The Company of Biologists

The Company of Biologists is a United Kingdom-based charity and not-for-profit scientific publisher serving researchers across the biological sciences. It was established in 1925 by zoologist George Parker Bidder III to safeguard and develop the British Journal of Experimental Biology, a periodical founded two years earlier by Julian Huxley, Lancelot Hogben and Frances A. E. Crew. The journal subsequently became the Journal of Experimental Biology, one of the organization’s principal publications. Rather than operating as a conventional commercial publishing house, the company combines journal publishing with charitable support for the biological research community. Its publishing portfolio currently consists of five journals: Development, Journal of Cell Science, Journal of Experimental Biology, Disease Models & Mechanisms, and Biology Open. These titles cover developmental biology, cell biology, comparative and experimental biology, disease research using model organisms, and broad open-access biological research. The portfolio includes both established subscription-supported titles and open-access publications. The organization expanded through gifts and transformations of existing journals. In 1946, Bidder transferred the Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science to the company; it was later relaunched as the Journal of Cell Science. In 1953, the company accepted the Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology, which was subsequently relaunched in 1987 as Development. Disease Models & Mechanisms was introduced in 2008 as an open-access journal focused on the use of model organisms to understand human disease. Biology Open followed in 2011 as an online-only open-access journal covering original research throughout biology. The Company of Biologists’ charitable work includes grants to scientific societies, travel support for postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers, fellowships for laboratory visits and collaborations, and workshops focused on emerging methods and innovations. Its journals also provide travelling fellowships, while the organization accepts direct applications for support related to conferences, workshops and research visits. Through participation in the United Nations’ HINARI and OARE access initiatives, the company helps make online research articles available to users in eligible developing countries. Beyond its journals and grants, the company supports community-oriented scientific platforms. These include the Node, a community site for developmental and stem-cell biologists; preLights, a community-run service highlighting biological preprints; and FocalPlane, a platform for microscopists and researchers using microscopy. In 2023, it launched the Forest of Biologists, a biodiversity-focused publishing initiative intended to extend its support for biological research and conservation-related scholarship. The company is governed as a charitable organization, and its directors serve without remuneration under the conditions associated with its charitable status. Its present chairperson is Professor Sarah Bray. The organization’s model places editorial publishing, community infrastructure and direct support for scientists within a single not-for-profit structure, positioning it as a specialist institution in international biological research rather than a general academic publishing conglomerate.

The Company of Biologists was formed in 1925 by George Parker Bidder III, a zoologist who believed that experimental biology required a durable specialist publishing institution. Its immediate purpose was to rescue the struggling British Journal of Experimental Biology, founded in 1923 by Julian Huxley, Lancelot Hogben and Frances A. E. Crew. Bidder raised support from colleagues and friends by selling five-pound shares in the newly created company. The journal survived and later became the Journal of Experimental Biology. The organization’s early structure established a distinctive relationship between publishing and the biological research community. It was not created simply as a commercial journal venture; its stated objective was to promote research and study across the branches of biology. This orientation later developed into a charitable model in which journal income could help support scientific societies, researchers and community activity. In 1946, Bidder gave the Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science to the company. The title was subsequently relaunched as the Journal of Cell Science, linking the organization to the expanding field of cellular biology. In 1952, The Company of Biologists became a registered charity. The following year it accepted another journal, the Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology. That publication was later relaunched in 1987 as Development and became a major title in developmental biology. The company continued to broaden its portfolio in response to changes in biological research. In August 2008 it launched Disease Models & Mechanisms, an open-access journal focused on the use of model organisms to investigate human disease. In autumn 2011 it introduced Biology Open, an online-only open-access journal intended to publish original work from across biology. Together with Development, Journal of Cell Science and Journal of Experimental Biology, these titles form the organization’s current five-journal publishing program. Publishing is only one part of the company’s activity. It provides grants to scientific societies, which may use this support for travel grants benefiting postgraduate researchers and junior postdoctoral fellows. Each journal offers travelling fellowships that can help early-career scientists undertake collaborative visits to other laboratories. The organization also considers direct applications for travel to conferences, workshops and research visits intended to develop technical skills. Its participation in HINARI and OARE supports access to online research articles for users in eligible developing countries. In 2010, the company began a workshop program designed to showcase techniques and innovations associated with the post-genomic era. It also developed online community resources: the Node for developmental and stem-cell biologists, preLights for community-based discussion of biological preprints, and FocalPlane for microscopists and other researchers working with microscopy. These services complement the formal journal system by supporting communication and collaboration within specialist fields. The company’s charitable status places limits on director remuneration, and its directors contribute their time and expertise without payment. In 2023, it launched the Forest of Biologists, a biodiversity publishing initiative that broadened the visible scope of its mission. The organization remains an active UK charitable publisher with an international research audience, combining specialist journals, open-access dissemination, fellowships, grants, workshops and scientific community platforms.

1. 2023Forest of Biologists launches

   The company introduced a biodiversity publishing initiative.

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2. 2011Biology Open launches

   The organization added an online-only open-access journal covering research across the biological sciences.

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3. 2010Workshop program begins

   The Company of Biologists launched workshops focused on new techniques and innovations in post-genomic biology.

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4. 2008Disease Models & Mechanisms launches

   The company introduced an open-access journal focused on model-organism research relevant to human disease.

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5. 1987Development is launched under its current title

   The Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology was relaunched as Development.

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6. 1953The Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology joins the portfolio

   The company accepted the journal as a gift; it was later relaunched as Development in 1987.

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7. 1952The company becomes a registered charity

   The organization formally adopted registered charitable status, reinforcing its non-profit research-support mission.

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8. 1946Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science is transferred to the company

   George Parker Bidder III gifted the journal to The Company of Biologists; it was later relaunched as Journal of Cell Science.

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9. 1925The Company of Biologists is established

   George Parker Bidder III founded the organization to support the ailing British Journal of Experimental Biology and promote biological research.

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A specialist, charitable and not-for-profit publisher that combines biology journals with grants, fellowships, workshops and community services for researchers.

• Journal of Experimental BiologyScientific journal1923

  The company’s historic experimental-biology journal, originally established as the British Journal of Experimental Biology before The Company of Biologists took responsibility for it. It publishes research in experimental and comparative biology.

• Journal of Cell ScienceScientific journal

  A cell-biology journal descended from the Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science, which was transferred to the company in 1946 and later relaunched under its current name.

• DevelopmentScientific journal1987

  A journal focused on developmental biology. It developed from the Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology, accepted by the company in 1953 and relaunched as Development in 1987.

• Disease Models & MechanismsOpen-access scientific journal2008

  An open-access journal launched to reflect the importance of model organisms in understanding human disease. Its scope connects disease biology with experimental model systems.

• Biology OpenOnline open-access scientific journal2011

  An online-only open-access journal publishing original research across the biological sciences. It broadens the company’s publishing offer beyond individual specialist disciplines.

• 2023Forest of Biologists

  International scientific community

  A biodiversity-oriented publishing initiative intended to extend the organization’s support for research and communication about biological diversity.

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• 2010Company of Biologists workshop series

  International scientific community

  A program of workshops designed to promote new methods, techniques and innovations expected to support biology after the genomic era.

  Outcome. The workshop series became part of the company’s broader scientific-community and researcher-support activity.

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• 2023Expansion into biodiversity publishingStrategy

  Biodiversity became a distinct area for the company’s publishing and community-support mission.

  What changed. The Company of Biologists launched the Forest of Biologists initiative.

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• 2011Launch of Biology OpenProduct launch

  The company sought to expand open-access dissemination across the biological sciences.

  What changed. It introduced Biology Open as an online-only open-access journal publishing original biological research.

  Aftermath. Biology Open joined the company’s journal portfolio as its fifth current title.

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• 2008Launch of Disease Models & MechanismsProduct launch

  The company identified growing scientific interest in model organisms as tools for understanding human disease.

  What changed. It launched Disease Models & Mechanisms as an open-access journal.

  Aftermath. The title became one of the organization’s five active scientific journals.

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• 2023The Company of Biologists launches the Forest of Biologists biodiversity initiative

  The organization introduced the Forest of Biologists as a biodiversity-focused publishing initiative, extending its scientific and charitable mission into a field concerned with the variety and protection of life.

  OtherProduct launch
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• 2011The Company of Biologists launches Biology Open

  The company launched Biology Open as an online-only open-access journal publishing original research across the biological sciences.

  Product launch
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• 2010The Company of Biologists introduces its biological research workshop series

  The organization began a workshop series intended to promote new techniques and innovations relevant to post-genomic biology.

  Campaign
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• 2008Disease Models & Mechanisms begins publication

  The Company of Biologists introduced the open-access journal Disease Models & Mechanisms to address the growing role of model organisms in research on human disease.

  Product launch
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1. The Company of Biologists
2. The Company of Biologists official website