The Journal of Biophysics highly upholds the highest standards of scholarly publication ethics and is committed to ensuring fairness, honesty, and transparency in every aspect of the publication process. This ethics policy is based on the best practice guidelines for publication ethics from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). We expect all parties involved in the publication process—authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher—to adhere to these ethical principles. Ethical violations, such as plagiarism, data fabrication or falsification, self-plagiarism (duplicate publication), duplicate publication, and undisclosed conflicts of interest, will not be tolerated and will be addressed seriously in accordance with applicable COPE procedures.
For Authors: Authors must ensure that submitted manuscripts are original works and have not been previously published or are under consideration by another journal. All sources used must be properly and accurately cited. Authors are fully responsible for the data and results presented, and must ensure that all authors have made significant contributions and approved the final version of the manuscript. Any potential conflicts of interest (e.g., financial or personal relationships) must be clearly disclosed at the end of the manuscript. Research involving human or animal subjects must include a statement of ethical approval from the relevant authorized committee, if applicable.
For Editors and Reviewers: Editors are responsible for making fair and objective decisions regarding manuscript acceptance or rejection, based on scientific quality, originality, and relevance to the journal's focus, without personal or commercial bias. Editors must maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts under review. Reviewers must provide objective and constructive evaluations, identifying both the strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript. They must also maintain the confidentiality of the material under review and promptly report any potential conflicts of interest. The Journal of Biophysics is committed to thoroughly investigating alleged ethical breaches and taking appropriate corrective actions, which may include article retraction, future manuscript rejection, or notification to the authors' institutions.
