Peer Review Process
Section Policies
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Peer Review Process
Once submitted, your manuscript will be assigned to a member of our Editorial Board, who will read the paper and decide whether it is appropriate for the journal. Manuscripts that are within the scope and seem, on initial assessment, to be technically sound and scientifically valid, will be sent to external reviewers. Copies of any papers containing similar or related work under consideration or in press at other journals must be included with the submission.
During peer review, reviewers will be able to access your manuscript securely using our online system, whilst maintaining referee anonymity. At the submission stage, authors may indicate a limited number of scientists who should not review the paper. Excluded scientists must be identified by name. Authors may also suggest potential reviewers; these suggestions are often helpful, but they are not always followed. In cases where the journal is unable to find sufficient peer reviewers, the services of a publishing partner, Research Square, may be used to identify suitable reviewers and provide reports to avoid further delays for authors. Reviewers recruited by Research Square are paid a small honorarium for completing the review within a specified timeframe. Honoraria are paid regardless of the reviewer's recommendation. By policy, referees are not identified to the authors, except at the request of the referee.
The traditional single-blind method, in which reviewers are anonymous but know the authors' identity
After considering the reviewer reports the Editorial Board Member will make one of the following decisions:
- Accept outright
- Request a minor revision, where authors revise their manuscript to address specific concerns
- Request a major revision, where authors revise their manuscript to address significant concerns and perhaps undertake additional work
- Reject outright
In cases where the referees or Editorial Board Member has requested changes to the manuscript, you will be invited to prepare a revision. The decision letter will specify a deadline for the submission of a revised manuscript. Once resubmitted, the manuscript may then be sent back to the original referees or to new referees, at the Editorial Board Member's discretion. A revised manuscript should be submitted via the revision link provided in the decision letter, and not as a new manuscript. The revision should also be accompanied by a point-by-point response to referees explaining how the manuscript has been changed. We aim for accepted manuscripts to undergo one round of revision before being accepted for publication, so please ensure that all issues raised have been addressed in the first round of revision.
When all editorial issues are resolved, your paper will be formally accepted for publication. The received date stated on the paper will be the date on which the original submission passed our standard quality control checks. The accepted date stated on the paper will be the date on which the Editorial Board Member sent the acceptance letter. After acceptance, authors are sent proofs of their manuscript but only changes to the title, author list, or scientific errors will be permitted. All corrections must be approved by the publishing team. We reserve the right to make the final decision about matters of style and the size of figures.