It is with great enthusiasm that the international scientific community anticipates the launch, in 2026, of Fungal Insights – a new and vibrant scientific journal dedicated to the publication of innovative and disruptive studies in the fascinating Fungi-like organisms.

Fungal Insights arises from the need for an international forum that not only honors the foundations of mycology but also embraces the cutting edge of modern methodologies and interdisciplinary frontiers. Our goal is to be the premier platform for research that challenges the status quo and redefines our understanding of fungal biology and their planetary importance.

Fungal Insights is an electronic, peer-reviewed journal edited by INCT-Fungi/CNPq and supported by UFRN, dedicated to publishing high-quality research in fungal biology. This open-access platform serves as a resource for the global mycology community, ensuring broad dissemination and visibility. Authors retain full copyright of their work.

Key Features:

• Peer-reviewed research articles and monographs;

• Fully open-access publication model;

• Rapid editorial and publication process;

• Detailed policy on publication fees available in the submission guidelines;

• Thematic and special issue volumes are featured periodically.

We Invite Innovation

As a truly international journal, Fungal Insights is committed to excellence, scientific rigor, and transparency in the peer-review process. We invite researchers, academics, and scientists from around the globe to submit their most innovative and disruptive work.

Join us in shaping the future of mycology, bringing to light the potential and the invaluable role that fungi play on our planet. Fungal Insights is more than a journal. It is a movement for a new and bold exploration of the Fungal Kingdom.

The submission of manuscripts for publications in Fungal Insights is made EXCLUSIVELY through the site submission page and must be prepared in accordance with the instructions.

Scope

Fungal Insights is an international journal dedicated to publishing high-quality research across all areas of mycology, integrating classical and modern approaches. The journal welcomes studies on fungal diversity, systematics, evolution, genetics, ecology, physiology, biotechnology, bioinformatics, medical and plant-associated fungi.

We particularly encourage manuscripts that combine morphological, molecular, ecological, and evolutionary perspectives, including descriptions of new taxa, phylogenetic and genomic analyses, fungal interactions, applied mycology, and emerging frontiers in fungal research.

Fungal Insights aims to serve as a platform for rigorous, forward-looking studies that advance our understanding of fungi and their roles in natural, agricultural, and clinical systems.

Recognizing the immense complexity and global significance of fungi, Fungal Insights features an ambitious and comprehensive editorial scope, committed to publishing high-quality research across the entire spectrum of mycology. We encourage submissions covering both classical and emerging areas, structured under the following major themes:

1. Systematics, Taxonomy, and Phylogeny (Fungal Diversity)

• Description of New Species: Identification, description, and nomenclature of fungi (including yeasts, molds, and mushrooms).

• Molecular Phylogeny: Using DNA data (gene and genome sequencing) to determine evolutionary relationships and classification of fungal groups.

• Fungal Evolution: Studies on the origin, diversification, and evolutionary history of the Fungal Kingdom.

2. Genetics, Genomics, and Molecular Biology

• Fungal Genomics: Sequencing, analysis, and comparison of fungal genomes.

• Genetics and Gene Regulation: Research on the function of specific genes, mechanisms of expression control, and transcription factors.

• Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering: Development of genetically modified fungi for the production of enzymes, fuels, or bioactive compounds.

• Bioinformatics and AI applications to understand Fungi Biology: Fungi databases and knowledge-bases, training datasets and AI models applied to Fungi, Systems Biology and Computational Modeling of molecules and proccess, cheminformatics of fungal ligands and drugs.

3. Ecology and Fungal Interactions

• Fungus-Host Interactions (Symbiosis): general symbiosis.

• Biogeochemical Cycles: The role of fungi in the decomposition of organic matter, and the carbon and nutrient cycles (saprophytic fungi).

• Community Ecology: Distribution, abundance, and diversity of fungi in different ecosystems.

4. Medical Mycology and Human Health

• Pathogenesis and Virulence: Mechanisms by which fungi cause infections.

• Antifungal Resistance: Study of new resistance mechanisms and the development of new therapies and drugs.

• Diagnosis: Innovation in laboratory methods for rapid and accurate identification of fungal infections.

5. Phytopathology and Agriculture

• Plant Pathogens: Research on fungi that cause diseases.

• Biological Control: Use of fungi as biocontrol agents against pests and other diseases.

• Mycotoxins: Study of toxins produced by fungi and their implications for food safety.

6. Physiology, Biochemistry, and Metabolism

• Fungal Metabolism: Study of biochemical pathways, including enzyme production, carbon, and nitrogen metabolism.

• Secondary Metabolites: Identification and characterization of chemical compounds produced by fungi, like antibiotics, pigments, and bioactive substances.

• Morphology and Cell Structure: Research on hyphal growth, spore formation, and fungal cell structures.

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Currently this publication is supported by the INCT - Brazilian Fungi Project funded by Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) (proc.409181/2024-2), UFRN, IMD.

We eagerly await your contribution in 2026!

General Policy

Fungal Insights invites submissions across a range of formats, including review articles (e.g. bibliometric analysis), original research papers, methodological studies, ecological and biotechnological studies, taxonomic contributions (e.g., monographs, reviews, species descriptions), and fungal-related checklists. All submissions must be written in English, the journal's official language.

Plagiarism

Authors are advised to utilize plagiarism-checking tools before submission. Manuscripts with plagiarism levels over 30% will be automatically rejected.

Preprints

Fungal Insights as an open-source journal allows the submission of manuscripts that have previously appeared as preprints. These are not considered duplicate publications. Preprints receive a DOI and are citable. When submitting a preprinted manuscript, include its link in the Supplementary Materials, following the Fungal Insights formatting template.

After acceptance, the preprint must include the following statement:

“This article has been accepted for publication in Fungal Insights, published by the Brazilian Society of Mycology - SBMy.”

Once the final article is available online, update the preprint with:

“The article was published in Fungal Insights on https://doi.org/%5bArticle%20DOI%5[date of publication], available online: https://doi.org/[Article_DOI].”

Fungal Insights Notes

The journal features essay articles typically spanning 4 to 10 pages. Authors are encouraged to explore underrepresented topics in mycology. Essays should, when possible, reflect diverse perspectives and must be submitted through the standard process. Peer review is required. Extended reviews are also welcome.

To ensure efficient processing, manuscripts should be scientifically robust and correctly formatted. Authors should use the template below or model their layout after recent journal articles.

• Download template: Click here

• Use Georgia, 12 pt, single-spaced for all text and figure legends.

• Italicize Latin to all taxonomic rankings.

• Disable hyphenation and avoid any special formatting.

• Ensure page numbers appear at the bottom right of each page.

For new taxonomic names, register them in the appropriate databases and obtain MycoBank via http://www.mycobank.org/ or http://www.facesoffungi.org/.

If phylogenetic trees are included, FASTA format alignment files must accompany the manuscript.

Submitting Manuscripts

Website-based submissions are accepted.

For questions, contact inct-fungos@imd.ufrn.br (provisory address). Submissions that do not follow the Fungal Insights template will be returned for reformatting.

Electronic Submission Guidelines

Initial Submission

Send the following:

1. A Word document including the full manuscript text, tables, and figures/plates.

2. A Cover letter including a list of three suggested reviewers with full names, institutional affiliations, and email addresses.

Important: All tables and plates must be embedded within the manuscript where the authors would like them to appear in the final published version.

Revised Manuscripts

Final versions must strictly follow formatting guidelines.

• Highlight all changes in the revised document.

• Provide detailed responses to reviewers' comments.

• Submit figures separately in JPEG or TIFF format, with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi.

Publication Charges

A flat APC (Article Processing Charges) of 100 USD applies. To request a fee waiver, contact the Editor-in-Chief (Assistance). Proceeds support mycological research initiatives.

Tables, Figures, and Legends

• Use your word processor’s table tools—do not use tabs, spaces, graphics, or boxed layouts.

• Begin top-row and first-column terms with capital letters.

• Do not use vertical lines in tables.

• Align text to the left and numerical data by decimal points. Use a zero before decimal points in numbers less than one (e.g., 0.3).

References

References should conform to the style in the template. List all sources alphabetically in the References section and cite them chronologically within the text.

1. Submissions are checked for format and plagiarism.

2. The Editor in Chief evaluates manuscript suitability.

3. Suitable papers are assigned to a handling editor.

4. The handling editor initiates peer review with at least two external reviewers.

5. Reviewers submit their recommendations.

6. The handling editor compiles feedback, suggests revisions or decisions, and sends the manuscript to the Editor in Chief.

7. The Editor in Chief makes the final decision and forwards accepted papers to the managing editor for final proofing.

Proofs

Upon acceptance, authors must send the final Word file via email. Proofs are sent as a PDF file and must be reviewed and returned within seven business days. The editorial team will not be responsible for uncorrected errors after this window.

Copyright

Authors are encouraged to share their published articles freely. Data can be reused or republished elsewhere without requesting permission. The journal operates under a Creative Commons license.

Data Availability Policy

Research data are fundamental outputs of the scientific process and must be preserved and made accessible for long-term use. In accordance with international standards in biodiversity research, all data supporting the results published in Fungal Insights must be deposited in a reliable public repository that provides open access and long-term preservation. Manuscripts will not be considered without a valid link to the deposited data.

Authors may use established international repositories (e.g. Dryad, TreeBASE, GenBank, Figshare, GBIF) or any other repository that ensures comparable accessibility and preservation. At submission, a provisional URL must be provided in the Data Availability section. Final acceptance requires the permanent URL of the archived dataset.

All archived data must be accompanied by sufficient metadata to allow interpretation, reproduction of results, and full replication of the analyses. The deposited material must be adequate to independently verify all conclusions presented in the paper. Authors may archive additional material, but not less.

This policy applies to both primary data generated by the authors and secondary data reused and analyzed in the study, including tabular data, code, images, maps, audio, video, and raw or processed datasets.

For sensitive data involving endangered species, protected locations, or culturally or politically sensitive information, authors may anonymize or generalize locality data when possible. In exceptional cases, editors may waive the archiving requirement. Any waiver must be clearly justified in the Data Availability Statement.

Researchers are expected to adhere to high standards of ethical conduct when publishing and sharing scientific knowledge—even when doing so may not align with personal or professional gain. Publishing scientific work in reputable journals is a crucial component of disseminating research. Therefore, editors, authors, and reviewers involved with Fungal Insights, must maintain integrity throughout the publication process.

In instances of ethical concerns or breaches, the MRF refers to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines and will act in accordance with these standards.

Editorial Responsibilities

• Acknowledge receipt of submissions promptly and ensure timely, impartial review procedures.

• Make editorial decisions based on the manuscript’s scientific merit, originality, and relevance, not external factors.

• Respect the autonomy and intellectual contributions of authors.

• Disclose any conflicts of interest. If an editor is also an author, another editor will oversee the peer review to maintain impartiality.

• Refrain from using information from unpublished or under-review manuscripts for personal research.

• Avoid appointing reviewers that the authors have requested to exclude.

• Protect the confidentiality of reviewers and appeal processes.

• Handle appeals related to rejected submissions with fairness and transparency.

• Observe relevant data protection laws and ethical data handling practices.

Author Responsibilities

• Collect, analyze, and report data with integrity; avoid infringing on copyright and secure necessary permissions for reuse of previously published material.

• Submit a clear, accurate, and objective description of their research and findings.

• Appropriately reference all relevant previous research.

• Avoid dividing a single research project into multiple papers unnecessarily.

• Consider submitting related work to the same or closely aligned journals to support content continuity for readers.

• Disclose any related manuscripts currently under review elsewhere at the time of submission and provide supporting documents and details.

• Submit the manuscript to only one journal at a time.

• Avoid including personal criticism of other researchers in the manuscript.

• Recognize the contributions of all individuals involved in the research.

• Fully disclose all sources of financial or material support.

Reviewer Responsibilities

• Maintain confidentiality and treat the manuscript as a privileged document.

• Decline to review if unqualified, and notify the editor accordingly.

• Provide objective, timely, and constructive evaluations.

• Declare any conflicts of interest.

• Support recommendations with clear explanations and references when applicable.

• Inform the editor of any overlap with previously published material.

• Safeguard all data, insights, and discussions shared in the manuscript, and refrain from using any unpublished content for personal research.

• Notify the editor if any form of plagiarism is detected.

• Do not retain copies of the manuscript post-review and ensure data handling complies with relevant privacy regulations.

• Disclose any potential conflicts of interest.