NLM Pauses PubMed Indexing for Scientific Reports During Journal Review

The US National Library of Medicine has temporarily paused indexing and archiving new articles from Scientific Reports while it reassesses the journal’s inclusion in MEDLINE, the world’s largest biomedical library.

“Following its significant growth in recent years, Scientific Reports is currently being reviewed by the US National Library of Medicine,” Rafal Marszalek, the journal’s chief editor, wrote in an Oct. 20 email seen by Retraction Watch. “We have been informed that during this period, indexing of newly published content in MEDLINE and archiving in PubMed Central are paused, and the content will not appear in PubMed.”

Marszalek did not specify why the NLM is reviewing Scientific Reports, which has the largest volume of indexed articles in PubMed. According to MEDLINE’s policies, the NLM may reevaluate a journal when there are “significant changes,” including shifts in publication volume or article types.

The most recent Scientific Reports article indexed in PubMed was published on Sept. 15. The journal has 28,593 articles indexed in 2026, excluding errata and retraction notices, while its website lists 41,122 articles published this year.

“Scientific Reports has grown significantly since its launch 15 years ago, when it was first indexed by the NLM,” Richard White, vice president of publishing for the Scientific Reports portfolio, said in a statement to Retraction Watch. “It has published more than one million authors, and in 2025 research from the journal was cited more than one million times. We remain committed to maintaining high standards of quality and are working actively with the NLM to provide any updated information it needs.”

The discrepancy was identified by Tom Lahey, an independent, self-funded researcher focused on public health and research. Lahey maintains a suite of PubMed-based tools, including a tracker that ranks journals by total indexed articles. According to his count, Scientific Reports has had the most articles indexed in PubMed each year since 2019. After observing unusually low numbers for two consecutive months, he contacted the NLM, which directed him to the publisher; Marszalek’s Oct. 20 reply disclosed the review.

“Something really must have gone sideways,” Lahey told Retraction Watch.

Neither the journal’s NLM catalog entry nor its PubMed Central listing indicates that it is under review. The NLM did not immediately respond to questions about the reason for the review, its expected duration, or whether the list of journals under reevaluation is public. According to the policy page, such reevaluations typically take seven to 10 months.

“We are in contact with NLM, and we expect that indexing, including content published during the current period, will resume following the review,” Marszalek said.

Scientific Reports, published by Springer Nature, has about 50 full-time deputy, senior, and associate editors and more than 11,000 editorial board members. Its article processing charge is $2,850.

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