Author Guidelines

1. Author Guidelines

Authors are invited to submit original manuscripts that have not been published previously and are not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Submissions should present significant and clearly articulated contributions to the field, supported by sound methodology, appropriate analysis, and relevant discussion.

Types of Articles

The journal welcomes the following article types:

• ■ Original Research Articles
• ■ Review Articles
• ■ Methods Papers
• ■ Case Studies
• ■ Implementation Papers
• ■ Short Communications
• ■ Perspectives and Commentaries

Manuscript Preparation

Authors should prepare manuscripts in clear, concise, and scholarly English. Submissions should generally include the following components where appropriate:

• • Title
• • Author names and affiliations
• • Abstract
• • Keywords
• • Introduction
• • Materials and Methods / Methodology
• • Results
• • Discussion
• • Conclusion
• • Acknowledgments (optional)
• • Funding statement (optional)
• • Conflict of interest statement
• • Data availability statement
• • References

Figures and tables should be embedded within the manuscript. References should be formatted consistently using a recognized academic citation style.

2. Preparing Manuscript

1. File Format

• • Authors must submit editable source files for the complete manuscript, including text, tables, figures, and graphics.
• • Use .doc or .docx for Word files and .tex for LaTeX files.
• • PDF files are not acceptable as source files.
• • Word manuscripts should be prepared in single-column format.
• • Double-column format is allowed only for LaTeX submissions.
• • Remove strikethrough and underlined text unless scientifically necessary.
• • Use spelling and grammar checks before submission.

2. Title Page

The title page must include the following information:

Article Title

Provide a concise and informative title. Avoid abbreviations and formulae unless widely recognized.

Author Names

Provide full given name(s) and family name(s). Ensure correct spelling of all author names. Author order must match the submission system.

Affiliations

Provide the full address of each institution where the work was conducted. Include city, postal code, country, and email address where available. Link authors to affiliations using superscript lowercase letters.

Corresponding Author

Clearly identify the corresponding author. Provide current email address and contact details. The corresponding author is responsible for all communication during review, publication, and post-publication.

Present or Permanent Address

If an author has moved, provide the current address as a footnote. Retain the affiliation where the work was conducted as the main affiliation. Use superscript Arabic numerals for such footnotes.

3. Abstract

Authors must provide a concise, factual abstract of no more than 250 words.

The abstract should briefly state:

• • Purpose of the study
• • Methods, where relevant
• • Principal results
• • Major conclusions

Guidelines:

• • The abstract must stand alone.
• • Avoid references unless essential.
• • If references are included, provide full citation details.
• • Define uncommon abbreviations at first mention.

4. Keywords

Provide 3 to 6 keywords for indexing.
Keywords must be in English.
Avoid long phrases where possible.
Avoid terms joined by “and” or “of.”
Use abbreviations only if they are well established in the field.

5. Mathematical Formulae

• • Submit equations as editable text, not images.
• • Present simple formulae within the text where possible.
• • Use / for simple fractions, such as X/Y.
• • Italicize variables.
• • Use exp to denote powers of e.
• • Display important equations separately.
• • Number displayed equations consecutively in the order cited in the text.

6. Tables

• • Tables must be submitted as editable text, not images.
• • Place tables near the relevant text or at the end of the manuscript.
• • Cite every table in the manuscript text.
• • Number tables consecutively in the order cited.
• • Provide a clear caption for each table.
• • Place table notes below the table body.
• • Avoid vertical lines and unnecessary shading.
• • Use tables only when they add value and do not duplicate text or figures.

7. Figures, Images, and Artwork

Figures, diagrams, images, and other artwork must be submitted as separate files.

General Requirements

• • Cite every figure in the manuscript text.
• • Number figures in the order they appear.
• • Submit each figure as a separate file.
• • Use clear file names, such as Figure_1, Figure_2.
• • Text graphics may be embedded in the manuscript where appropriate.

Captions

Each figure must include a caption with:

• • A brief title
• • A clear description
• • Explanation of symbols, abbreviations, or labels

Keep text within figures to a minimum and ensure all labels are readable.

Accepted Formats and Resolution

• • Vector drawings: EPS or PDF; embed fonts or convert text to graphics.
• • Photographs or grayscale images: TIFF, JPG, or PNG; minimum 300 dpi.
• • Line drawings: TIFF, JPG, or PNG; minimum 1000 dpi.
• • Combination artwork: TIFF, JPG, or PNG; minimum 500 dpi.

Do Not Submit

• • Low-resolution images
• • Images with unreadable or very small text
• • Multiple unrelated images combined into one figure

Color Figures

Color figures will appear in color online when suitable. Use color schemes that remain accessible to readers with impaired color vision.

8. Use of Generative AI in Figures and Artwork

Generative AI tools may be used only in limited and transparent ways.

Permitted Uses

AI tools may be used to create:

• • Flowcharts
• • Conceptual diagrams
• • Schematic illustrations
• • Data visualizations derived from reproducible data and methods

Not Permitted

AI tools must not be used to create or alter images representing primary research data, including:

• • Microscopy images
• • Western blots
• • Histology images
• • Clinical or patient images
• • Experimental images not directly obtained in the study

Adjustments to brightness, contrast, or color balance must be made only with appropriate image-processing software and must not misrepresent the data.

Disclosure

Authors are responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of all submitted images.

If generative AI is used to create an image, authors must disclose this:

• • In the relevant figure caption
• • In the manuscript’s generative AI disclosure statement

9. Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements should recognize individuals or organizations that assisted the research but do not meet authorship criteria.

Examples include support with:

• • Language editing
• • Writing assistance
• • Proofreading
• • Technical or administrative help

Guidelines:

• • Place acknowledgements in a separate section before the reference list.
• • Do not include acknowledgements on the title page.
• • Do not place acknowledgements as a footnote to the title or elsewhere in the manuscript.

10. Author Contributions

Authors must provide a contribution statement using the CRediT taxonomy, where applicable.

Possible roles include:

• • Conceptualization
• • Data curation
• • Formal analysis
• • Funding acquisition
• • Investigation
• • Methodology
• • Project administration
• • Resources
• • Software
• • Supervision
• • Validation
• • Visualization
• • Writing – original draft
• • Writing – review and editing

Not all roles will apply to every manuscript. One author may have multiple roles, and one role may be shared by several authors.

11. Appendices

Appendices may be placed after the main text and before or after the references according to journal style.

Guidelines:

• • Identify appendices as Appendix A, Appendix B, etc.
• • Number equations separately within each appendix, for example: Eq. (A.1), Eq. (A.2), Eq. (B.1).
• • Number tables and figures separately, for example: Table A.1, Fig. A.1.

12. Supplementary Material

Supplementary material may be submitted to support the manuscript.

Examples include:

• • Additional datasets
• • Images
• • Audio or video files
• • Applications
• • Supporting documents

Guidelines:

• • Supplementary files must be accurate and relevant.
• • Cite all supplementary files in the manuscript text.
• • Submit supplementary material with the manuscript.
• • Provide a concise caption for each file.
• • Additional or replacement files may be submitted only during revision.
• • Supplementary files will appear online as submitted and will not be edited, formatted, or typeset.

13. References

For authors using MS Word and EndNote, we provide an output style to DOWNLOAD that supports the formatting of in-text citations and reference list.

In-Text Citations

• • Cite references using numbers in square brackets, for example: [1].
• • Number references in the order they appear in the manuscript.
• • Author names may be mentioned in the text, but the reference number must also be included.

Example: “as demonstrated [3,6]. Barnaby and Jones [8] obtained a different result.”

• • Every in-text citation must appear in the reference list, and every reference in the list must be cited in the text.
• • References cited in the abstract must be given in full.

Reference List

At submission, references may be in any consistent style. Each reference should include, where applicable:

• • Author name(s)
• • Article, chapter, book, dataset, or software title
• • Journal or book title
• • Year of publication
• • Volume and issue number
• • Page range or article number
• • Publisher, where relevant
• • DOI or persistent link, where available

Authors must check all reference details carefully before submission. Incorrect names, titles, years, page numbers, or DOIs may prevent reference linking.

Unpublished and In-Press Work

• • Avoid including unpublished results and personal communications in the reference list.
• • Such sources may be mentioned in the text where necessary.
• • If included in the reference list, use the journal’s standard reference style and replace the date with “unpublished results” or “personal communication.”
• • “In press” should be used only for work accepted for publication.

Journal Name Abbreviations

• • Journal titles should be abbreviated according to the List of Title Word Abbreviations (LTWA) where applicable.

Reference Examples

• • Journal Article
  [1] J. van der Geer, T. Handgraaf, R.A. Lupton, The art of writing a scientific article, J. Sci. Commun. 163 (2020) 51–59. https://doi.org/xxxxx.
• • Journal Article with Article Number
  [2] J. van der Geer, T. Handgraaf, R.A. Lupton, The art of writing a scientific article, Heliyon 19 (2022) e00205. https://doi.org/xxxxx.
• • Book
  [3] W. Strunk Jr., E.B. White, The Elements of Style, 4th ed., Longman, New York, 2000.
• • Book Chapter
  [4] G.R. Mettam, L.B. Adams, How to prepare an electronic version of your article, in: B.S. Jones, R.Z. Smith (Eds.), Introduction to the Electronic Age, E-Publishing Inc., New York, 2020, pp. 281–304.
• • Website
  [5] Cancer Research UK, Cancer statistics reports for the UK, 2023. Available at: URL. Accessed 13 March 2023.
• • Dataset
  [6] M. Oguro, S. Imahiro, S. Saito, T. Nakashizuka, Mortality data for Japanese oak wilt disease and surrounding forest compositions [dataset], Mendeley Data, v1, 2015. https://doi.org/xxxxx.
• • Software
  [7] E. Coon, M. Berndt, A. Jan, D. Svyatsky, Advanced Terrestrial Simulator v0.88 [software], Zenodo, 2020. https://doi.org/xxxxx.

14. Manuscript Length

There is no restriction on the length of submitted manuscripts. However, authors should note that publication of lengthy papers, typically greater than 30 pages, is often significantly delayed, as the length of the paper acts as a disincentive to the reviewer to undertake the review process.

15. Originality and Ethics

Submitted manuscripts must be original and must not contain plagiarized material. All authors should have made a substantial scholarly contribution to the work and should approve the final submitted version. Authors are expected to disclose all sources of funding and any competing interests.

16. Data and Reproducibility

Where relevant, authors are encouraged to provide sufficient methodological detail, code references, datasets, or supplementary material to support transparency and reproducibility.

3. Submitting Manuscript

All manuscripts must be submitted through the journal’s online submission system. Authors should ensure that submissions are complete and comply with the journal’s policies before final submission.

Submission Preparation Checklist

Authors submitting to this journal are required to confirm that their submission meets all of the following requirements:

• ✓ The submission has not been previously published, nor is it under consideration by another journal.
• ✓ The manuscript is relevant to the aims and scope of the journal.
• ✓ The submission file is in an acceptable editable format.
• ✓ The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines.
• ✓ All authors have approved the manuscript and agree with its submission.
• ✓ The manuscript contains all required elements, including title, abstract, keywords, main text, and references.
• ✓ Where applicable, ethical approval, patient consent, or institutional approval has been obtained and stated in the manuscript.
• ✓ All sources of funding and any conflicts of interest have been disclosed.
• ✓ Figures, tables, and supplementary files are properly labeled and cited in the text.

Article Processing Charges

There is no article processing charge (APC) for submission, review, or publication in this journal. Publication in ResearchInn Journals is fully open access and free of charge for authors.