Ethical and editorial standards

Ensuring the credibility and integrity of scientific publications requires adherence to international best practices. Authors submitting manuscripts for publication must comply with the following essential guidelines to maintain transparency, accuracy, and ethical responsibility in research dissemination.

1. Authorship & Article Submission

Proper attribution of authorship is fundamental to maintaining academic integrity. We adhere to the ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) guidelines, which define an author as someone who has made significant contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of a study.

• All listed authors must have actively participated in the research and agree on the final version of the manuscript.
• The corresponding author is responsible for submitting the manuscript and ensuring that all co-authors approve its content before submission.
• Any changes in authorship (adding, removing, or reordering authors) after submission require written consent from all involved parties and editorial approval.

2. Originality and Plagiarism

Submitted manuscripts must be entirely original and must not contain plagiarized content. Plagiarism, including self-plagiarism (duplicate publication of one’s previous work), is strictly prohibited.

• All manuscripts are screened using plagiarism detection software (iThenticate) before peer review.
• If figures, tables, or data from other sources are included, proper citation and permissions must be provided.
• Text recycling (reusing portions of previously published work without citation) should be avoided, unless explicitly justified and approved.

3. Data Integrity and Research Ethics

Authors are expected to ensure the accuracy and reliability of their data and comply with ethical standards in conducting research.

• Data must be accurately reported, with no manipulation or selective omission of findings.
• If the research involves human participants or animal studies, authors must obtain approval from an ethics committee and provide documentation (e.g., Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval).
• Clinical trials must be registered in an official trial registry (such as ClinicalTrials.gov or WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform).

4. Conflict of Interest Disclosure

Authors must disclose any potential conflict of interest (COI) that could influence the interpretation of results.

• Financial relationships (e.g., funding from pharmaceutical companies, private organizations) must be explicitly stated in a conflict of interest statement.
• Non-financial conflicts (e.g., personal or institutional relationships) should also be disclosed if relevant to the study.
• If no conflicts exist, a declaration stating “The authors declare no conflicts of interest” must be included.

5. Acknowledgment of Contributions and Funding

It is essential to acknowledge all contributors who played a role in the research but do not qualify for authorship.

• Individuals who provided technical assistance, data collection, or language editing should be mentioned in an Acknowledgments section.
• Funding sources must be explicitly stated, including grant numbers and the funding institution.

6. Responsible Citation Practices

Authors must cite relevant, high-quality references and avoid:

• Excessive self-citation or biased citation practices.
• Citation manipulation (e.g., excessive references to a particular journal to influence citation metrics).
• Misleading citations that do not accurately reflect the content of the referenced work.

7. Retractions and Corrections

If significant errors or ethical concerns arise after publication:

• Authors are expected to promptly notify the editorial board to request a correction or retraction.
• Corrections (errata) will be issued for minor errors that do not affect the study’s conclusions.
• Retractions will be considered for severe ethical breaches, including data fabrication, falsification, or undisclosed conflicts of interest.

By adhering to these guidelines, authors contribute to thecredibility, integrity, and advancement of scientific knowledge. Failure to comply with these principles may result in manuscript rejection, retraction, or reporting to relevant ethical oversight bodies.