openRxiv partners with Dryad to streamline data sharing and curation

An important part of our mission at openRxiv is to collaborate with other organizations to improve science communication and promote interoperability. Preprints are just one part of the research workflow, and we want to ensure they are effectively integrated with other research outputs in scientists’ workflows. Public datasets are a good example, since these serve both as the evidence basis for discoveries reported in articles and as resources for data re-use that drive discovery by other scientists. Additionally, sharing data and linking it to the preprint can help with meeting funder requirements and provide increased confidence in the preprints findings, when the data supporting the manuscript is clearly available. 

To help integrate datasets with preprints posted on bioRxiv and medRxiv, we have partnered with Dryad to streamline data sharing for authors and make it easy for them to link their preprints to supporting data available on Dryad. Dryad is a general-purpose data publishing platform that hosts datasets in a variety of formats and makes them findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR). Dryad verifies that the datasets can be accessed and provides rich metadata to improve discoverability and indexing. It also assigns digital object identifiers (DOIs) to ensure they can always be found online and guarantees long-term preservation. This aligns perfectly with the goals of preprints servers like bioRxiv and medRxiv. 

The new partnership directly connects the bioRxiv and medRxiv article submission system to the Dryad data portal. Authors posting preprints on bioRxiv or medRxiv who want to deposit and link to their data can move seamlessly over to Dryad and upload files without having to re-enter redundant metadata or details of the associated preprint. Once the upload process is complete, the curated dataset will be linked at the bioRxiv or medRxiv article page so it is easily discoverable by readers. A green check mark indicates that the dataset has been verified by Dryad curators. This approach therefore not only connects research outputs and improves the author experience but provides a model for displaying additional trust signals for readers. Connecting the preprint with the underlying data also means it can be easily validated, reanalyzed and extended by the community. 

For further details of how the Dryad-openRxiv partnership works, including a ‘how to’ guide for authors, see the post over at the bioRxiv website.  

Post updated 2026-04-09: Dryad integration initially launched on bioRxiv. It’s now available on both bioRxiv and medRxiv!