Guidelines for Authors

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Editorial Policy

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Peer Review

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Open Access Policy

Landes Bioscience recognizes that some authors prefer that their research be freely available to all potential readers upon publication, and that certain funding agencies (Howard Hughes Medical Institute, MRC, NIH, Wellcome Trust) request open access of agency-funded research within six months to one year of publication.

To address these requests, we provide the following options for our authors and readers:

(1) One year after publication. ALL papers will become open access to ALL users throughout the world after having been published online for one year. Authors may deposit a PDF of the final manuscript with PubMed Central or UK PubMed Central once the paper has been made freely availble at the journal's website.

(2) Immediately upon publication. Authors may purchase open access of their paper at the proof stage and the paper will be made freely available at our website. Again, if the paper is funded by a NIH, MRC or Wellcome Trust grant, authors may deposit a PDF of the final manuscript  with PubMed Central or UK PubMed Central. The fee for open access is $750.

NIH Manuscript Submission System (link to: http://www.nihms.nih.gov/ )

UK PubMed Central Manuscript Submission System (link to: https://ukmss.mimas.ac.uk/ukmss/login/uls.cgi?rss=wt&url=https://ukmss.mimas.ac.uk/MyUKPMC/menu.html)

Availability of Materials and Data

As a condition of publishing in any Landes Bioscience journal, authors should be able to provide any materials and/or protocols used in published experiments to other qualified researchers for their own use. Materials include (but are not limited to): cells, DNA, antibodies, reagents, organisms, mouse strains, and Drosophila strains. These should be made available in a timely manner and it is acceptable to request reasonable payment to cover the cost of maintenance and transport. If there are restrictions to availability, this should be made clear in the cover letter and in the Materials and Methods section of the Research Paper, Brief Communication or Report.

For materials such as mutant strains and cell lines, authors are encouraged to use established public repositories and provide relevant accession numbers wherever possible. Repositories include: 

Jackson Laboratory (mouse strains)

Bloomington Drosophila Stock Center at Indiana University (fly strains)

Drosophila Genomics Resource Center (DNA clones and cell lines)

MMRRC (Mutant Mouse Regional Resource Centers)

UK Stem Cell Bank

Papers reporting protein or DNA sequences and molecular structures should provide an accession number to any of the three major collaborative databases: DDBJ, EMBL or GenBank. It is only necessary to submit to one database as data are exchanged between DDBJ, EMBL and GenBank on a daily basis. The suggested wording for referring to accession-number information is: 'These sequence data have been submitted to the DDBJ/EMBL/GenBank databases under accession number U12345.'

Manuscript Submission

Pre-Submission Inquiries

Pre-submission inquiries are encouraged. These may include either an abstract or a full length manuscript as an email attachment (Microsoft Word). Pre-submission inquiries should be emailed to the Editors, Yi-Xin Zeng or Mikhail Blagosklonny.

General Submission

CJC utilizes an online submission and tracking system which is designed to provide a better, more efficient service to authors.
  • • Authors can submit manuscripts online from anywhere in the world.
  • • Authors can track their manuscript through the peer review process.
  • • Author files are automatically converted into a PDF (Portable Document Format) file and submissions are acknowledged by email.
  • • Editors and reviewers access the PDF files on the website.

Copyright

All submissions must be accompanied by a completed copyright transfer form. Fax: CJC, 512.355.4189, or Email: cjc@landesbioscience.com

Non-Native Speakers of English

Authors who are not native speakers of English and submit manuscripts to international journals often receive negative comments from referees or editors about English-language usage. These problems can contribute to a decision to reject a paper. To help reduce the possibility of such problems, we strongly encourage such authors to take at least one or both of the following steps.

  • Have your manuscript reviewed for clarity by a colleague whose native language is English.
  • Use a service such as one of those listed below. An editor will improve the English to ensure that your meaning is clear and identify problems that require your review. Note that the use of such a service is at the author's own expense and risk and does not guarantee that the article will be accepted. Landes Bioscience accepts no responsibility for the interaction between the author and the service provider or for the quality of the work performed.

American Journal Experts

American Journal Experts (AJE) provides professional language editing services to authors around the globe who wish to publish in scientific, technical, medical and humanities journals. AJE employs expert editors with post-graduate training in a wide variety of fields who will check your manuscripts not only for terminology and language specific to your field but also for proper English usage, grammar, punctuation, spelling, verb tense, and phrasing. In addition, AJE's professional editors will make sure the text sounds natural and the sentences are well constructed. Visit their website for more information or to submit a document for their journal editing service.

Receive a 10% discount: enter code 'Landes' into your account to receive your discount.

Bioedit English Language Editing

Bioedit Ltd, an online English editing company, offers unprecedented, high-quality English editing of biomedical texts destined for submission to peer-reviewed journals in the life sciences. The texts are edited by a large, expert team of native English-speaking editors with PhDs and years of experience in a broad range of disciplines in medicine and biology.

  • Editing of the same manuscript by up to three independent editors, including a subject-specific editor and a grammar expert.

  • Tremendous value with no hidden costs.

  • Express editing in less than 48 hours.

  • Secure and confidential.

First-time clients will receive a special 20% rebate if they are submitting their work to a Landes Bioscience journal.

Global BioEditing

Global BioEditing is a specialist service for the editing of English in biological documents. Our editing will not only make your manuscripts appear as though written by a native speaker of English but will also clarify your writing.

Inter-Biotec

Inter-Biotec also provides a free online writing course to help biomedical scientists whose first language is not English to write and publish their papers in English-language journals.

SPI Professional Editing Services

Write Science Right

Manuscript Preparation

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Text should be prepared in MS Word, double-spaced, with page numbers throughout. Papers should be written as concisely as possible in clear, grammatical English and organized in the following manner:

  1. Title page, including titles, author's names, degrees and affilitations
  2. Keywords: 5-10 for indexing purposes
  3. Abbreviations and Acronyms: List those used throughout the text
  4. Abstract: 150-250 words, depending on paper type
  5. Running title: Maximum of 50 characters in length
  6. Text (length depends upon type of paper, see below)
  7. References: Click here to view our reference format.
  8. Tables (with descriptive titles and legends)
  9. Figure legends

Types of Papers

Research Papers

Research Papers should include the following sections:

  1. Key words: Include 5-10 for indexing purposes.
  2. Manuscript Text: Maximum 5000 words
    1. Abstract: A single paragraph of fewer than 250 words, containing subsections entitled "BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "RESULTS" and "CONCLUSIONS". The primary goal of the abstract should be to make the general significance and conceptual advance of the work clearly accessible to a broad readership. References should not be cited in the abstract.
    2. Introduction
    3. Patients and Methods/Materials and Methods: Describe selection of patients or experimental animals, including controls. Do not use patient names or hospital numbers. Identify methods, apparatus (manufacturer's name and address), and procedures in sufficient detail to allow other workers to reproduce the results. Provide references and brief descriptions of methods that have been published. When using new methods, evaluate their advantages and limitations. Identify drugs and chemicals, including generic name, dosage, and route(s) of administration. Indicate whether the procedures were approved by the Ethics Committee of Human Experimentation in your country, or are in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975.
    4. Results: Present results in logical sequence in tables and illustrations. In the text, explain, emphasize or summarize the most important observations. Units of measurement should be expressed in accordance with Systeme International d'Unites (SI Units).
    5. Discussion: Do not repeat in detail data given in the Results section. Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study. Relate observations to other relevant studies. On the basis of your findings (and others'), discuss possible implications/conclusions. When stating a new hypothesis, clearly label it as such.
  3. References: Maximum 85.
  4. Tables: Tables should be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals and include descriptive titles and legends.
  5. Figure legends

Short Communications

Short Communications are aimed at publishing short, but important, breakthrough data not embedded within a complex story. The paper should be structured as a research paper (see above) but without the headings and subheadings.

Short communications should include the following sections:

  1. Abstract: Maximum 120 words, including
  2. Manuscript text: Maximum 4500 words
  3. References: Maximum 50

Reviews

Reviews should be recognized as scholarly by specialists in the field being covered, but should also be written with a view to informing readers who are not specialized in that particular field, and should therefore be presented using simple prose. Please avoid excessive jargon and technical detail. Reviews should capture the broad developments and implications of recent work. The opening paragraph should make clear the general thrust of the review and provide a clear sense of why the review is now particularly appropriate. The concluding paragraph should provide the reader with an idea of how the field may develop or future problems to be overcome, but should not summarize the article.

To ensure that a review is likely to be accessible to as many readers as possible, it may be useful to ask a colleague from another discipline to read the review before submitting it. Submitted reviews are subject to the same page charges as full-length reports—whether and how page charges will apply for commissioned reviews will be made clear when each review is commissioned.

Reviews should include the following sections:

  1. Abstract: Maximum 150 words
  2. Keywords: Include 5-10 for indexing
  3. Manuscript text: Maximum 5000 words
  4. References: Maximum 100

Perspectives & Points of View

Perspectives may be short and focused opinion articles, commentaries on papers recently published in the journal or elsewhere, or commentaries on significant conceptual changes, important trends or new directions in the field. This section also includes Points of View.

Points of View articles should follow the same general guidelines as reviews, however there is considerable flexibility in the length and content. These articles are intended to address controversial issues, express new ideas, or expand on work already published. They may contain new data, and like other submissions, are subject to peer review.

Like review articles, they should be accessible to a wide readership. Points of View articles are generally commissioned from authors of the most important recent papers to offer additional insights. Unsolicited Point of View articles are also welcome; they may discuss the authors' own work or recent significant work in their field. These should be structured like reviews. Responses to Point of View articles are encouraged and will also be published as Point of View articles. Responses may be considerably shorter and structured as letters.

Perspectives should include the following sections:

  1. Abstract: 150 words
  2. Keywords: Include 5-10 for indexing purposes
  3. Manuscript text: 1500–2500 words
  4. References: Maximum 30
  5. Figures: (optional)

Meeting Reports

Meeting Reports are summaries of presentations from recent meetings in the field. Authors are encouraged to contact the Editor with proposals for meeting reports. Also, please contact the meeting organizers to verify that reports will be permitted.

Meeting Reports should include the following sections:

  1. Abstract: 150-200 words
  2. Keywords: Include 5-10 for indexing purposes

Extra Views

For Extra Views (auto-commentary), the Editorial Board will solicit authors of the most significant recent and forthcoming papers, published elsewhere, to provide a short summary with additional insights, new interpretations or speculation on the relevant topic. These manuscripts may include data or models which due to space limitations were not included or discussed in the original paper. In other words, the authors may provide biased and uncensored points of views, complementing their article. As with other papers published in print, Extra Views will appear online and in print simultaneously, or very soon after publication of the original paper.

They should include the following sections:

  1. Abstract: 150 words
  2. Keywords: 5-10 for indexing purposes
  3. Manuscript text: 500–1000 words
  4. Figure/Table legends (when applicable)
  5. References: Maximum 30

There will be no page charges for Extra-Views and you are encouraged to include figures; however, please note the journal policy regarding color charges below.

Spotlights

The Editors invite members of the scientific community to consider topics of interest to our readers and to organize small series of focused reviews in particular areas. This will involve proposing a topic of interest, contacting potential authors for two - four or more reviews and providing the titles of the reviews, the names of the authors, and when they would be ready. Please also note in writing reviews that we are most interested in content and that there is flexibility in word count, number of references or number of figures. Please contact the Editor-in-Chief if you are interested in organizing a Focused Review Series.

Text Files and Tables

Please save text and table files as Microsoft Word documents. Save tables in a file separate from text. Figure legends, however, should be at the end of the manuscript as text. Tables will be reformatted during production and therefore should only be minimally formatted in your text file.

Figures (Illustrations)

We require figures in electronic format. They should be provided as TIFF or Photoshop files (300 dpi or greater), EPS files, Powerpoint Files or PDF files. Compatible graphics programs are Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Powerpoint. Any image processing should be explained clearly in the Materials and Methods section of your manuscript.

Figures should be as small and simple as is compatible with clarity. Figures must conform to the following guidelines or authors will be asked to revise them.

Guidelines for figure preparation:

  1. Please be sure to embed all fonts.

  2. Each figure should be assembled into one file that prints onto one 8 1/2 x 11 page. Do not include separate panels on multiple pages.

  3. Unnecessary figures and panels in figures should be avoided: data presented in small tables or histograms, for instance, can generally be stated briefly in the text instead. Avoid unnecessary complexity, coloring and excessive detail. Figures should not contain more than one panel unless the parts are logically connected. If this is the case, each panel should be sized so that the figure as a whole can be reduced by the same amount and reproduced on the printed page at the smallest size at which essential details are visible. For figures with multiple panels, the labels should be set in uppercase Helvetica or Arial letters and should not contain periods or parentheses.

  4. Lettering in figures (labelling of axes and so on) should be in lower-case type, with the first letter capitalized and no full stop.

  5. Units should have a single space between the number and the unit, and follow SI nomenclature or the nomenclature common to a particular field. Thousands should be separated by commas (1,000). Unusual units or abbreviations should be defined in the legend.

  6. Scale bars should be used rather than magnification factors.

  7. Amino-acid sequences should be printed in Courier (or other monospaced) font using the one-letter code in lines of 50 or 100 characters.

  8. Layering type directly over shaded or textured areas and using reversed type (white lettering on a colored background) should be avoided.

  9. Where possible, text, including keys to symbols, should be provided in the legend rather than on the figure itself.

DO NOT EMBED GRAPHICS WITHIN YOUR MICROSOFT WORD TEXT DOCUMENT.

References

There are no limits on the number of references.

Include in the reference list only those articles that have been published or are in press. Unpublished data or personal communications must be cited within the text.

The list of references should be numbered consecutively according to the first time mentioned within the article. Cite only the number assigned to the reference:

Correct: according to Jones.1

Incorrect: according to Jones1.

Correct: noted by Smith et al.1

Incorrect: Smith et al (1).

When referring the reader to specific references as part of a sentence please state:

Correct: For a review see refs. 20-25.

Incorrect: For a review see 20-25

Journal References

Abbreviate journal names according to the style used in Index Medicus or a comparable source and omit punctuation after journal titles. Spell out foreign or less commonly known journal names.

Author's last name (spaces between names, no commas) Author's initials (Spaces between initials; list only the first three authors, followed by ", et al") . Title of article with only the first word capitalized [J]. Journal's standard abbreviated name, Year, Volume, (Issue):Inclusive pages.

For Example:

  1. Lee W I, Kantarjian H, Glassman A, et al. Quantitative measurement of BCR/abl transcripts using real–time polymerase chain reaction [J]. Ann Oncol, 2002,13(5):781-788.

  2. Little M P, Li G. Stochastic modelling of colon cancer: is there a role for genomic instability [J]? Carcinogenesis, 2007, 28(2):479-487.

  3. Romanov S R, Kozakiewicz B K, Holst C R, et al. Normal human mammary epithelial cells spontaneously escape senescence and acquire genomic changes [J]. Nature, 2001, 409(6820):633-637.

Book References

Author's last name (spaces between names, no commas) Author's initials (Spaces between initials; list only the first three authors, followed by ", et al"). Chapter title. In: Editor's last name (spaces between names, no commas) Editor's initials (Spaces between initials), ed(s). Book Title. Number of edition. City:Publisher, Year:Inclusive pages.

For Example:

  1. Ozoren N, El-Diery W S. Introduction to cancer genes and growth control. In: Ehrlic M, ed. DNA Alterations in Cancer: Genetic and Epigenetic Changes. Natick, MA: Eaton Publishing, 2000:3-43.

Supplementary Files

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Page and Color Charges

For original research papers that occupy more than four pages of the journal, publication of the first four monochrome pages is free but papers are published on the understanding that the author will pay a charge of $80 U.S. dollars for each additional page or part-page used.

Publication of color images is free for the online version of the journal, but carries a page charge of $340 US dollars for the initial page and $150 for each additional page in the print edition. If you prefer that color figures appear online only and in black and white for the print version, please make sure that the figure legends for each version of the figure are provided.

For guidance, a four page article with 3 figures (approx 9cm x 9cm, =3.5" x 3.5") and 100 references would consist of approximately 3200 words of text including figure legends.

Under exceptional circumstances, where there are no funds to cover page charges and articles cannot be reduced in size, authors may appeal directly to the Editor for page charges to be waived. This appeal must be supported by a letter signed by finance official at the author’s institution, confirming that no funds are available to cover page charges.

Page Proofs

Page proofs should be returned within two working days, preferably by Fax: CJC, 512.355.4189, or Email: cjc@landesbioscience.com. Corrections should be marked on the actual proof and provided in a numbered list. Lengthy additions should be avoided, but where necessary should be provided in a MS Word file with explicit instructions regarding placement. Please return the Publication Cost form with your corrected page proofs.

Reprints

A reprint order form will be sent to the author prior to the issue going to press or you may download it here.

Cover Image Submissions

CJC publishes cover illustrations that are taken from articles in each issue, or that are designed to accompany an accepted article.

The cover illustration should be scientifically interesting and visually attractive. The illustration need not be a figure from the paper but should be closely related to the subject of the paper. If you are interested in submitting a figure for use as the cover of CJC please email a high-resolution version of your image, conforming to the specifications below, and an explanatory caption of 50-60 words.

CJC Cover Image Specifications

All potential cover images should be sized to fill the entire cover. 12'' high and 9'' wide should be the minimum size. Larger files are even better. Please remove all text, captions, etc. from the image. If you have variations of the image you may send additional files. Please send no more than 2 alternate versions.

Accepted formats and resolution:

  1. .PSD (Native Photoshop, if graphics are built with layers, do not flatten), 300dpi at 100% size, CMYK
  2. .TIF, 300 dpi at 100% size, CMYK
  3. .JPG (highest quality), 300 dpi at 100% size, CMYK
  4. .EPS (Scalable vector line art or native Illustrator or Freehand files)
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