Most downloaded article from Acta Physiologia in 2016 - and ever
The review entitled "MicroRNAs in Metabolism" accepted for publication in Acta Physiologia (April 2016) is the result of the Danish Diabetes Academy seminar on MicroRNA, 11 November 2015, arranged in collaboration with Louise Torp Dalgaard from Roskilde University and Sara Vienberg from Novo Nordisk.
THE MOST DOWNLOADED ARTICLE IN THE HISTORY OF ACTA PHYSIOLOGIA
"I don't know if publishing this exact article has made any significant difference for me or to my research field as such - this generally doesn't show until years after the fact - it can hardly do any damage, though", says Louise Torp Dalgaard, who is last author on the article. In fact, the review is not only the most downloaded article in 2016, but also the most downloaded article in the history of the acknowledged journal Acta Physiologia.
The review is written by Louise Dalgaard and Sara Vienberg along with Julian Geiger and Søren Madsen. Louise Dalgaard works as Associate Professor at Department of Science and Environment, Roskilde University, Sara Vienberg works as research scientist for Novo Nordisk, Julian Geiger is a PhD student at Roskilde Univeristy, and Søren Madsen is a PhD student at University of Copenhagen and a Danish Diabetes Academy fellow.
"Danish Diabetes Academy Managing Director Tore Christiansen saw the potential at the seminar and suggested that we wrote the article, and later supported us by covering the expenses for publishing the article as open access, also for researchers in third world countries. We are very grateful for that, partly because it gave so many people the opportunity to read the review, and partly because there is a need to propagate the knowledge about the role of microRNAs in regulating cellular function, and about their influence on the entire body metabolism", states Louise Torp Dalgaard.
Picture taken during a break at the seminar held at the Novo Nordisk Foundation in Hellerup 15 November 2015
MICRO RNA - A RELATIVELY RECENT DESCRIBED NUCLEIC ACID TYPE
MicroRNA is a relatively recent group of nucleic acids, and the seminar in November 2015 focused on the role that these play in metabolic disorders such as diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular diseases.
In the review, the authors sum up the information and assess the research on the role of microRNAs in regulating our metabolism having focus on the newest results that were discussed at the seminar. And the authors worked fast: after an intensive period of writing, they managed to get the article accepted for publication already in April 2016.
When asking Louise to make a guess at why the review has become so popular, the short answer is: "We basically hope it's because it is a good review. Not too long, yet comprehensive, nuanced, contemporary and well-written".
THINKS THE ARTICLE HAS BEEN RECOMMENDED AMONG RESEARCHERS
Louise also points out other factors that may have had an influence on the popularity of the article. "First of all, the article and its key words need to be adequate for it to appear in relevant searches. The easy access is also significant, and usually reviews get more attention than an original paper, which is the case for the eight most downloaded articles from Acta Physiologia. I also believe our review has been downloaded so much because it has been recommended among scientists, that it was a genuinely good review, and that it may have fulfilled a need for a summary review on knowledge that was not covered before. It makes me proud that so many people are interested in our review, both on my own behalf and on behalf of my co-authors", she concludes.
To read the article in full go to: onlinelibrary.wiley.com
To read a short review of the article announced on this website go to: danishdiabetesacademy.dk/news/
To read more about Louise Torp Dalgaard go to: forskning.ruc.dk/site/person/ltd