ONLINE SUBMISSION At the end of the year 2000 the decision was made to create an online manuscript submission and tracking site for Research in Microbiology. This enables authors to directly upload their articles to a member of the Editorial Board, who will be able to choose referees and send the file to them directly online. This e-submission site considerably speeds up all aspects of publication. If and when the article is accepted, it will be freely available online until the moment of formal publication, first online in ScienceDirect, followed several weeks later by the issue in print.