AIMS AND SCOPE

The Iranian Biomedical Journal (founded in 1996) is an international quarterly publication of the Pasteur Institute of Iran and welcomes contributions from all areas of basic sciences, including molecular biology, immunology, biochemistry, microbiology, genetics, cell and developmental biology, pharmacology, physiology etc. The Journal is fully peer-reviewed and publishes original contributions that have not been published previously.  Abstracts presentations do not constitute previous publication.    Full papers and short communications will be considered for publication and review articles, only by invitation.  Acceptance of manuscripts for publication depends on their quality, originality, clarity, and relevance to the Journal’s scope. 

 

MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION

Manuscripts should be prepared in accordance with the “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submission to Biomedical Journals” proclaimed by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors.

Language. Papers should be in English (either British or American spelling).  The past tense should be used throughout in describing the results, and the present tense in referring to previously established and generally accepted results. Authors who are unsure of correct English usage should have their manuscript checked by somebody who is proficient in the language; manuscripts that are deficient in this respect may be returned to the author for revision before scientific review.   

Typing. Manuscripts must be typewritten in a font size of at least 12 points, double-spaced (including References, Tables and Figure legends) with wide margins (2.5 cm from all sides) on one side of good quality paper.  The beginning of each new paragraph must be clearly indicated by indentation.  All pages should be numbered consecutively at the bottom starting with the title page.

Length. The length of articles should be restricted to eight printed pages. Short communication should not exceed five pages of manuscript, including References, Figures and Tables. Any repetition of information in the text and illustrations must be avoided, and also excessively long reference lists.

 

GENERAL ARRANGEMENT OF PAPERS

Title. In the first page, papers should be headed by a concise and informative title.  The title should be followed by the authors' full first names, middle initials and last names and by names and addresses of laboratories where the work was carried out.  Identify the affiliations of all authors and their institutions, departments or organization by use of Arabic numbers (1, 2, 3, etc.). 

Running Title.  The text should include a running title of no more than 50 characters including spaces.

Footnotes. The name and full postal address, telephone, fax and E-mail number of corresponding author should be provided in a footnote. 

Abbreviations.  The Journal publishes a standard abbreviations list at the front of every issue.  These standard abbreviations do not need to be spelled out within paper.  However, non-standard and undefined abbreviations used five or more times should be listed in the footnote.  Abbreviations should be defined where first mentioned in the text. Do not use abbreviations in the title or in the Abstract, but can be used in Figures and Tables with explanation in the Figure legend or in a footnote to the Table.. 

Abstract. In second page, abstract should be followed the title (no authors’ name) in structured format of not more than 250 words and must be able to stand independently and should state the Background, Methods, Results and Conclusion. Write the abstract in third person.  References should not be cited and abbreviations should be avoided.

Keywords. A list of three to five keywords for indexing should be included at the foot of the abstract chosen from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH).

Introduction. This should contain a description of the problem under investigation and a brief survey of the existing literature on the subject.

Materials and Methods. Sufficient details must be provided to allow the work to be repeated.  Correct chemical names should be given and strains of organisms should be specified.  Suppliers of materials need only be mentioned if this may affect the results.  Use System International (SI) units and symbols.

Results. This section should describe concisely the rationale of the investigation and its outcomes.  Data should not be repeated in both a Table and a Figure.  Tables and Figures should be selected to illustrate specific points.  Do not tabulate or illustrate points that can be adequately and concisely described in the text.

Discussion. This should not simply recapitulate the Results.  It should relate results to previous work and interpret them.  Combined Results and Discussion sections are encouraged when appropriate.

Acknowledgments. This optional part should include a statement thanking those who assisted substantially with work relevant to the study.  Grant support should be included in this section.

References. References should be numbered sequentially in the order of their citation in the text and inserted between square brackets, e.g. [1], [6-10].  The list of references should follow the order of their citation with complete listing of authors (see examples) and should be typed double-spaced on sheets separate from the text.  Only published, "in press" papers and books may be cited in the reference list.  References to work "in press" must be accompanied by a copy of acceptance letter from the journal.  References should not be given to personal communications, unpublished data, manuscripts in preparation, letters, company publications, patents pending, and URLs for websites.  Abstracts of papers presented at meetings are not permissible.  These references should appear as parenthetical expressions in the text, e.g., (unpublished data).  References to Index Medicus for the names of abbreviated journals is acceptable.

Homepage/Website:

5.  Cancer-Pain.org [homepage on the Internet]. New York: Association of Cancer Online Resources, Inc.; c2000-01 [updated 2002 May 16; cited 2002 Jul 9]. Available from http://www.cancer-pain.org/

 

Tables and Figures. Tables and Figures should be numbered (1, 2, 3, etc.) as they appear in the text.  Figures should preferably be the size intended for publication and should not exceed 9 ´ 12 cm.  Photographs must be originals of high quality. Photocopies are not acceptable.  Those wishing to submit color photographs should contact the Editor regarding charges.

 Page charges. There is no page charge for publication in the Iranian Biomedical Journal. 

 Reprints. One reprints including one Journal will be provided free of charge.

 

REVIEW PROCESS

When a manuscript is submitted to the Journal, it is given a number for future communication with the Editor. All manuscripts are read by Editor and three qualified external reviewers to ensure both accuracy and relevance. Reviewers are asked to be objective in their evaluations and to judge primarily the novelty and soundness of the information presented. Authors are encouraged to suggest three to five appropriate reviewers for their manuscript, although the actual selection of referees will be made by the Editor. Authors also can indicate specific individuals whom they would like to have excluded as reviewers. In the review of any manuscript, the identity of the reviewers and authors and also information contained in manuscript are considered confidential. After a manuscript has been submitted, information on the status of the manuscript can be obtained by the private page.

 

Conflict of Interest. External peer reviewers should disclose to editor any potential conflicts of interest that could bias their opinions of the manuscript, and they should offer to disqualify themselves from reviewing specific manuscripts if they believe a conflict may exist. Also, reviewers should not use knowledge of the work, before its publication, to further their own interests. Editor and staff who make final decisions about manuscripts should have no personal financial involvement in any of the issues they might judge.

Revision. Papers may be returned to authors for modification of the scientific content and/or for shortening and language corrections.  Revised version and a letter listing point-for-point response to the reviewers must be submitted to the Editor and must be accompanied by a copy of the original version.  Suggestions by the Editor about resubmission do not imply that a revised version will necessary be accepted.  If a paper that is returned to the authors for modification is not resubmitted within two months it will be regarded as having been withdrawn and any revised version received subsequently will be treated as a new paper and the date of receipt will be altered accordingly. Authors who re-submit a paper that has previously been rejected must provide the original manuscript and a letter explaining in detail how the paper has been modified. The right is reserved to incorporate any changes deemed necessary by the Editor to make contributions harmonize with the editorial standards of the journal. Accepted manuscripts become the property of Iranian Biomedical Journal.

Adding or Dropping Authors.  For inclusion of a new author at later time, not only all co-authors must agree in writing, the concerned co-author must himself express agreement. Further, the reason for late inclusion should be found justified by the Journal. To drop any co-author, all the other co-authors (excluding the one to be dropped), should make such decision in writing.

Proofs. Proofs will be sent to the corresponding author to be checked for only typographical errors and other essential small changes.  Major alterations to the text cannot be accepted at this stage.  Proofs must be returned to the Editor within 3 days of receipt.

Authorship. An author is one who made a substantial contribution to the "overall design and execution of the experiments"; therefore, IBJ considers all authors responsible for the entire paper. Individuals who provided assistance, e.g., supplied strains or reagents or critiqued the paper, need not be listed as authors but may be recognized in the Acknowledgement section. All authors must agree to the order in which their names are listed in the by line.

Copyright. All authors must sign the ‘Submission Form’ agreement before the article can be processed. This transfer agreement enables Iranian Biomedical Journal to protect the copyright material for the authors, but does not relinquish the author’s proprietary rights. The copyright transfer covers the exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute the article, including reprints, photographic reproductions, microform or any other reproductions of similar nature and translations, and includes the right to adapt the article for use in conjunction with computer systems and programs, including reproduction or publication in machine-readable form and incorporation in retrieval systems. Authors are responsible for obtaining from the copyright holder permission to reproduce all figures for which copyright exists.