Editorial Policies

Part 1. Authorship and acknowledgment
Authorship credit should be based on 1) substantial contributions to conception and design, or acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data; 2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and 3) final approval of the version to be published. Authors should meet conditions 1, 2 and 3. It is based on a definition of authorship of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Contributors who do not qualify as authors should be listed in an acknowledgment for description of given help. Authors contribution sections is obligatory part of the paper.

 

Part 2. Allegations of research misconduct

Procedure for research misconduct allegations involve an initial assessment, a formal inquiry to determine if an investigation is warranted, and a thorough investigation if needed. Key aspects include defining what constitutes misconduct (fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, etc.), requiring evidence to prove allegations, and providing for a fair, confidential, and timely process for all involved. Outcomes can range from no action to retraction of publications, notification of institutions, and disciplinary measures.

 

Part 3. Citation

Research and non-research articles are required to reference pertinent, up-to-date, and authenticated literature, with a preference for peer-reviewed sources where appropriate. Excessive and inappropriate self-citation or prearrangements among author groups to manipulate citations, a form of misconduct known as citation manipulation, must be avoided.

If there is uncertainty about whether to cite a particular source, authors are encouraged to contact the publication's editorial office for guidance.

 

Part 4. Citation manipulation

Submitted manuscripts discovered to contain citations primarily intended to inflate the number of citations for a specific author's work or articles published in a particular journal will face sanctions for citation manipulation. This practice undermines the integrity of the scholarly citation system and is taken seriously to maintain the credibility of the publication process.

 

Part 5. Conflicts of interest

Publication policy is that all parties are required to disclose any financial, professional, or personal interests that could bias their work, and for editors and reviewers to recuse themselves if they have a conflict of interest with a manuscript. Disclosures are made at the time of submission, and the publication decides how to handle this information, sometimes publishing it alongside the article or using it to reassign the review process.

In case a field editor submits a manuscript the procedure of review will be assigned to Editor-in-Chief. In case Editor-in-Chief submits a manuscript the review process will be assigned to one of the Field Editors.

 

Part 6. Copyright Policy

The publications operate as an Open Access publication which means that electronic versions of articles are accessible to readers, without any fees or registration. When using articles please refer to Creative Commons license (BY type, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Copyright holders are the author and the publisher. This approach ensures that the content is accessible to a wide audience while retaining the necessary permissions for proper publication and dissemination.

 

Part 7. Data sharing and reproducibility

We encourage authors of articles published in our publications to share their research data including, but not limited to: raw data, processed data, software, algorithms, protocols, methods, materials.

 

Part 8. Data falsification/fabrication

Deliberate actions taken to inappropriately manipulate or fabricate data are considered a serious form of misconduct. Such actions are intended to mislead others and can severely compromise the integrity of the scholarly record, leading to widespread and long-term consequences.

Authors submitting manuscripts to the publication must ensure the accuracy of all data presented and that it faithfully represents their work. To facilitate the evaluation of manuscripts, authors are required to retain all raw data associated with their submissions.

In instances where the original data cannot be produced upon request, the acceptance of a manuscript or a published paper may be declined or retracted. This policy underscores the commitment to upholding the highest standards of integrity and transparency.

 

Part 9. Funding
Any source of funding for research or publication should always be disclosed. When is known organisation and contract number of grants, funds or similar that should be included.

 

Part 10. Plagiarism

We do not and will not support any kind of possible or real plagiarism. If authors feel that some parts could be described as plagiarism, even if are used proper quotations and citations in text, they need to report it as part of submission. We will use iThenticate to check similarities.

Authors need clearly explain what is, if any, included partially or completely in prior publications. It could be abstracts, posters, papers, books, databases and any kind of archives (public or not). If editor evaluate that submission is not substantially different of such previous results, it could be rejected.

 

Part 11. Post-publication critique

We do not publish post-publication critiques, i.e. anybody interested in such critique is invited to submit its own interpretations and results of previously published content. It will be reviewed.