The journal is dedicated to upholding the highest standards of integrity and transparency in all published content. A clear policy on competing interests is in place, and authors are required to disclose any potential conflicts that may influence their work.
Authors must adhere to applicable international, national, and institutional guidelines for research reporting. Particular attention is required for studies involving human or animal subjects, including the handling of data, biological materials, and the acquisition of informed consent.
The journal is affiliated with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and follows its established principles and procedures for addressing potential cases of misconduct. All allegations are carefully assessed to safeguard the integrity of the scientific record.
Submissions may be screened using plagiarism detection tools. In cases where plagiarism is suspected or identified, the journal applies COPE guidelines in managing such issues.
All research articles published in the journal undergo a single-anonymous peer-review process conducted by independent experts in the field.
A standard agreement form for authors is also available and may be required to be completed and signed prior to publication.
Ethical treatment of animals
For studies involving animals, all work must have been conducted according to applicable national and international guidelines. Prior approval must have been obtained for all protocols from the relevant author's institutional or other appropriate ethics committee, and the institution name and permit numbers should be provided within the manuscript at the moment of submission. For research involving non-human primates, all studies must be performed in accordance with the recommendations of the Weatherall (2006) report, The use of non-human primates in research. Where unregulated animals are used or ethics approval is not required by a specific committee, the article should include a clear statement of this fact and the reasons why ethical approval is not required.
We also strongly encourage all authors to comply with the 'Animal Research: Reporting In Vivo Experiments' (ARRIVE) guidelines, developed by NC3Rs to improve standards of reporting to ensure that the data from animal experiments can be fully scrutinized and utilized. Relevant information should be included in the appropriate section of the article (e.g. title, abstract, or method), as outlined in the ARRIVE guidelines. The ARRIVE guidelines can be applied to any area of bioscience research using laboratory animals. Where research could be confused as pertaining to human clinical research, the animal model should also be noted in the article title.
Example of statement of ethical approval. This study was performed in strict accordance with the recommendations in the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals of the National Institutes of Health. The protocol was approved by the Committee on the Ethics of Animal Experiments of the University of Minnesota (Permit Number: 27-2956). All surgery was performed under sodium pentobarbital anesthesia, and every effort was made to minimize suffering.