Abstract:Abstract： ［Purpose］To help to improve the scientific journal development in China, we performed an analysis of eLife, a recently launched open access journal.［Methodology］ We analyzed the paper output and subject classification using data from eLife website, learned their peer-reviewing process by interviewing authors, reviewing editor and referees of eLife, and invited 6 experts in molecular cell biology to evaluate 30 papers selected from eLife randomly.［Findings］eLife has established a new approach to peer review, during which referees have the opportunity to discuss their comments before the editorial decision is made. A reviewing editor oversees the whole peer-review process and assembles all comments into a single decision letter that clearly state additional data required for the revised manuscript. On average it takes about 90 days from submission to acceptance. The academic quality of papers in eLife is similar to that of PNAS.［Conclusions］eLife adopts a consultation session among the reviewing editors and referees, which greatly facilitates the decision process and provides a better experience for authors. It will be interesting to see whether its operation model is sustainable in the future.