Manuscript Preparation Guidelines for Original Articles
These guidelines are based on ICMJE recommendations.
General: Manuscripts should be written in Microsoft Word, using size 12 Arial font. The overall margin should be 2 cm (0.787 inches) with double space between lines. The page numbers should be included at the bottom right of the document.
Language: Manuscripts should be written in grammatically correct, meaningful English. All submitted manuscripts will be assessed for language by the editorial office, and articles that require language editing will be returned to the authors without peer review. Authors who require assistance with language editing are recommended to seek the help of those who are proficient in English.
Organization of article: Please organize the article in the following order:
Title Page
Abstract
Short title
Keywords
Author for correspondence
Introduction
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
Conflict of interest
References
Tables (if relevant)
Figures and figure legends (if relevant)
Title Page: Ensure that the title page has all information in the following order:
Type of article (Original article)
Title of the article (Avoid abbreviations in the title of the manuscript).
Full name(s) of Author(s) with numerical in superscript after each name
Affiliation(s) of the author(s) corresponding to the numerical above
Email of each author
Abstract: No more than 250 words, single paragraph without any references. The abstract should be written in such a way that it conveys the entire message of the article.
Short title: Below the abstract include a short title (maximum 50 characters including space)
Keywords: Below the short title, include five keywords in alphabetic order, each separated by semi-colon
Author for correspondence: Below the keywords, include the details of author for correspondence including email and a valid phone number.
Introduction: Describe why you are doing what you are doing in the light of the available literature.
Materials and Methods: Describe each method under separate headings. If relevant, include a statement about ethics approval and ethics approval number. Policy concerning ethics approval is included here. Describe the methods clearly including the number of samples, equipment and chemicals used, catalogue number of antibodies, number of repeats, statistical methods, and level of significance.
Results: Describe the results obtained under separate subheadings. Reference to tables and figures should be made parenthetically in the text, for example (Figure 1) or (Table 1). Do not repeat tabulated results in the text. Instead, give adequate footer for tables explaining the contents of the tables.
Discussion: Discuss your findings in various paragraphs; however, ensure that this is not a mere repetition of the ‘Results’ section. What is novel about your results? How do your results compare or contrast with the existing literature? What is your message for the scientific community? Avoid subheadings.
Conclusion: Write a concluding paragraph with a focus on implications of your findings and future directions.
Acknowledgements: This is optional. If relevant, acknowledge your colleagues and sources of finance that made this research possible.
Conflict of interest: This is mandatory. Declare any conflicts of interest that are pertinent to the current manuscript. More information on conflict of interest is given here. If you do not have any conflict of interest then write "The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to research, authorship and/or publication of this article".
References: Use Vancouver style. References should be cited in numerical order (in parentheses) in the text and listed in the same numerical order. If you use any software to generate references, manually verify that they are accurate and adhere to the requirements. Examples are given below (adapted from Monash University). Basically, the style is similar to PubMed format. The best way to ensure accuracy is to download from PubMed.
JOURNAL ARTICLES
For journal articles with 1-6 authors, list all authors.
Format: Author AA, Author BB, Author CC, Author DD. Title of article. Abbreviated title of journal. Date of publication YYYY Mon DD;volume number(issue number):page numbers.
Example: Courthod G, Tucci M, Di Maio M, Scagliotti GV. Papillary renal cell carcinoma: A review of the current therapeutic landscape. Crit Rev Oncol Hematol. 2015 Oct;96(1):100-12.
For journal articles with more than 6 authors, add et al. after the sixth author.
Format: Author AA, Author BB, Author CC, Author DD, Author EE, Author FF, et al. Title of article. Abbreviated title of journal. Date of publication YYYY Mon DD;volume number(issue number):page numbers.
Example: Alves MR, Carneiro FC, Lavorato-Rocha AM, da Costa WH, da Cunha IW, de Cássio Zequi S, et al. Mutational status of VHL gene and its clinical importance in renal clear cell carcinoma. Virchows Arch. 2014 Sep;465(3):321- 30.
BOOK
Format: Author AA. Title of book. # edition [if not first]. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year of publication. Pagination.
Example: Carlson BM. Human embryology and developmental biology. 4th ed. St. Louis: Mosby; 2009. 541 p.
CHAPTER IN A BOOK
Format: Author AA, Author BB. Title of book. # edition. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year of publication. Chapter number, Chapter title; p. [page numbers of chapter].
Example: Speroff L, Fritz MA. Clinical gynecologic endocrinology and infertility. 7th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; c2005. Chapter 29, Endometriosis; p. 1103-33.
EDITED BOOK
Format: Editor AA, Editor BB, editors. Title of book. # edition [if not first]. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year. Pagination.
Example: O'Campo P, Dunn JR, editors. Rethinking social epidemiology: towards a science of change. Dordrecht: Springer; 2012. 348 p.
CHAPTER IN AN EDITED BOOK
Format: Author AA, Author BB. Title of chapter. In: Editor AA, Editor BB, editors. Title of book. # edition. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year of publication. p. [page numbers of chapter].
Example: Blaxter PS, Farnsworth TP. Social health and class inequalities. In: Carter C, Peel JR, editors. Equalities and inequalities in health. 2nd ed. London: Academic Press; 1976. p. 165-78.
INTERNET ARTICLES
If no author is identified
Format: Title of the article [Internet]. [Accessed followed by year month and date]. Available from: full link of website
Example: Bosniak classification system of renal cystic masses [Internet]. [Accessed 2016 Sep 5]. Available from: https://radiopaedia.org/articles/bosniak-classification-system-of-renal-cystic-masses
If authors are identified
Format: Names of authors. Title of the article [Internet]. [Accessed followed by year month and date]. Available from: full link of website
Example: Bell DJ, Gaillard F. Bosniak classification system of renal cystic masses [Internet]. [Accessed 2016 Sep 5]. Available from: https://radiopaedia.org/articles/bosniak-classification-system-of-renal-cystic-masses
Tables: All tables should be created with the 'insert table' function of Microsoft Word. Do not format the table for style. The tables should be cited in numerical order in the text in bold font (Table 1, Table 2 etc.). Each table should have a table number and a descriptive title above the table. Explanations for abbreviations and levels of significance should be given at the bottom of the table as letters in superscript (for example a, b, c etc.), not as symbols (for example @, # etc.).
Figures and figure legends: All illustrations are referred to as "Figures" and must be numbered consecutively in bold font, for example (Figure 1, Figure 2 etc). Figures should be high resolution TIFF images. They must be inserted using the 'insert picture' function of the Microsoft Word. Include figure legends immediately below respective figures. Figure legend should have the figure number, a short title, and a stand-alone description of the figure. Symbols, arrows, or letters used in images should contrast with the background. Explain the internal scale and identify the method of staining in photomicrographs (if relevant).
Note 1: Multi-panel images should be inserted as a single image, not as separate images. For example, Figure 1 a, b and c should be made into a single TIFF image in Photoshop or any appropriate software and inserted as a single image.
Note 2: Apart from inserting into the Microsoft Word, TIFF images should be uploaded separately at 'step 4' of the submission process.
Supplementary data: If the article has supplementary data, they should be mentioned within the manuscript where relevant. The standard terminology “supplementary file” should be used (for example supplementary file 1, supplementary file 2, supplementary file 3 and so on) to identify each supplementary item irrespective of whether the supplementary item is a figure, text or table. These supplementary files should be merged and uploaded as a single pdf file during step 4 of the submission process. In the mandatory column, identify it as “Supplementary data”. Supplementary files are published as pdf on the journal’s website as supplied by the authors. The total size of the supplementary file should not exceed 10 MB. Any references in the supplementary files should be part of the supplementary files and should not be included in the manuscript. If the supplementary file is a video, please contact [email protected] to discuss the options.
Units: Measurements of length, height, weight, and volume should be reported in metric units (meter, kilogram, or liter) or their decimal multiples. Temperatures should be in degrees Celsius. Blood pressure should be in millimeters of mercury.
Abbreviations: Abbreviations should be spelled-out on first mention followed by the abbreviation in parenthesis.