Genome Biology and Evolution (GBE) publishes leading original research at the interface between evolutionary biology and genomics. Papers considered for publication report novel evolutionary findings that concern natural genome diversity, population genomics, the structure, function, organisation and expression of genomes, comparative genomics, proteomics, and environmental genomic interactions. Major evolutionary insights from the fields of computational biology, structural biology, developmental biology, and cell biology are also considered, as are theoretical advances in the field of genome evolution. GBE's scope embraces genome-wide evolutionary investigations at all taxonomic levels and for all forms of life — within populations or across domains. Its aims are to further the understanding of genomes in their evolutionary context and further the understanding of evolution from a genome-wide perspective.
GBE is owned by the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution (SMBE). Motivated by the continued growth of the field, SMBE conducted a grass-roots survey in 2007 to investigate the needs of the field regarding new publication outlets. The survey elicited a resounding response from members of SMBE and other scientists in the fields of genomics and molecular evolution. The key findings from that survey were that the field wanted an online only journal that was devoted specifically to the areas of genome evolution and comparative genomics and that was published under an Open Access model. The response of SMBE was to launch GBE in order to serve those needs of the field. The SMBE meeting attracts about 800 participants each year. As a reflection of the rapid growth of genomic technologies, about half of the science presented at each SMBE meeting is about genomics. With the help of the evolutionary expertise that is gathered in SMBE, GBE is positioned and designed to set the highest standards for papers in the growing field of evolutionary genomics.