In that editorial it was pointed out that the high impact factor in Nature was to a large extent infl uenced by a small minority of papers, for example the publication of the mouse genome in 2002. We in NDT should not too much be distracted by the impact factor but nevertheless aim at serving our largely clinical readership with excellent papers. If these papers are increasing our impact factor, that would be fine, but it should not be our first goal.
However, NDT is and will remain a primarily clinical journal that aims to provide up to date information for the clinical nephrologist that will help him/her in the daily practice. It is perhaps no surprise that the two leading publications in nephrology, JASN and Kidney International, have recently decided to introduce more clinically oriented journals to accompany their existing publications. This highlights the growing need for the clinician to stay informed of the latest developments that may infl uence his/her practice. NDT will, of course, continue to publish high quality clinical research, but at the same time will aim to integrate this with the latest developments in basic sciences. Submissions of a more basic nature are therefore strongly encouraged and we hope that the Journal will continue to provide a platform for the widespread dissemination of first-rate laboratory science. We realise that it is virtually impossible for a busy clinician to read highly specialised literature in any great detail and that the Journal should help to provide this material in a more readily digestible format.