par les chercheurs. Au cours de la période analysée, des revues spécialisées dans la recherche en oncologie ont progressivement intégré le top-8 des revues les plus prolifiques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore journal quality as perceived by clinicians and researchers in clinical neurology. Methods: A survey was conducted from August 2003 to January 2004. Ratings for 41 selected clinical neurology journals were obtained from 254 members of the World Federation of Neurology (1,500 solicited; response rate 17%). Participants provided demographic information and rated each journal on a 5-point Likert scale. Average ratings for all journals were compared with the ISI's journal impact factors. Ratings for each journal were also compared across geographic regions and respondent publication productivity. Results: The top 5 journals were rated much more highly than the others, with mean ratings greater than 4. Mean journal ratings were highly correlated with journal impact factors (r = 0.67). Most of the top 10 journal ratings were consistent across the subgroups of geographic regions and journal paper productivity. However, significant differences among the different geographical regions and respondent productivity groups were also found for a few journals. Conclusions: The results provide valuable insight on how neurological experts perceive journals in clinical neurology. These results will likely aid researchers and clinicians in identifying potentially desirable research outlets and indicate journal status for editors. Likewise, biomedical librarians may use these results for serials collection development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]