Submissions

Author Guidelines

IMCJMS is an open access journal where Ibrahim Medical College bears its publication costs. It provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making results of the research freely available to the public and scientists across the globe will help in improving the life of human being in all countries of the world. Under the Open Access policy, all articles are available as outlined by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License., which states that others may distribute and copy the article, and include in a collective work (such as an anthology), as long as they credit the author(s).

The journal allows reader to freely read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of its articles and to use them for any other lawful purpose.

Copyright
Authors who publish in IMCJMS journal agree to the following terms that:

1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

Authors are permitted to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.

Publication fees:
Authors are not charged article submission, processing and publishing fees.

Editorial policies and overview of the publication and peer review processes
Any manuscript submitted to the journal must not be under consideration by any other journal or already published in any journal or other citable form. Submission of a manuscript to IMCJMS implies that all authors have read and agreed to its content.  Authors should state that the research has approval of an appropriate ethics committee. Additionally, all research carried out on humans must be in compliance with the Helsinki Declaration, and animal studies must follow internationally recognized guidelines. Methodology section of the manuscript should have a statement to this effect and the name of the approving body should be mentioned. Authors are required to provide a declaration of competing interests, which will be mentioned in the appropriate section of the article. Articles should be written in English (using US English spelling). 

Plagiarism Policy
Articles submitted to IMCJMS are screened for plagiarism. If plagiarism is detected either by the editors, reviewers or editorial staff at any stage before publication of a manuscript before or after acceptance, during editing or at page proof stage we will inform the authors asking him/her to either re-write the text or quote the text exactly and to cite the original source. If the plagiarism is extensive -that is at least 25% or more - then the article is rejected and notified. If the plagiarism is less than 25%, the manuscript is sent back to the author for content revision and re-submission.

If plagiarism is detected after publication, IMCJMS will conduct an investigation. If plagiarism is found, depending of the extent of the plagiarism, the paper may be formally retracted.  

The corresponding author must set up an IMCJMS account to submit the manuscript online. The manuscript may also be submitted as email attachment to the editorial office fulfilling the required criteria. 

Peer-Review Process
Once an author submits a manuscript it is entered into the log book.

Each manuscript is then read by an editor to assess its suitability for the journal.  It includes the standard of presentation, the quality of the data presented, and conformity with the required style and format of the journal. Those papers judged by the editor(s) as inappropriate or outside the scope of our journal are rejected promptly without external review. Manuscripts within the scope of our journal are then sent out for review to a minimum of two additional reviewers. Here, the single blinded review process is followed. The reviewers' identities are withheld from the authors but the author(s) identity is revealed to reviewers. The reviewers return their recommendations and reports to the editor within the stipulated time. Once the reviewers’ comments are received, the editor, in consultation with other editors, takes one of the following decisions:

• Acceptance without revision
• Acceptance subject to minor revision
• Resubmission for review after major revision
• Declined

The comments or issues raised by the reviewers are communicated to the corresponding author. For manuscripts accepted pending revision, the authors must submit a revised manuscript addressing the issues raised by the reviewers. The revised manuscript goes through some of the stages mentioned above. Once a manuscript has been revised satisfactorily it is accepted and prepared for publication. The maximum time required for the review process is usually around 30 to 45 days from the date of submission.

Organization and Layout of the Manuscript
Articles should be written in English using US English spelling. Articles should be typed double spaced including references legends of figures and caption of tables. Manuscript should be prepared in MS Word .doc/docx format.   IMCJMS recommends using Times New Roman Font: 12 PX. 

Original Articles and Brief research note: Original article should be arranged in the following sections and order: Title page, Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion including conclusion, Acknowledgements, References and Figures. Figure(s) should be submitted as separate file in .tif or .jpeg format. Tables should be incorporated in appropriate section within the text.

For Brief research note, the text should not exceed a total of 2500 words including the abstract (Abstract should not exceed 250 words).  Subdivisions into sections (as mentioned above) may be used if necessary for the clarity and convenience of the readers.

In case of clinical trial, the trial registration number should be provided at the time of article submission. List of trial registers that meet the ICMJE guidelines are available at http://www.icmje.org/faq.pdf. 

Clinical Case reports: It should describe the case (clinical features), investigations, diagnosis and or treatments which are of exceptional interest, highlighting novel and important findings. Clinical case report should be arranged in the following section: Abstract, Case report (clinical presentation, investigations, diagnosis and treatment), Discussion with conclusion. Figure(s) should be submitted as separate file in .tif or .jpeg format. Tables should be incorporated in appropriate section and place within the manuscript.

Reviews: The review article should cover interesting issues, new developments and advancement in areas related to medicine, biomedical and health science. It should be of broad interest to the target audience of the journal. The layout of manuscript should be as follows: Title page, Abstract, Main text (Introduction including sub-sections), Conclusion, Acknowledgements, References and Figure(s). Figure(s) should be submitted as separate file in .tif or .jpeg format. Tables should be incorporated in appropriate section and place within the manuscript. 

Title Page
The title page should include the title of the manuscript, full names and institutional affiliations for all authors. The corresponding author should be indicated.

Title: The title should contain no more than 125 words and should be specific to the study objectives and easily understandable.

Authors and Affiliations: This section should include the first names, middle and surnames of all authors and affiliations (university or organization), department, city, state/province (if applicable), and country for all authors. Full contact details namely - postal address, telephone and fax numbers, and email address for the corresponding author must be provided. If the article is submitted on behalf of a consortium, a listing of all consortium members and affiliations should be included after the Acknowledgements. 

Abstract: 
An abstract not exceeding 250 words must be provided. It should be divided into the following sections: Background and objectives, Methods, Results and Conclusion. Each section should be brief (exp. Methodology must be mentioned without going into methodological detail) and the most important findings should be highlighted with specific conclusion. Do not cite references in the abstract. 

Introduction
The most important aspects of the literature should be reviewed indicating why the study was necessary and what it would contribute to the field of study. The introduction should conclude with a comment about the overall aims and objectives of the study. 

Methods
This section should include the design of the study, the place, the type of participants or study materials involved, a detail description of all interventions (if any). Established methodologies should simply be mentioned and referenced appropriately. For new methods, the detail protocol for the method should be described so that it can be reproduced by others. Generic drug names should be used, but if proprietary brand has been used, the brand name must be mentioned in parenthesis. The accession numbers and corresponding database of any nucleic acid sequences and protein sequences cited in the manuscript should be provided. The authors should provide a description of the statistical analysis, power calculation, etc. 

Results
The results section should not repeat data given in Table or Figure in detail. Only salient findings may be highlighted and described or explained. The result section may be subdivided into subsection with short headings for clarity of the findings. Where needed the statistical analysis should be appropriately mentioned (both in Table and within text).

Discussion
The discussion should provide a clear explanation of the importance and relevance of the findings and conclusions. Suggestion regarding future work, unexplored issues, new directions, limitations, etc may be included.

Declarations
Authors are required to declare the followings:

Acknowledgments
Individuals who have made contribution to the study by providing advice and suggestions, but do not fulfill the criteria for authorship should be mentioned in this section.

Author’s contributions
Contribution of each author should be described. Example: SD performed the culture and identification of organisms. SH performed the antimicrobial susceptibility tests and manuscript writing.

Competing interest

Author(s) should state regarding competing interest/conflict of interest. Ethics approval and consent to participate and publish

Authors are required to furnish the ethical permission from relevant authority and process of informed consent from participants regarding participation in the research and publication of data.

Funding
Source of funding (if any) should be mentioned.

Reference and Citation
Any information, data, etc. from other article or source should be referenced.

Citation Format within the text
IMCJMS uses the numerical citation method. The references must be listed and numbered consecutively in the order in which they appear in the text. Citations should be indicated by the reference number in square brackets in the text.  Example: [1]. Multiple citations within a single set of brackets should be separated by commas. Example: [2,5,7]. If there are three or more sequential citations, the numbers should be given as a range. Example:  [3-7].

Personal communications, unpublished observations, and submitted manuscripts must be cited in the text only as “([name(s)], personal communication, January 15, 2015).” Do not list it in the ‘Reference’ section.

Reference format in bibliography 
Accuracy of reference data is the author’s responsibility. Verify all entries against original sources, especially journal titles, inclusive page numbers, publication dates. All authors must be listed if less than six. Use et al, if more than six. Vancouver style should be used in listing references. Examples are given below:

1. Journal Article: Less than six authors
Sayeed MA, Hussain MZ, Rumi MAK, Khan AK. Prevalence of diabetes in a suburban population of Bangladesh. Diab Res Clin Pract. 1997; 34(1): 149-155.

2. Journal Article: More than six authors 
Gillespie NC, Lewis RJ, Pearn JH, Bourke ATC, Holmes MJ, Bourke JB, et al. Hypertension in aboriginal population of Bangladesh. Med J Aust. 1986; 145:584-590.

3. Journal Article: Letter 
Jarrett RJ. Insulin and hypertension. J Bacteriology. 1987; 10(3): 120-26. [Letter].

4. Journal Abstract 
Banerji MA, Faridi N, Atluri R, Chaiken RL, Lebovitz HE. Body composition, visceral fat, leptin and insulin resistance in Asian Indian men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1999; 84: 137–144. [Abstract].

5. Journal Article: Editorial
Anwar AKMN, Fariduddin KM, Innovation and re-orientation in medical education and research: challenges for Ibrahim Medical College. Ibrahim Med Coll J. 2007; 1(1): i-ii. [Editorial].

6. Journal Article: In Press Papers 
Kharitonov SA, Barnes PJ. Clinical aspects of exhaled nitric oxide. Adv Clin Path. In press.

7. Article within a journal supplement 
Pross HF, Szewczuk MR, Haq S, Wade A. Mechanisms of resistance in respiratory tract pathogens. J Clin Microbiol.1996; 4 Suppl 2: S19-26.

8. Electronic Journal Articles 
Abalos E, Carroli G, Mackey ME. The tools and techniques of evidence-based medicine. Clin Obstet Gynaecol. 2005;19(1):15-26. doi: 10.1016/j.bpogyn.2004.10.008.

9. Whole Book (Single author or editor, No author) 
Ismail A. Microscopic techniques in biotechnology. New York: Mosby; 2003.

Hamilton R, editor.  Microscopic techniques in biotechnology. New York: Mosby; 2003.

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

The Oxford concise medical dictionary. 6th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2003. p. 26.

10. Book Chapters 
Rashid M, Haq MM. Food and Nutrition. In: Rashid KM, Rahman M, Hyder SM, editors. Textbook of community medicine and public health. 4th eds. Dhaka: RHM Publishers; 2004; p126-140. 

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.

11. Government/Technical Report 
Format: Organization Name. Title of report. Place of publication: Publisher; Date of publication. Total number of pages.  Report No.:

Example: World Health Organization. Health status of developing countries: issues and facts. Geneva: World Health Organization; 1992. 150 p Report No.: 201

12. Accession Numbers 
The relevant accession numbers and the version numbers (if applicable) of images, nucleotide and protein sequences and microarray data of deposited material should be mentioned. Suggested databases include - European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL/EBI), Nucleotide Sequence Database, or GenBank (National Center for Biotechnology Information), Protein Data Bank, etc.

13. Abbreviations: All abbreviations must be defined when first used in the text.

14. Nomenclature & Taxonomy 
Correct and established nomenclature should be used.

• SI units should be used.
• The names and spelling of microorganisms should be according to the internationally accepted nomenclature. Genus and Species names should be italicized (e.g., Staphylococcus aureus). In the main text, full genus name should be written at first mention and thereafter abbreviated (e.g. S. aureus).   
• Genes, mutations, genotypes, and alleles should be italicized. Proteins are not normally italicized. 

15. Tables and Figures 
Table: Tables should be created with clear row and column divisions. To do this, you must use the Table tool from the Insert menu of your word processing software (MS WORD). Do not create tables using the Tab (↔) key or any other format such as tabled data in one big single cell, or text boxes. Table should be numbered consecutively as Table 1, Table 2, Table 3, etc. Table should be incorporated in appropriate section and place within the manuscript and typed in double spaced. Avoid overuse of colors, shading and cross-hatching, symbols, or empty rows / columns.

Figure: Do not incorporate Figure(s) within the main text. Figure(s) must be submitted as separate files. The Figure files should be named according to the figure number and format, e.g. "Fig1.tif", "Fig2.tif (or Fig 1.jpeg, Fig 2.jpeg, etc)". Legends for Figures should be typed double spaced in the appropriate section and place within the main text.

All images MUST be at or above the intended display size. Check this table for immediate reference. The image resolutions should be as follows:

• Line Art 800 dpi
• Combination (Line Art + Halftone) 600 dpi
• Halftone 300 dpi
• Low resolution (72dpi,) is NOT acceptable.

16. Cover Letter:
The cover letter must include the name, address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address of all authors and a statement that the manuscript has never been submitted, in whole or in part, to other journals. The name of the corresponding author must be mentioned. The letter must include a statement regarding competing interest/conflict of interest of author(s) and co-author(s). The letter must be signed by all listed authors.