About the Journal
TITLE AND ABBREVIATION
Title: Reactive Oxygen Species │ Uniform Title: Reactive Oxygen Species (Apex, N.C.)
NLM Title Abbreviation: React Oxyg Species (Apex) │ ISO Abbreviation: React Oxyg Species (Apex)
ISSN: 2380-2367 │ LCCN: 2015202244 │ NLM ID: 101688617 [Serial]
FOCUS AND SCOPE
The Reactive Oxygen Species (Apex) ("The Journal" hereafter) is a peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the rapid dissemination of new knowledge on reactive oxygen and related species/entities (including antioxidants) in chemistry, biology, and medicine. The Journal publishes four types of contributions: (i) research highlights: highlights of the most recent cutting edge research findings published in highly influential journals; (ii) mini-review articles by experts in the related fields; (iii) research method protocols on ROS and antioxidants; and (iv) original research contributions.
SECTION POLICIES
Cutting-Edge Research Highlights
The Cutting-Edge Research Highlights section, generally contributed by the Journal's Editorial Staff, aims to introduce important original basic and clinical research findings in a news format of maximally 500 words in length with no more than one illustration and no more than 10 references cited. The cutting-edge research findings are related to ROS/antioxidants and are typically published in highly influential journals (usually with an impact factor of more than 10) within the past two years. Typical examples of highly influential journals include New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, Lancet, Nature, Science, and Cell, among others.
Review Articles
The Journal publishes concise review (or mini-review) articles from leading experts in the field. The topics may range from basic science of reactive oxygen and related species/entities (including antioxidants) to their involvement in human physiology and clinical medicine.
Research Method Protocols
The Journal publishes protocols of established research methods for the detection and/or measurement of reactive oxygen and related species/entities (including antioxidants) as well as their biological effects with an emphasis on method protocols that can be easily adopted.
Original Research Articles
The Journal publishes concise original research articles on reactive oxygen and related species/entities (including antioxidants) in chemistry, biology, and medicine.
PEER REVIEW PROCESS
The Journal strives to contribute to the advancement of science by publishing cutting edge knowledge on reactive oxygen and related species/entities (including antioxidants) in chemistry, biology, and medicine. The Journal publishes concise articles of the highest scientific quality and integrity and emphasizes the quality rather than the quantity of the publications. In this regard, unless specified, all manuscripts submitted to the Journal will undergo a two-phase review process. The manuscript will be first evaluated by the Journal’s Editorial Office for its scientific merit and broad impact. This editorial review typically takes less than 3 working days. Manuscripts judged to be of significant scientific merit and broad impact will then undergo the second phase peer review by outside experts in the field. Manuscripts judged to be of limited scientific merit and little broad impact by the Editorial Office will be declined without further undergoing the second phase peer review.
The eventual acceptance of a manuscript for publication in the Journal will be primarily based on assessing the peer reviewers’ comments in four areas including (1) the originality, (2) the quality, (3) the potential impact, and (4) the readability of the work in conjunction with the recommendations by the Journal’s Editorial Office.
Under certain circumstance, for manuscripts of immediate importance submitted by top experts in the field, the editor may also serve as a reviewer providing comments on the suitability of the work for publication in the Journal. In such a case, the editor may not need to seek assistance from outside reviewers.
The typical turn-around time for peer review is about 2 to 3 weeks
PUBLISHING FREQUENCY
To expedite the publishing process, beginning in 2021, the Journal will adopt a continuous publishing model of one volume annually.
INDEXING & ARCHIVING
Chemical Abstracts; CrossRef ; Google Scholar; WorldCat │Articles (supported by NIH funding) deposited in PMC/Pubmed.
NO PUBLICATION FEES & ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
There are no fees associated with processing and publishing articles in the Journal. Selection of a manuscript for publication in the Journal is solely based on the scientific merit and impact of the work as judged primarily by assessing the peer reviewers' comments in combination with the recommendations by the Journal's Editorial Office.
The Journal's Editorial Office strongly discourages the withdrawal of an accepted manuscript by the author(s) at the late stage of copyediting/layout-editing unless for a reason related to research ethics. A fee may need to be paid by the author(s) to defray the costs incurred for copy-editing/layout-editing of the accepted manuscript if the author(s) decides to withdraw the accepted manuscript at this late stage of publication in the Journal.
The Journal's Editorial Office reserves the right to reverse a decision on manuscript acceptance if a critical issue (including, but not limited to, publishing ethics violation, inappropriate data presentation and interpretation, and poor quality of images or illustrations) is uncovered at any step of the editorial processing of the accepted manuscript. Likewise, an accepted manuscript may also be subjected to significant changes at the stage of copy-/layout-editing in the ROS Editorial Office to improve the quality and accuracy of the work and to ensure compliance with the Journal's Editorial Policy; such proposed changes, however, must be approved in advance by the corresponding author of the accepted manuscript before it can be further processed for publication.
SERVING ON THE JOURNAL'S BOARD
The Journal's Editorial Office greatly appreciates the support and contributions from the members of the advisory and editorial board. Serving on the board of the Journal does not bear any obligations though the board member is encouraged to submit and/or recommend manuscripts of sufficient quality to the Journal. Appointment for serving on the board of the Journal is typically on a 3-year term. The board member may decide to discontinue the appointment at any time by sending an email notice to the Journal's Editorial Office (editorial@rosj.org) without providing any reasons. Likewise, the Journal's Editorial Office reserves the right to terminate the board member status at any time during the 3-year appointment term without any stated reasons.
ETHICS IN PUBLISHING
As stated elsewhere, the Journal strives to publish articles of sound scientific quality and integrity. The Journal strictly adheres to the fundamental principles of ethics in publishing. In this context, the Journal follows the pertinent guidelines and recommendations by respected organizations, including the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (IIMJE) (http://www.icmje.org), the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), (http://publicationethics.org) and the Council of Science Editors (CSE) (https://www.councilscienceeditors.org). The Journal's Editorial Office asks that the editors, reviewers, and authors please follow appropriate guidelines and recommendations on good publication practice when handle or prepare manuscripts for the Journal.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENTS
The Journal follows the ICMJE recommendations regarding conflicts of interest disclosures. When applicable, the corresponding author may be asked to complete the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest. In case this is required, please download the form (click here to download or alternatively visit http://www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/ for downloading the form) and send the completed form via email attachment to: editorial@rosj.com.
RESEARCH INTEGRITY
Maintaining a high standard of research integrity is essential to the success of the research (especially biomedical research) enterprise and benefits the public health and society in general. Various governmental agencies and private organizations have published policies and guidelines on research integrity. Some of the fundamental principles of research integrity include: intellectual honesty in proposing, performing, and reporting research; accuracy in representing contributions to research proposals and reports; fairness in peer review; collegiality in scientific interactions, including communications and sharing of resources; transparency in conflicts of interest or potential conflicts of interest; protection of human subjects in the conduct of research; humane care of animals in the conduct of research; and adherence to the mutual responsibilities between investigators and their research teams. With regard to studies involving human subjects, appropriate consents and permissions must be obtained in compliance with pertaining policies and regulations at the various levels, including, but not limited to, the federal and state levels. Likewise, appropriate policies and regulations must be followed with regard to humane care of animals in the conduct of research. It is the responsibility of the author(s) to ensure the compliance with the above laws, regulations, and guidelines on research integrity.
DISCLAIMER
The Journal's Editorial Office/Publisher disclaims all responsibility for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of the information contained in the Journal. The Journal's Editorial Office/Publisher does not assume any liability for any injuries or damages to persons or property from any use of the information contained in the Journal. The reader is advised to seek independent verification for any data, advice, or recommendations contained in the Journal.
The Journal's Editorial Office reserves the right to amend and update the policy on a periodical basis based on editorial needs as well as feedback from the reader/author.