Experiments Involving Humans and Animals

Authors of experiments involving human subjects or materials are required to specify whether the procedures followed were in adherence to the ethical standards established by the responsible committee on human experimentation (at both the institutional and national levels), as well as the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as amended in 2008. The authors are required to provide an explanation for any ambiguous aspects of the study and to show that the institutional review body explicitly endorsed them if their approach is deemed questionable. Randomized controlled trial authors should provide protocols with their articles. Prior to participant recruitment, all clinical trials must be registered with an appropriate online public trial registry that is independent of for-profit interests.It is imperative that the authors comply with the minimum set of guidelines outlined in "The CONSORT (CONsolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) 2010 guideline" when reporting randomized trials. Flow diagrams, checklists, and trial protocols are required for all randomized clinical trials (CONSORT Flow Diagram and Checklist; www.consort-statement.org).After the abstract and on the online manuscript submission form, provide the trial registry name, registration number, and URL.

Authors should specify whether the institutional and national guide for the care and use of laboratory animals was adhered to when documenting animal experiments.Authors should clearly state the approval committee and state that legal and ethical approvals were obtained before starting animal research and that the experiments were conducted following the guidelines and regulations below.

Informed Consent

Compliance with the guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (www.icmje.org) is recommended. It is impermissible to violate the privacy of patients without their informed assent. It is impermissible to include personally identifiable information, such as hospital numbers, initials, or names of patients, in written descriptions, photographs, or pedigrees; exceptions apply when the information is necessary for scientific purposes and the patient (or their legal guardian) grants written informed consent for its publication. Additionally, authors should identify and disclose the source of funding for any individuals who provide writing assistance. When not required, identifying information should be omitted. Although attaining complete anonymity is challenging, in cases where uncertainty exists, informed consent should be acquired. To illustrate, the act of concealing the eye region in patient photographs is insufficient in guaranteeing anonymity. Authors should ensure that any modifications made to identifying characteristics, such as in genetic pedigrees, to safeguard the patient's interests do not improperly alter the scientific meaning.

Experiments Involving Plants

All plant experiments-cultivated or wildshould follow international rules. The manuscript should state that field studies followed the IUCN Policy Statement on Research Involving Species at Risk of Extinction and Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora guidelines.