Paper Submission Guidelines

Manuscript Preparation

General Principles

The text of observational and experimental articles should preferably (but not necessarily) be divided into sections with the headings Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. This so-called “IMRAD” structure is not simply an arbitrary publication format, but rather a direct reflection of the process of scientific discovery. Long articles may need subheadings within some sections (especially the Results and Discussion sections) to clarify their content. Articles such as case reports, reviews, and editorials, need not conform to this format. Double spacing of all portions of the manuscript—including the title page, abstract, text, acknowledgments, references, individual tables, and legends—and generous margins are essential. For manuscripts submitted electronically, the files should be double spaced, because the manuscript may need to be printed out for reviewing and editing.

All of the pages of the manuscript must be numbered consecutively, beginning with the title page.

Title Page

The title page should carry the following information:

1. The title of the article.

2. Authors’ names and institutional affiliations.

3. The name of the department(s) and institution(s) to which the work should be attributed.

4. Disclaimers, if any.

5. The name, mailing address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address of the author responsible for correspondence about the manuscript (“Corresponding author”).

6. The name and address of the author to whom requests for reprints should be addressed or a statement that reprints will not be available from the authors.

7. Source(s) of support in the form of grants, equipment, or drugs.

8. A running head of about 40 characters for mention at the top of each page.

9. The number of figures and tables.

Abstract and Key Words

An abstract (about 200 words) should follow the title page. The abstract should provide the context or background for the study and should state the study’s purposes, basic procedures (selection of study subjects or laboratory animals, observational and analytical methods), main findings, and principal conclusions. It should emphasize new and important aspects of the study or observations.

Following the abstract, a list of 3 to 10 key words or short phrases that capture the main topics of the article should be included. Terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus should be used; if suitable MeSH terms are not yet available for recently introduced terms, present terms may be used.

Introduction

Provide a context or background for the study (i.e., the nature of the problem and its significance). State the specific purpose or research objective of, or hypothesis tested by, the study or observation. Give only strictly pertinent references and do not include data or conclusions from the work being reported.

Methods

The Methods section should include only information that was available at the time the plan or protocol for the study was written; all information obtained during the conduct of the study belongs in the Results section.

Selection and Description of Participants

Describe your selection of the observational or experimental participants (patients or laboratory animals) clearly, including eligibility and exclusion criteria and a description of the source population. Because the relevance of such variables as age and sex to the object of research is not always clear, authors should explain their use when they are included in a study report; for e.g., authors should explain why only subjects of certain ages were included or why women were excluded.

Technical Information

Identify the methods, apparatus (give the manufacturer’s name and address in parentheses), and procedures in sufficient detail to allow other workers to reproduce the results. Give references to established methods, including statistical methods (see below); provide references and brief descriptions for methods that have been published but are not well known; describe new or substantially modified methods, give reasons for using them, and evaluate their limitations. Identify precisely all drugs and chemicals used, including generic name(s), dose(s), and route(s) of administration.

Statistics

Describe statistical methods with enough detail to enable a knowledgeable reader with access to the original data to verify the reported results. When possible, quantify findings and present them with appropriate indicators of measurement error or uncertainty (such as confidence intervals). Avoid relying solely on statistical hypothesis testing, such as the use of P values, which fails to convey important information about effect size. Define statistical terms, abbreviations, and most symbols. Specify the computer software used.

Results

Results must be presented in logical sequence in the text, tables, and illustrations, giving the main or most important findings first. Do not repeat in the text all the data in the tables or illustrations; emphasize only important observations. Extra or supplementary materials and technical detail must be placed in an appendix where it will be accessible but will not interrupt the flow of the text.

When data are summarized in the Results section, give numeric results not only as derivatives (for example, percentages) but also as the absolute numbers from which the derivatives were calculated, and specify the statistical methods used to analyze them. Restrict tables and figures to those needed to explain the argument of the paper and to assess its support. Use graphs as an alternative to tables with many entries; do not duplicate data in graphs and tables.

Discussion

Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that follow from them. Do not repeat in detail data or other material given in the Introduction or the Results section. For experimental studies it is useful to begin the discussion by summarizing briefly the main findings, then explore possible mechanisms or explanations for these findings, compare and contrast the results with other relevant studies, state the limitations of the study, and explore the implications of the findings for future research and for clinical practice.

References

General Considerations Related to References

Although references to review articles can be an efficient way of guiding readers to a body of literature, review articles do not always reflect original work accurately. Readers should therefore be provided with direct references to original research sources whenever possible. On the other hand, extensive lists of references to original work on a topic can use excessive space on the printed page. Small numbers of references to key original papers will often serve as well as more exhaustive lists.

Avoid using abstracts as references. References to papers accepted but not yet published should be designated as “in press” or “forthcoming”. Information from manuscripts submitted but not accepted should be cited in the text as “unpublished observations” with written permission from the source.

Avoid citing a “personal communication” unless it provides essential information not available from a public source, in which case the name of the person and date of communication should be cited in parentheses in the text.

Reference Style and Format

References should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they are first mentioned in the text. Identify references in text, tables, and legends by Arabic numerals in parentheses. References cited only in tables or figure legends should be numbered in accordance with the sequence established by the first identification in the text of the particular table or figure. The titles of journals should be abbreviated according to the style used in Index Medicus. List the first six authors followed by et al. (Note: The National Library of Medicine now lists all authors).

Examples

Halpern SD, Ubel PA, Caplan AL. Solid-organ transplantation in HIV-infected patients. N Engl J Med. 2002; 347: 284-287.

Rose ME, Huerbin MB, Melick J, Marion DW, Palmer AM, Schiding JK, et al. Regulation of interstitial excitatory amino acid concentrations after cortical contusion injury. Brain Res. 2002; 935: 40-46.

Diabetes Prevention Program Research Group. Hypertension, insulin, and proinsulin in participants with impaired glucose tolerance. Hypertension. 2002; 40: 679-686.

Tor M, Turker H. International approaches to the prescription of long-term oxygen therapy [letter]. Eur Respir J. 2002; 20: 242.

Murray PR, Rosenthal KS, Kobayashi GS, Pfaller MA. Medical Microbiology. 4th ed. St. Louis: Mosby; 2002.

Gilstrap LC, Cunningham FG, VanDorsten JP, editors. Operative Obstetrics. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2002.

Meltzer PS, Kallioniemi A, Trent JM. Chromosome alterations in human solid tumors. In: Vogelstein B, Kinzler KW, editors. The Genetic Basis of Human Cancer. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2002. p. 93-113.

Tables

Type or print each table with double spacing on a separate sheet of paper. Number tables consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text and supply a brief title for each. Do not use internal horizontal or vertical lines. Give each column a short or abbreviated heading. Authors should place explanatory matter in footnotes, not in the heading. Explain in footnotes all nonstandard abbreviations. Identify statistical measures of variations, such as standard deviation and standard error of the mean.

Be sure that each table is cited in the text.

Illustrations (Figures)

Figures should be either professionally drawn and photographed, or submitted as photographic quality digital prints. In addition to requiring a version of the figures suitable for printing, electronic files of figures in a format (e.g., JPEG or GIF) that will produce high quality images in the web version of the journal is desirable; authors should review the images of such files on a computer screen before submitting them, to be sure they meet their own quality standard.

For x-ray films, scans, and other diagnostic images, as well as pictures of pathology specimens or photomicrographs, send sharp, glossy, black-and-white or color photographic prints, preferably 127 x 173 mm (5 x 7 inches). Letters, numbers, and symbols on Figures should be clear and even throughout, and of sufficient size that when reduced for publication each item will still be legible.

Photomicrographs should have internal scale markers. Symbols, arrows, or letters used in photomicrographs should contrast with the background.

If photographs of people are used, either the subjects must not be identifiable or their pictures must be accompanied by written permission to use the photograph.

Figures should be numbered consecutively according to the order in which they have been first cited in the text. Colour illustrations must be avoided as far as possible.

Legends for Illustrations (Figures)

Type or print out legends for illustrations using double spacing, starting on a separate page, with Arabic numerals corresponding to the illustrations. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the illustrations, identify and explain each one clearly in the legend. Explain the internal scale and identify the method of staining in photomicrographs.

Units of Measurement

Measurements of length, height, weight, and volume should be reported in metric units (metre, kilogram, or litre) or their decimal multiples.

Temperatures should be in degrees Celsius. Blood pressures should be in millimetres of mercury.

For reporting hematological, clinical chemistry, and other measurements, International System of Units (SI) must be used. However, non-SI units may also be used if unavoidable. Drug concentrations may be reported in either SI or mass units, but the alternative should be provided in parentheses where appropriate.

Abbreviations and Symbols

Use only standard abbreviations; the use of non-standard abbreviations can be extremely confusing to readers. Avoid abbreviations in the title. The full term for which an abbreviation stands should precede its first use in the text unless it is a standard unit of measurement.

Sending the manuscript to the journal (JIST)

Electronic submission of manuscripts, whether on compact disc (CD), or as attachments to electronic mail, are highly preferable. Electronic submission saves time as well as postage costs, and allows the manuscript to be handled in electronic form throughout the editorial process (for example, when it is sent out for review). If a paper version of the manuscript is submitted, send 3 copies of the manuscript and figures; they are all needed for peer review and editing, and editorial office staff cannot be expected to make the required copies.

Manuscripts must be accompanied by a cover letter, which should include the following information.

• A statement that the manuscript has been read and approved by all the authors, that the requirements for authorship as stated earlier in this document have been met, and that each author believes that the manuscript represents honest work, and

• The name, address, and telephone number of the corresponding author, who is responsible for communicating with the other authors about revisions and final approval of the proofs.

The letter should give any additional information that may be helpful to the editor, such as the type or format of article in the particular journal that the manuscript represents. If the manuscript has been submitted previously to another journal, it is helpful to include the previous editor’s and reviewers’ comments with the submitted manuscript, along with the authors’ responses to those comments. Doing so may expedite the review process.

All electronic submissions (MS Word on CD or Email attachment) must be addressed to: toxicology@medical.amrita.edu with copy to poisonunit@aimshospital.org.

All paper submissions must be addressed to

Dr VV Pillay (Editor, JIST)
Chief, Dept of Analytical Toxicology
Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences & Research
Cochin 682026