Peer-Reviewed Publication
A scientific article evaluated by independent experts before journal acceptance. Peer review provides quality control that distinguishes published research from unreviewed claims. PeptideTrace tracks peer-reviewed publication counts from PubMed as a measure of each compound's research evidence base.
Technical Context
The peer review process: author submits manuscript → editor screens for suitability → 2-3 independent reviewers evaluate methodology, data analysis, conclusions, and novelty → reviewers recommend accept, minor revisions, major revisions, or reject → editor makes decision → revisions incorporated → re-review if needed → acceptance → publication. Single-blind (reviewers know author identity), double-blind (both identities concealed), and open peer review (identities disclosed) formats exist. Peer review limitations: it cannot detect all errors or fraud, reviewers may have biases, and the process takes 2-12 months. PeptideTrace's PubMed-based publication tracking counts peer-reviewed articles indexed with each compound name. Publication count is a proxy for research interest intensity but does not indicate evidence quality — a compound with 500 publications including multiple negative trials has a very different evidence profile than one with 500 positive preclinical reports.