BioMed Central is an STM (Science, Technology and Medicine) publisher which has pioneered the open access publishing model. BioMed Central publishes online, open access journals covering all fields in biology and medicine - from life sciences and ecology to clinical medicine. All of the original research articles in journals published by BioMed Central are immediately and permanently available online without charge or any other barriers to access. BioMed Central views open access to research as essential to rapid and efficient communication of research findings. BioMed Central is committed to maintaining high standards through full and stringent peer review. Authors who publish original research articles in journals published by BioMed Central retain copyright over their work. BioMed Central supports PubMed Central and other digital repositories, and encourages self-archiving by authors. BioMed Central, Chemistry Central and PhysMath Central are part of Springer Science+Business Media.