Layout and general guidelines

Layout
Careful preparation will expedite both review and copy editing processes and ensure earlier publication. Authors are requested to submit manuscripts in Word, A4 format, with texts in 1.5 spacing, using generous margins (2.5 cm or 1") on all sides). Headers and footers should be set at 1.25 cm (0.5") (download the model Word document). Pages should be numbered in the right-hand corner of the footer and lines numbered in the left-hand margin. Please use the word-processing feature ‘line numbering’ (in Page set-up, Lay-out) to number lines (this facilitates the task of reviewers). Numbering every five lines is most appropriate. Manuscripts should be arranged in the following order: Title, Authors, Full addresses of all authors (and, if desired, email addresses), Summary, Keywords, Introduction, Materials and methods, Results, Discussion (IMRAD structure), Conclusions, Acknowledgments (if appropriate), Grant support (if appropriate), References, Tables, Figure legends and Figures. Three levels of headings can be used in the text. Level 1 is reserved for the principal titles (usually: Summary, Keywords, Introduction, Materials and methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions, Acknowledgements and References). Authors are requested to ensure all other headings and subheadings remain short and descriptive; full sentences should be avoided. All tables and figures must be quoted in the order in which they appear in the text. Reference numbers within the text should be placed in round brackets: 'according to Wilson et al. (25)' or 'compared to previous work (3, 16, 17, 18, 21)'. Great care must be taken to ensure references are presented as required by the journal.

General guidelines
The text of observational and experimental articles is usually (but not necessarily) divided into sections using the ‘IMRAD’ structure which is not simply an arbitrary publication format, but rather a direct reflection of the scientific process. Long articles may need subheadings within some sections (especially the Results and Discussion sections) to clarify their content. Other articles, such as specially commissioned papers, case reports, reviews and editorials, are likely to need other formats. Manuscripts must be concise. Avoid repetition and redundancies. Do not include a summary or discussion in the Introduction that duplicates other sections of the manuscript. Do not present discussion in the Results section. Cite only essential references. The presentation of figures and tables is encouraged.

Title page
Present the title in upper and lower case, italicising species or Latin terms and avoiding the use of abbreviations or acronyms.
Title: characters and spaces should not exceed 110. Concise titles are easier to read than long, convoluted ones. Titles that are too short may, however, lack important information, such as study design (which is particularly important in identifying randomised controlled trials). Authors should include all information in the title that will make electronic retrieval of the article both sensitive and specific. List all first and family names of authors (use upper and lower case; include accents, diacritical marks and foreign language letters) and complete address, with name and location (department and/or division, if appropriate), including postal codes, for each person listed (do not use abbreviations or acronyms). Email addresses may be added if desired. Use superscript Arabic numerals within round brackets to key authors to their addresses.

Summary
The total number of words should not exceed 200. Ensure that the purpose of the work, methods used and conclusions are presented clearly. No data or references should appear in the summary. Abbreviations and acronyms should only be given if referred to more than once. Under no circumstances must the wording of the summary be identical to any passages in the text.

Keywords
Six to eight keywords should be suggested, covering the essential aspects covered in the manuscript. It is particularly important to select these with care as they will be used to create metatags to optimise search engine retrieval of your manuscript.

Introduction
A clear statement of the manuscript should be given, with relevant literature cited. Avoid providing results or summary statements here.

Materials and methods
New methods should specify the composition of all solutions, buffers, mixtures and culture media. Well-known or previously described methods in which the recipe is given should be mentioned and appropriately referenced. Use generic names of chemicals, drugs, antibodies, reagents, enzymes, etc., whenever possible; avoid the use of brand names unless the composition of a particular brand is vital to the methodology. If a brand name of a product has to be given, provide the name of the manufacturer the first time the product is mentioned. Please provide institutional affiliations of individuals or companies who have donated supplies or reagents (and URL if possible). The accuracy of URL addresses must be verified carefully by the authors and the date of last access given.

Provide readers with sufficient information to replicate the work. Unpublished work should not be cited to provide validation of methodology. Include statistical methods used for data analysis. Do not describe methods in figure legends.

Results
Present findings in appropriate detail (using the past tense) and refer to tables and figures in order. Avoid discussing a figure or table in any depth; these should be presented in such a manner that they do not require lengthy discussion.

Discussion
Provide a clear and concise interpretation of the results, avoiding redundant summaries.

Acknowledgments
Acknowledge assistance other than financial support, e.g. review, technical help, editorial assistance, etc. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from persons acknowledged by name.

Grant support
Indicate financial support (grant or contract numbers) and funding agency here and not in the Acknowledgments section.

Conflict of interest/Competing interests
At the end of the text, under a heading ‘Conflict of interest statement’ or ‘Competing interests statement’, authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organisations that may compromise or inappropriately influence or bias their work.

Statement of informed consent
Statement of informed consent Patients have a right to privacy that should not be infringed without informed consent. Identifying information, including patients’ names, initials or hospital numbers, should not be published in written descriptions, photographs and pedigrees unless the information is essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent/guardian) provides written informed consent for publication. Informed consent for this purpose requires that a patient who is identifiable be shown the manuscript to be published. Authors should identify individuals who provide writing assistance and disclose the funding source for this assistance. Identifying details should be omitted if they are not essential. Complete anonymity is difficult to achieve, however, and informed consent should be obtained if there is any doubt. For example, masking the eye region in photographs of patients is inadequate to protect anonymity. If characteristics are altered to protect anonymity, such as in genetic pedigrees, authors should provide assurance that alterations do not distort scientific meaning and editors should so note. When informed consent has been obtained it should be indicated in the published article.

Statement of human and animal rights
When reporting experiments on human subjects, authors should indicate whether the procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. If doubt exists whether the research was conducted in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration, the authors must explain the rationale for their approach and demonstrate that the institutional review body explicitly approved the doubtful aspects of the study. When reporting experiments on animals, authors should be asked to indicate whether the institutional and national guide for the care and use of laboratory animals was followed.