brycewang-stanford STAR Methods (molcell-star-methods)
When to trigger
- The manuscript has a free-text Methods section (Molecular Cell requires STAR Methods).
- There is no Key Resources Table, or reagents lack identifiers/RRIDs/catalog numbers.
- The Resource Availability block is missing one of its required subsections.
- Statistics are scattered in legends with no consolidated analysis section.
STAR Methods = Structured, Transparent, Accessible Reporting. It is a Cell Press signature and is mandatory at Molecular Cell. Because Molecular Cell papers live or die on reagent- and construct-level detail, this is the single most scrutinized methods deliverable.
Mandatory STAR Methods structure (exact order)
- Key Resources Table (KRT)
- Resource Availability — required subsections: a. Lead Contact b. Materials Availability c. Data and Code Availability
- Experimental Model and Subject Details (or Experimental Model and Study Participant Details)
- Method Details
- Quantification and Statistical Analysis (QSA)
Some versions add Additional Resources at the end. Confirm the current Cell Press STAR Methods structure and headings.
1. Key Resources Table (KRT)
A structured table listing every reagent and resource, grouped by category, each with its source and an identifier (RRID, catalog #, accession, DOI, or repository link). For a molecular-biology paper this table is dense — every plasmid, primer, and purified protein must appear.
| REAGENT or RESOURCE | SOURCE | IDENTIFIER |
|---|---|---|
| Antibodies | ||
| Anti-X (clone, host) | Vendor / lab | Cat# ; RRID:AB__ |
| Bacterial and Virus Strains | ||
| Chemicals, Peptides, Recombinant Proteins | ||
| Purified PROTEIN X (residues a–b) | This paper | N/A |
| Critical Commercial Assays | ||
| Deposited Data | ||
| ChIP-seq / RNA-seq, this paper | This paper | GEO: GSE______ |
| Cryo-EM map / model, this paper | This paper | EMDB: EMD-____ ; PDB: ____ |
| Mass spec, this paper | This paper | PRIDE: PXD______ |
| Experimental Models: Cell Lines | ||
| Experimental Models: Organisms/Strains | ||
| Oligonucleotides | ||
| sgRNA / primer / probe sequence | This paper | N/A |
| Recombinant DNA (plasmids) | Addgene #______ | |
| Software and Algorithms | RRID:SCR______ / DOI |
Rules:
- Every antibody, cell line, strain, plasmid, oligo, purified protein, dataset, and software package appears.
- Antibodies carry a catalog # and RRID where available.
- Purified/recombinant proteins state the construct boundaries and tags.
- Cell lines and organisms identify source and validation/authentication (and mycoplasma status).
- Deposited data list the accession/DOI for this paper's data (see
molcell-data). - Software lists version and an identifier (RRID:SCR___ or DOI); custom code points to its archived repository.
2. Resource Availability (required subsections)
- Lead Contact — one named corresponding author who fields resource/reagent requests, with email.
- Materials Availability — how unique reagents (plasmids, cell lines, antibodies, purified proteins, mouse lines) are shared, via Addgene/repository or under an MTA; or "This study did not generate new unique reagents."
- Data and Code Availability — the standardized statement (data / code / additional information), each with a sentence (built in
molcell-data).
All subsections must be present even when the answer is "none/not applicable."
3. Experimental Model and Subject Details
Organisms, strains, cell lines (sex, age, source, passage, authentication, mycoplasma), yeast/bacterial genotypes, recombinant expression hosts, patient/participant details (with ethics approvals and consent), housing and husbandry. State IRB/IACUC approvals and protocol numbers here.
4. Method Details
Step-by-step procedures in enough detail to reproduce, organized by technique with subheadings, referencing reagents by their KRT entries: protein expression and purification (constructs, tags, columns), reconstitution conditions, in-vitro assays, cryo-EM/crystallography data collection and processing, genomics library prep and pipelines, and any single-molecule setups. A Molecular Cell reader should be able to rebuild the biochemistry.
5. Quantification and Statistical Analysis (QSA)
A consolidated section: for each quantified result, the statistical test, definition of n and what it represents, dispersion (SD/SEM/CI), significance thresholds, software used, and how outliers/exclusions were handled. For structures, report resolution, refinement, and validation statistics; for genomics, normalization and replicate handling; for kinetics/single-molecule, the fitting model and number of events. Statistics in figure legends must match QSA.
Output format
【KRT present】 yes/no — categories covered; antibodies w/ Cat#+RRID; purified proteins w/ constructs; deposited data w/ accession
【Resource Availability】 Lead Contact ☐ / Materials Availability ☐ / Data & Code Availability ☐
【Exp. Model & Subject Details】 organisms/lines/hosts/participants + ethics (IRB/IACUC)? yes/no
【Method Details】 reproducible, KRT-linked, purification/reconstitution described? yes/no
【QSA】 per-result test + n-definition + dispersion + software + structure/genomics stats? yes/no
【Gaps】 [...]
【Next】 molcell-data
Anti-patterns
- Do not submit a free-text Methods section — Molecular Cell requires STAR Methods.
- Do not omit RRIDs/catalog numbers for antibodies and software.
- Do not leave purified-protein constructs, tags, or oligo sequences out of the KRT.
- Do not drop any Resource Availability subsection.
- Do not leave statistics only in legends — consolidate in QSA.
The exact STAR Methods headings and KRT categories are set by Cell Press — confirm against the current STAR Methods author guidelines.