Policy on Ethical Publishing

The following policies apply to all Ukwuru Science journals, unless otherwise noted.

Overview

Ukwuru Science is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Ukwuru Science journals adhere to COPE’s Code of Conduct and strive to comply with its Best Practice Guidelines.

Authors, editors, and reviewers are expected to be aware of and comply with best practices in publication ethics.

Authors are expected to be aware of and comply with best practices in publication ethics, including but not limited to issues related to authorship (e.g., avoidance of ghost or guest authorship), dual submission, attribution, plagiarism, image integrity, figure preparation, and competing interests. Authors must also comply with Ukwuru Science policies regarding research ethics (human subjects research, animal research, global research). Detailed information is provided below or in linked documents.

Reviewers and editors are required to treat manuscripts fairly and confidentially and to declare any competing interests. Editors should also adhere to the code of conduct for editorial board members.

We encourage readers to discuss the scientific contents of Ukwuru Science articles directly with corresponding authors, either by emailing the corresponding author or posting a comment on the article’s Ukwuru Science webpage (see here for information about posting comments). Authors can request formal corrections to their Ukwuru Science publications by emailing the journal office.

If you have concerns about potential errors, research or publication ethics, misconduct, or other issues regarding the integrity, validity, or reliability of a Ukwuru Science article or submission, please contact Ukwuru Science directly. To do so, email the Ukwuru Science Publication Ethics team and cc the journal office. Do not rely solely on posts to blogs, social media, or other third-party websites to inform us of concerns. When notifying Ukwuru Science of concerns, provide the full citation and DOI of the article in question, details regarding your specific concerns, and a declaration of any potential competing interests you have with regard to the authors, funders, and/or sponsors of the article(s) in question.

Ukwuru Science will investigate concerns raised about Ukwuru Science submissions or publications, regardless of the time since publication or study completion, and regardless of whether issues are raised internally, by authors, or by anonymous, pseudonymous, or named third parties. We will take steps to correct or clarify the scientific record if necessary, which may include issuing an editorial note, correction, expression of concern, or retraction. If we anticipate a delayed or prolonged follow-up period, Ukwuru Science may post an interim notice on the article(s) in question to inform readers of the issues raised.

While Ukwuru Science values transparency in scientific communications, we also strive to protect the confidentiality of those who raise publication ethics or research integrity concerns, wherever possible, to minimize personal and professional risks to those individuals. We consider information and materials received during ethics case follow-up discussions to be confidential, but we reserve the right to share relevant information with others involved in the case (e.g., editors, reviewers, other journals, affected data repositories), discuss the case at a COPE forum, and/or contact authors’ institutions, funders, or regulatory bodies, in accordance with COPE guidelines. We cooperate with institutions investigating issues related to Ukwuru Science content and, in doing so, share information as needed to support the institution’s proceedings.

All who raise concerns to Ukwuru Science, inquire about issues raised to Ukwuru Science, or are otherwise involved in publication ethics cases must comply with the Standards for Professional Conduct policy.

Ukwuru Science Publication Ethics Team
Ukwuru Science has a central Publication Ethics team comprised of Editors with scientific and editorial expertise, as well as specialized knowledge of the policies, workflows, and industry-wide guidance regarding ethics and integrity issues (e.g., from COPE). The Publication Ethics team supports and collaborates with all Ukwuru Science journals and follows up on concerns raised with Ukwuru Science that have implications for the integrity, validity, or reliability of submitted or published articles. The Publication Ethics team also contributes to the development of Ukwuru Science policies related to research and reporting ethics.

To contact the Publication Ethics team, email info@ukwuruscience.com.

Ethical Peer Review

We are committed to ensuring the integrity of the peer review process in accordance with COPE guidelines.

Compliance with Ukwuru Science policies

Reviewers and editors must comply with all Ukwuru Science policies, including but not limited to this Ethical Peer Review policy, the Code of Conduct for Editorial Board Members, and Ukwuru Science policies on Standards for Professional Behavior, Confidentiality, and Competing Interests.

All editors and reviewers should consider whether they may have potential competing interests before accepting an invitation to evaluate a submission for Ukwuru Science. Please contact the journal office (ukwuruscience@ukwuruscience.org) if you have questions about whether you should accept or decline an invitation to contribute to the peer review for Ukwuru Science.

Editors are expected to decline invitations to handle submissions for which they may have a potential competing interest. Reviewers should declare any potential competing interests on the review form and should decline invitations if competing interests may impact their ability to provide an objective and unbiased evaluation. If a reviewer has declared a competing interest, the handling editor should consider the potential impacts of the conflict when evaluating the reviewer’s comments and secure at least one review from an individual without a potential conflict.

The peer review process

Reviewers and editors are responsible for the contents of their reviews and decision letter comments, respectively. Reviewer and editor comments should reflect their personal assessment of the content, including whether the submission meets the journal’s requirements and complies with Ukwuru Science policies.

Reviewers must declare on the review form if they received any third-party support for their review; the names of anyone providing such support must be disclosed. Unpublished submissions should not be shared (including within one’s research group) with anyone who is not declared as a contributor to the peer review. All relevant sources should be cited in the review or decision letter comments. Everyone who contributes to peer review is expected to abide by Ukwuru Science policies and the journal’s best practices for reviewers.

Authors, editors, and reviewers must not attempt to influence others’ contributions to peer review, and editors and reviewers must not attempt to manipulate the peer review process for personal gain.

Editorial board members must not alter review content. Concerns about comments in reviews or decision letters should be referred to the journal office, and Ukwuru Science staff will intervene or follow up as needed. However, editors are welcome to use the body of the decision letter to inform authors if a reviewer’s request does not need to be addressed in revisions, for example, if the editor considers the request optional or inconsistent with Ukwuru Science policies or disagrees with the reviewer’s comment.

Artificial intelligence (AI) tools in peer review

Peer review feedback and decision letters should reflect the personal assessments of reviewers and editors regarding submitted content. AI tools cannot serve as reviewers or as decision-issuing editors.

Any use of AI tools in peer review (e.g., for data assessment, translation, or language editing) must be clearly disclosed to authors in the review form (reviewers) or decision letter (editors).

As noted in our Confidentiality policy, unpublished submission content must be held as strictly confidential. Editorial board members and reviewers should not upload submissions to web platforms, databases, generative AI tools, or other services.

Please email the journal office and cc info@ukwuruscience.org if you have questions or concerns about AI tool usage in peer review.

Protection of reviewer identity and the use of pseudonyms or false names

Ukwuru Science gives reviewers the option to sign their names to reviews. Under no circumstances should editorial board members disclose a reviewer’s identity to the authors or to other third parties (except in the context of discussions between the editor and Ukwuru Science journal staff or Editors-in-Chief). Editorial board members should escalate any requests about reviewer identity to Ukwuru Science.

Likewise, Ukwuru Science staff protect reviewer confidentiality whenever possible. However, Ukwuru Science staff may disclose a reviewer’s identity under specific circumstances, which include but are not limited to:

Disclosing a reviewer’s name and involvement in a submission’s prior review to an editor handling a resubmission or appeal.
Providing information about a publication ethics case to an institutional official.
Situations where Ukwuru Science is required by law to disclose such information (e.g., a subpoena to produce documents).

Reviewers must use their legal or professional names in their Ukwuru Science Editorial Manager accounts and should provide their current institutional affiliation and institution-hosted email address in their Editorial Manager profiles. Reviewers must not impersonate others or use pseudonyms or false names in their Ukwuru Science accounts. Reviewers and editors are responsible for ensuring that a secure, direct email address is used for all peer review correspondence; shared accounts should not be used.

How to report concerns about unethical practices in peer review

Please email info@ukwuruscience.org and cc the journal office if you have questions or concerns about compliance with this policy or if you are aware of issues that may impact the integrity of a Ukwuru Science submission’s peer review. Ukwuru Science staff will follow up and take action as appropriate. If concerns about peer review integrity are confirmed by Ukwuru Science, we may take actions such as reassigning a submission to a different editor, offboarding an editorial board member, excluding a reviewer from peer review, omitting a reviewer’s comments from a decision letter, reporting concerns to the relevant institution(s), and/or taking editorial action on affected submissions/publications (e.g., rejection, retraction, publication of an editorial notice).

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is not acceptable in Ukwuru Science submissions. Plagiarized content will not be considered for publication. If plagiarism is identified, we will follow COPE guidelines.

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

Directly copying text from other sources without attribution.
Copying ideas, images, or data from other sources without attribution.
Reusing text from your own previous publications without attribution or agreement from the editor (see the COPE guidelines on text recycling and the text recycling guidance released by the Text Recycling Research Project).

Exception: Reusing text from the Methods section in the author’s previous publications, with attribution to the source, is acceptable.

Using an idea from another source with slightly modified language without attribution.

Ukwuru Science uses Crossref Similarity Check (powered by iThenticate) and Turnitin to screen submitted content for originality. Each journal screens a proportion of manuscripts. We will conduct a follow-up investigation if the software raises any concerns.

If plagiarism is detected during the peer review process, the manuscript may be rejected. If plagiarism is detected after publication, we may issue a correction or retract the paper, as appropriate. We reserve the right to inform authors' institutions about plagiarism detected either before or after publication.

We expect that editors and reviewers will be vigilant in their evaluation of Ukwuru Science submissions and will notify the journal about any plagiarism identified.

Confidentiality

Ukwuru Science supports options by which authors and reviewers can share research early and increase the transparency of the peer review process. These include opt-in opportunities to post unpublished work to preprint servers, publish peer review history, and sign names to reviews.

Where options for transparent peer review and/or early sharing are not selected, Ukwuru Science protects the confidentiality of unpublished content and the pre-publication peer review process, except where needed to support submission checks and integrity investigations (discussed below), to the extent required by law and as otherwise set forth in our privacy policy.

Ukwuru Science will follow up on any and all breaches of confidentiality in accordance with COPE guidelines and Ukwuru Science policies. If there are special circumstances under which you wish to disclose confidential information about a Ukwuru Science submission or its peer review (e.g., to another journal, an institution, or a legal representative), please contact the journal office to discuss the situation and request permission.

Early sharing and public reviews of unpublished work

Ukwuru Science encourages and supports early sharing of research via preprint servers. Authors may also, at their discretion, discuss their unpublished research with colleagues or present their unpublished findings (e.g., at conferences) for scientific purposes. When discussing research that has not been accepted for publication with the media, authors should stress that the work is still undergoing peer review and should not disclose the journal where the work is under consideration. See here for additional information. Once accepted and assigned a publication date, all Ukwuru Science articles are subject to embargo.

If authors elect to post their Ukwuru Science submission on a preprint server, institutional server, or other forum prior to publication, editors and reviewers are welcome to attach their review comments to the preprint if this option is supported by the server. (This does not replace submission of reviews and editors’ comments directly to Ukwuru Science via Editorial Manager.)

Confidentiality of unpublished submissions that are not shared on preprint servers

If authors have not elected to share their unpublished work on a public preprint server, the submitted material should be treated as strictly confidential until published.

We expect that editors and reviewers will not make use of any material or take advantage of any information they gain through the peer review process. Editors and reviewers should not share information about unpublished Ukwuru Science submissions with anyone who is not directly involved in the submission’s peer review process without explicit permission from Ukwuru Science. As stated in our Ethical Peer Review policy, submission content may not be uploaded by handling editors or reviewers to generative AI platforms, websites, databases, or other tools; this is essential for protecting the confidentiality of unpublished work.

Confidentiality and peer review

Ukwuru Science requires editors to sign their decision letters, and we list handling editors’ names on Ukwuru Science primary research publications, with very rare exceptions.

Reviewers have the option of disclosing their identities to authors by signing their reviews. If reviewers choose not to sign their reviews, Ukwuru Science maintains their confidentiality during and after a manuscript’s/article’s review, and we expect handling editors to do the same. (*See Sharing of unpublished content by Ukwuru Science section, below, for exceptions.)

Ukwuru Science offers authors the opportunity to publish peer review history (decision letters and reviews) alongside accepted articles. See here for more information. Unpublished peer review details should be held as confidential.

Correspondence as part of the Ukwuru Science review process is to be treated confidentially by all parties, including authors. Communications between editorial board members, reviewers, and authors that are related to a Ukwuru Science submission’s peer review should be conducted through the journal’s Editorial Manager system.

Sharing of Unpublished Content by Ukwuru Science

Ukwuru Science may share unpublished content and other information as outlined in the “How We Use And Disclose Your Information” section of the Ukwuru Science Privacy Policy.

For example, Ukwuru Science may:

Upload unpublished content to web-based tools during submission checks and/or editorial assessments.
Share submission contents, author or reviewer information, or peer review information with other trusted publishers, journals, databases, or tools as needed to support integrity checks, publication ethics investigations, and other initiatives aimed at addressing integrity issues.
Share submission contents, author or reviewer information, or peer review information with academic research groups and third-party providers of tools or services that help inform improvements to submission checks, peer review, and/or scientific communication.
Share unpublished contents (submissions, peer reviews) with institutional officials or other research oversight bodies in the context of publication ethics cases.

In sharing unpublished content with third parties or tools, we take efforts to protect confidentiality where possible and to mitigate risks to data security.

Anonymity

Reviewers may identify themselves by signing their names at the time reviews are submitted, if they wish.

Submission and Publication of Related Studies

Author Requirements

Upon submission of a manuscript, authors must indicate whether there are any related manuscripts under consideration or published elsewhere. If related work has been submitted or published elsewhere, authors must include a copy of it with their submission and describe its relation to the submitted work.

Prior publication of research as a thesis, presentation at medical or scientific conferences, or posting on preprint servers will not preclude consideration of your manuscript.

Ukwuru Science supports the public disclosure of all clinical trial results, as mandated, for example, by the 2007 FDA Amendments Act. Prior disclosure of results on a clinical trial registry site will not affect consideration.

Editor and Reviewer Requirements

Reviewers and editors should evaluate any related content and notify the journal of overlap. Editors and reviewers should alert the journal if they identify duplicate submissions or publications during the review process.

Policy Enforcement

If related content is found to be too similar to the Ukwuru Science submission, or if a duplicate submission is discovered, we will reject the manuscript.

Duplicate content discovered after publication will be addressed depending on the degree of overlap. The journal may issue a correction or a retraction as appropriate.

Manipulation of the Publication Process

Systematic manipulation of the publication process (sometimes referred to as “paper mill” activity) is defined by COPE as an individual or group of individuals using dishonest or fraudulent practices to:

Prevent independent assessment or inappropriately influence peer review outcomes.
Sell or misrepresent authorship.
Publish fabricated or plagiarized research.

Authors should not use any third-party services that offer article content, authorship, or positive peer review outcomes.

Also, authors should not suggest/request handling editors or reviewers with whom there may be a potential competing interest (see here for our Competing Interests policy), and must not interfere with the review process, whether directly or via third-party services.

Ukwuru Science will reject or retract articles suspected of any manipulation of the publication process, and may inform the relevant institution(s) (e.g., an author’s or reviewer’s employer) of our concerns. In discussing these cases with authors or other parties, we may choose not to disclose detailed information about our assessment and specific concerns.

Please email pub-ethics@ukwuruscience.org if you have concerns about the integrity of a Ukwuru Science article’s peer review process, potential paper mill activity involving Ukwuru Science content, or other issues involving manipulation of the publication process at Ukwuru Science.

Concerns About Data or Figures

When preparing figures, images should not be manipulated or adjusted in any way that could lead to misinterpretation of the information present in the original raw image data. Read more about our guidelines on reporting blot and gel data and uploading original image files and on preparing figures from image files.

When concerns are raised about reported results, Ukwuru Science requests the original underlying data for the experiment(s) in question. If the original data are not available or are not provided in a timely manner, we may take editorial action on the article based on our review of the materials in hand.

We recognize that some institutions and funding agencies only require retention of research data for a finite period after a project’s completion or publication. However, there are no such limits specified within the Ukwuru Science Data Availability Policy. Furthermore, in cases involving image issues or other data concerns, the original underlying data are instrumental in clarifying the issues raised and the reliability of the reported results. The unavailability of original data in such cases may impact editorial outcomes.

Artificial Intelligence Tools and Technologies

Ukwuru Science expects that articles should report the listed authors’ own work and ideas. Any contributions made by other sources must be clearly and correctly attributed.

Contributions by artificial intelligence (AI) tools and technologies to a study or to an article’s contents must be clearly reported in a dedicated section of the Methods, or in the Acknowledgements section for article types lacking a Methods section. This section should include the name(s) of any tools used, a description of how the authors used the tool(s) and evaluated the validity of the tool’s outputs, and a clear statement of which aspects of the study, article contents, data, or supporting files were affected/generated by AI tool usage.

In cases where Large Language Model (LLM) AI tools or technologies contribute to generating text content for a Ukwuru Science submission, the article’s authors are responsible for ensuring that:

The content is accurate and valid.
There are no concerns about potential plagiarism.
All relevant sources are cited.
All statements in the article reporting hypotheses, interpretations, results, conclusions, limitations, and implications of the study represent the authors’ own ideas.

The use of AI tools and technologies to fabricate or otherwise misrepresent primary research data is unacceptable.

Noncompliance with any aspect of this policy will be considered misrepresentation of methods, contributions, and/or results. If concerns arise about noncompliance with this policy, Ukwuru Science may notify the authors’ institution(s) and the journal may reject (pre-publication), retract (post-publication), or publish an editorial notice on the article.

Biosecurity and Dual Use Research of Concern

Ukwuru Science staff and Editorial Boards are committed to the widespread dissemination of research while being sensitive to the issues of responsible publication standards. In this context, we assess the risks and benefits of publishing the research. If the risks outweigh the benefits, we will not publish it.

Author Requirements

Authors are obligated to disclose whether the study is subject to consideration as dual use research of concern at the time of submission. Authors should also identify the Institutional Review Entity or equivalent committee(s) granting approval for the study, as well as providing the approval number if one was obtained.

Editor and Reviewer Requirements

Editors and reviewers are expected to evaluate potential risks and alert the journal with any concerns.

Policy Enforcement

We follow standards set by national and public agencies, and may refer concerns to the Ukwuru Science Dual Use Committee for an assessment of the potential risks versus benefits of publication.

Manuscripts are checked at submission for any potential risks. Issues identified at submission may lead to rejection of the manuscript.

If risks are identified after publication of an article, we will take steps to minimize that risk in accordance with prevailing guidelines. We may follow up with authors’ institutions depending on the severity of the issues.

Standards for Professional Conduct

Ukwuru Science is committed to open scientific communications and professional conduct. We expect that all interactions with Ukwuru Science through any medium of communication, including correspondence, calls, posted comments, and other forms of engagement like social media, will be courteous, respectful, and adhere to high standards of professionalism.

This policy outlines Ukwuru Science’s expectations for communications directed towards our staff and contributors (authors, editors, reviewers) in the context of our activities, and how we will respond in cases where these expectations are not met.

Ukwuru Science will not tolerate any form of harassment or non-professional conduct directed towards our staff or contributors in the context of their work for us, such as:

Disparaging, insulting, or accusatory ad hominem remarks
Abusive, discriminatory, or hostile language or behavior
Threats targeting an individual
Repeated inquiries challenging an editorial outcome, repeated resubmissions, complaints after an appeal is declined, or excessive inquiries about an issue that is under investigation

In cases where we become aware that communications or interactions do not meet these expectations, Ukwuru Science will take steps as needed to address the situation, which may include one or more of the following actions:

Providing feedback to the individual(s) involved
Ceasing engagement or communication on a particular issue
Making changes to the assigned editor or reviewer(s) for a submission
Declining a manuscript without further editorial consideration or peer review
Reviewing or changing an individual’s editorial board status
Seeking support from an individual’s affiliated institution or employer to address concerns about that individual’s behavior
Discussing the situation in anonymized form with representatives from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) or at a COPE forum

Please contact the relevant journal office if you experience interactions or receive verbal or written communications regarding your Ukwuru Science work that do not comply with this policy.

Comments Posted on Third-Party Sites

If appropriate, Ukwuru Science will apply this policy to interactions and comments on third-party platforms via its social media channels (Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn); however, we are not responsible for content posted on third-party platforms, and concerns about such content should be escalated via the relevant reporting or complaints process of the host site.

See also the “Impermissible Acts” section of the Ukwuru Science Terms of Use.

Research Conducted by Ukwuru Science

In our efforts to improve the peer review system and scientific communication, we have an ongoing research program on the processes we use in the course of manuscript handling at Ukwuru Science. If you are a reviewer, author, or editor with us and wish to opt out of this research, please contact the relevant journal office. Participation does not affect the editorial consideration of submitted manuscripts, nor do our policies relate to the confidentiality of authors, reviewers, or manuscripts.

Individual research projects will be subject to appropriate ethical consideration and approval, and if necessary, individuals will be contacted for specific consent to participate.