Policies on conflict of interest, Human and animal rights

Conflict of Interest Policy

The Journal of Experimental and Clinical Anatomy (JECA) is committed to ensuring transparency, integrity, and objectivity in scholarly publishing. All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any relationships or interests that could inappropriately influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the conduct, interpretation, review, or publication of scholarly work.

1. Definition of Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest exists when professional judgment concerning a primary interest—such as the validity of research, the welfare of research participants, or the integrity of editorial decisions—may be influenced, or may reasonably appear to be influenced, by a secondary interest.

Conflicts of interest may be financial or non-financial, and they may be actual, potential, or perceived.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• research funding or sponsorship;
• employment, consultancy, or advisory roles;
• stock ownership or shareholding;
• honoraria, speaker fees, or paid expert testimony;
• patents, patent applications, or other intellectual property interests;
• personal, institutional, political, academic, or ideological relationships;
• competitive or collaborative relationships that may affect objectivity.

2. Financial Conflicts of Interest

A significant financial conflict of interest may arise where an author or an author’s immediate family member has financial interests related to the submitted work, including but not limited to:

• the prospect of financial gain through patents, licensing arrangements, or commercialization of the research;
• service as a director, officer, employee, consultant, or advisor to a commercial entity relevant to the research;
• receipt of payments, fees, or other remuneration from public or private entities with an interest in the outcome of the research;
• ownership of shares, stock options, or other equity interests in entities that may benefit from the publication of the research.

For the purposes of this policy, immediate family members may include a spouse or partner, parents, children, and other dependents or cohabitants, as defined by applicable institutional or legal standards.

3. Author Disclosure Requirements

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all authors disclose any potential conflicts of interest relevant to the submitted manuscript.

Authors must:

• disclose all financial and non-financial relationships that could be viewed as relevant to the work;
• include a Conflict of Interest Statement in the manuscript;
• disclose all sources of funding and support;
• provide additional details in the cover letter where necessary;
• complete any disclosure forms required by the journal.

JECA recommends the use of the ICMJE Disclosure Form for the reporting of potential conflicts of interest:
https://www.icmje.org/disclosure-of-interest/

Disclosure is required even where the authors believe that the relationship did not influence their judgment.

4. Funding Disclosure

All sources of financial support for the research, manuscript preparation, and publication must be clearly stated in the manuscript.

Authors should identify:

• the name of the funding body or sponsor;
• grant numbers, where applicable;
• the role of the funder in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, and the decision to submit for publication.

If the funder had no role in any of these aspects, this should be stated explicitly.

5. Reviewer Conflicts of Interest

Reviewers must decline to review any manuscript where they have a conflict of interest that could compromise, or reasonably appear to compromise, their objectivity.

Examples include:

• direct collaboration or recent co-authorship with the authors;
• institutional affiliation with the authors;
• financial interest in the subject matter;
• personal, academic, or professional rivalry;
• any other competing interest that may interfere with an impartial review.

Reviewers must also treat all manuscripts and related materials as confidential.

6. Editor Conflicts of Interest

Editors and editorial board members must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest.

Where an editor has a competing interest in relation to a manuscript, editorial responsibility must be reassigned to another qualified editor with no relevant conflict.

7. Publication of Disclosures

JECA may publish author conflict of interest disclosures and funding statements alongside the article where appropriate.

The Editors reserve the right to determine the relevance of disclosed competing interests and whether further clarification is required.

Failure to disclose relevant conflicts of interest may result in rejection of the manuscript, publication of a correction, or other editorial action in accordance with journal policy and COPE guidance.

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Human and Animal Rights Policy

The Journal of Experimental and Clinical Anatomy (JECA) requires that all research involving human participants, human materials, human data, animals, or biosafety-sensitive materials be conducted in accordance with the highest ethical standards and with all applicable institutional, national, and international regulations.

JECA reserves the right to reject any manuscript where the ethical aspects of the work are unclear, inadequate, or inconsistent with accepted standards, even where formal approval has been obtained.

1. Research Involving Human Participants

All studies involving human participants, human tissues, human biological materials, or identifiable human data must be reviewed and approved by an appropriate Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC), Institutional Review Board (IRB), or equivalent ethics body before the research is undertaken, where such approval is required.

Research involving humans must be conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki:
https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki-ethical-principles-for-medical-research-involving-human-subjects/

The manuscript must state:

• the name of the approving ethics committee;
• the approval or protocol number, where available;
• whether informed consent was obtained;
• whether consent was written, verbal, or waived; and
• the basis for any waiver of consent.

If ethics approval was not required, authors must provide a clear explanation.

2. Informed Consent

Participants must be provided with adequate information about the nature of the study and must give informed consent where required.

For studies involving human participants, authors must specify in the manuscript whether informed consent was obtained.

If verbal consent was obtained instead of written consent, or if informed consent was waived, the manuscript must explain the reason and confirm that this approach was approved by the relevant ethics committee.

JECA may request copies of ethics approval letters or sample consent forms during editorial review.

3. Privacy and Confidentiality

Authors must protect the privacy, dignity, and anonymity of research participants.

Identifying information, including names, initials, hospital numbers, or recognizable photographs, must not be published unless publication is scientifically necessary and explicit written consent for publication has been obtained from the participant or the participant’s legal representative.

This requirement applies particularly to:

• case reports;
• clinical images;
• videos;
• family pedigrees; and
• any other material from which an individual could be identified.

4. Case Reports and Patient Consent

For case reports and similar clinical descriptions, authors must indicate whether informed consent for publication was obtained from the patient or legal guardian.

Where consent could not be obtained, publication will be considered only in exceptional circumstances and only where justified ethically and legally.

5. Research Involving Animals

Research involving vertebrate animals, cephalopods, or other animals subject to ethical regulation must be reviewed and approved by an appropriate Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) or equivalent animal ethics committee before the study begins, where such approval is required.

Authors must confirm that animal experiments were conducted in accordance with applicable institutional and national regulations and recognized standards for animal welfare.

The manuscript must include:

• the name of the approving animal ethics committee;
• the approval number or protocol number, where available; and
• a statement confirming compliance with relevant animal care and welfare guidelines.

Authors should also describe measures taken to minimize pain, distress, and suffering and to reduce the number of animals used.

6. Biosafety and High-Risk Materials

Studies involving infectious agents, toxins, genetically modified organisms, hazardous biological materials, or other high-risk substances must comply with applicable biosafety and biosecurity regulations.

Where relevant, such studies must be reviewed by an appropriate Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) or equivalent authority, and details of that approval should be stated in the Methods section of the manuscript.

7. Editorial Review and Documentation

JECA may request documentation at any stage of the editorial process, including:

• ethics committee approval letters;
• informed consent documentation;
• animal ethics approval documents; and
• biosafety approval records.

Failure to provide satisfactory documentation may result in rejection of the manuscript or withdrawal of acceptance.

8. Misconduct and Ethical Concerns

JECA follows the guidance of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in addressing suspected ethical breaches or publication misconduct, including:

• failure to obtain required ethics approval;
• failure to obtain informed consent where required;
• unethical treatment of human participants or animals;
• inappropriate disclosure of identifiable patient information;
• falsification of ethics statements or approval documents.

Where ethical concerns arise, JECA may request clarification, contact the authors’ institution, suspend review, reject the manuscript, issue a correction, publish an expression of concern, or retract the article as appropriate.