Notes for Contributors - Neurological Research

Editor: Professor Manuel Dujovny, MD

Contributions to the journal should now be submitted online at http://ner.edmgr.com 

Articles submitted to Neurological Research should comprise original, unpublished material 

and should not currently be under consideration for publication elsewhere.

Ethics committee approval should have been granted for all studies involving human participants and a statement to this effect should be included in the paper. The Editor reserves the right to seek a copy of the authorising letter from the relevant ethics committee. 

Stage 1: INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SUBMISSION OF AN ARTICLE TO NEUROLOGICAL 

RESEARCH

Articles must be submitted online at http://ner.edmgr.com

If you have not already done so, you will need to register to obtain a username and password. (Select the 'REGISTER' option from the main navigation bar at the top of the homepage.) 

Information on the submission procedure is provided online, but you will be asked to provide the information and files listed below. 

Failure to conform to these requirements may delay typesetting and publication of your paper. Authors will be asked to submit their work according to the requirements of the journal.

For an initial submission you must upload:

l A Word file containing the complete paper

l OR a Word file containing the text, references, tables and figure captions plus an individual file 

     of each figure, prepared to the specification laid out below.

l OR a PDF file of the complete paper

You will be asked to input separately the title, abstract and keywords for the article and contact details for all authors. This information may be cut and pasted. 

You must also download, complete and return the author agreement.

Supplementary information such as datasets, animations, models or videos must be submitted offline, but you will need to indicate that an item of this type is being included in the submission.

When submitting a revised article you must upload:

l A text file containing the revised text, references, tables and figure captions, prepared to the  

    specification described below. This file must not include graphics. The preferred file format is 

    Word (.doc) or rich text format (.rtf), but Word-compatible word processor files (e.g. .wpd) 

    and LaTeX2e files will also usually be acceptable

l A separate image file of each figure. Ensure that figures will be legible and comprehensible at 

    final size and are of sufficiently high resolution (see guidelines below). Permitted file formats are  

    TIFF (.tif), JPEG (.jpg) and EPS (.eps). 

l A response to the referees' comments, as a Word or PDF file. It is not necessary to upload for a 

    second time files that were uploaded with the initial submission and have not been altered.

REVIEWING AND EDITORIAL PROCESS

The Editor-in-Chief, or one of the Co-editors, will initially assess all original submissions, including those commissioned by the editorial team. 

Contributions considered relevant to the aims and scope of the journal and likely to be of publishable quality will be sent out for external review. The journal's policy is to obtain at least two independent reviews of each article. The peer review process will be double-blind, i.e. neither reviewers nor authors will be informed of the identity of each other. Referees will be encouraged to provide substantive, constructive reviews that provide suggestions for improving the work, and distinguish between mandatory and non-mandatory recommendations.

The Editor-in-Chief will then make a decision about publication in the journal. He will inform the contributors in writing of his decision, and the reasoning behind it, and will provide contributors with copies of the external reviews. 

All manuscripts accepted for publication are subject to editing by the publisher for presentation, style and grammar. 

Any major redrafting is agreed with the author but the Editor's decision on the text is final. 

COPYRIGHT 

Authors will be required, before publication, to transfer copyright of their article to Maney Publishing (this condition may be waived if Crown (or equivalent) copyright is involved and a licence to publish given). The standard copyright form may be viewed here. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce any material or illustrations for which they do not hold the copyright.

There will be no limitation on an author's freedom to use subsequently material contained in the paper, provided acknowledgement is made to the Journal as the original source of publication and a link to www.ingentaconnect.com/content/maney/nres included with any listing.

ADVICE ON SUBMITTING ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPERS

The introduction should provide an appropriate background to the article, drawing on relevant 

literature and explaining the research question to be addressed. Authors should avoid obviously 

partisan selection and quotation of literature. 

The methods section should demonstrate a clear and documented design or strategy directed 

towards a specific research question. The study design should be appropriate to the aims of the

study and be clearly described. The criteria for selecting the sample should be clearly described 

and justified. A clear description of sampling, recruitment to the study, data collection, and data

analysis should be provided. Full details of interventions should be given for intervention studies. 

This section should also include details of approval from a named Research Ethics Committee, and any arrangements for data oversight.

Authors submitting randomised controlled trials (RCTs) should follow the revised CONSORT 

guidelines, including a completed CONSORT checklist and flowchart of participants in the trial.

Guidance can be found at http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/291/1/125/DC4 or JAMA 2003; 291:125.

The results section should contain all the information required by referees and readers to assess the validity of the conclusions. The characteristics of the sample included in the study should be clearly described. For quantitative studies, the section should include details of the response rates and numbers lost to follow-up.

The analysis should be clear and systematic. Results of statistical tests should be reported with 

confidence intervals in order to provide an estimate of precision. No more than six tables should 

be included.

Please include a structured discussion. We recommend that this covers the following sections, 

using sub-headings:

l summary of main findings;

l the strengths and the limitations of this study;

l how and why it agrees or disagrees with the existing literature, in particular including any 

     papers published since the study was designed and carried out;

l the implications for future research or clinical practice. 

We will normally expect no more than 25 references for an original research paper.

PRESENTATION OF ARTICLES 

 
These instructions are in accordance with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals (the 'Vancouver' system). BMJ 1991; 302 (6772). See also: http://www.icmje.org/index.html

The submission of research papers 
Papers should be set out as follows, with each section beginning on a separate sheet: title page, abstract, text, acknowledgements, references, tables, captions to illustrations. 

Research papers (up to 6000 words and 6-8 illustrations).

Full length accounts of original research. A clear research question and a description of methods, including search strategies and quality appraisal, should be provided. Methods for synthesis, including meta-analysis, narrative summary, etc., should be clearly explained. 

Title page

The title page should give the following information: (1) title of the article; (2) first name(s) or initial(s) and surname of each author; (3) address of the department or institution to which the work should be attributed; (4) full postal address of each author; (5) name, telephone, email address and fax number of the author responsible for correspondence and to whom requests for offprints should be sent. (This is particularly important where the corresponding author is not the first named author.)

Structured Abstract

This should consist of not more than 250 words summarising the contents of the article. It is important, especially for indexing services, that this must be intelligible independently of the article. It should be presumed that the reader has some knowledge of the subject but has not read the paper.

Structured abstracts are essential for research and review papers, and should be submitted under 

the headings: 1. Objectives, 2. Methods, 3. Results, and 4. Discussion. Papers that are significantly technical in nature should include a Technique/Technical Development and/or Instrumentation section(s), as appropriate. Abstracts for Case Reports do not follow the above format, but contain:

i) Objective and Importance

ii) Clinical Presentation

iii) Intervention (or Technique)

iv) Conclusion headings.

For the sake of brevity, descriptions under each heading need not be in complete sentences and may be formulated in phrases. Abstracts will be critically reviewed and evaluated for direct and accurate conciseness to the manuscript's content.

Keywords 

Authors are asked to supply up to five keywords (in alphabetical order) to be used as an aid to 

coding and indexing. Consult the subject classifications on the web site.

Acknowledgements

Sources of support, for example in the form of grants, should be included where relevant. 
Concise acknowledgement of contributors not listed as authors is welcome.

Disclosure Statement 

Each submission needs to have a disclosure statement from the authors detailing any financial 

support they have received in conjunction with the generation of their submission. 

References

For copyediting and typesetting purposes, reference numbers in the text should not be electronically linked to the reference list.

The accuracy of references is the responsibility of the author. References should be entered 

consecutively by Arabic numerals as superscripts inside the punctuation mark (e.g. tested27. The. . . ). The references should be listed in numerical order on a separate sheet in single spacing. 

Reference to journals should include the author's name and initials (list all authors when three or fewer; when four or more, list only the first three and add et al.), full title of paper, journal title 

abbreviated (using Index Medicus abbreviations), year of publication, volume number, first and last page numbers. 

For example: 

Rosengren A, Wilhelmsen L, Orth-Gomer K. Coronary disease in relation to social support 

and social class in Swedish men. A 15-year follow-up in the study of men born in 1933. 

Eur Heart J 2004; 25: 56-63

Li Y, Chopp M, Chen J, et al. Intrastriatal transplantation of bone marrow 

nonhematopoietic cells improve functional recovery after stroke in adult mice. J Cereb 

Blood Flow Metab 2000; 20: 1311-1319

References to books should be set out as follows:

Appleby J, Harrison A, Devlin N. What is the Real Cost of Patient Choice? London: 

King's Fund, 2003

Chapter in book: Chamberlain JS, Gibbs RA, Rainier JE. Multiplex PCR for the diagnosis 

of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. In: Innes MA, Gelfand DH, White TJ, eds. PRC 

Protocols, San Diego: Academic Press, 1990: pp. 272-281.

Tables

Use only one tab (not spaces) to separate each column in a table. Authors need not worry about 

the alignment of columns on the screen, but if a table is presented on paper, set each tab as 

appropriate. Alternatively, use the Word table template from the drop-down menu. Each table should also be presented on a separate page of hard copy or file and should contain only horizontal rules.

Do not submit tables as photographs. Care should be taken to ensure that all units are included. 

A short descriptive title should appear above each table and any footnotes, suitably identified, 

should appear below. Ensure that each table is cited in the text. 

Statistics

When statistical significance is attributed, cite the specific method of analysis and use the lower case italic p (p<0.05).

Abbreviations, Nomenclature, and Symbols

These generally should conform to those found in the CBE Style Manual, 6th Edition, 1994, published by the Council of Biology Editors, Inc., 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814. The use of standard international units is encouraged and should be accompanied by the appropriate notation.

Identification of Product Manufacturers

Any medications, materials, and devices must be identified by full non-proprietary name as well as brand name and the manufacturer's name, city, state, and country. Place this information in parentheses in the text, not in a footnote. 

WORD LENGTH OF OTHER KINDS OF ARTICLE

Review articles (up to 7500 words and 6-8 illustrations)

These will normally be commissioned, but the Editor in Chief will be pleased to receive recommendations for new topics. They will provide concise in depth reviews of traditional and new areas in neuroscience, neurology and neurosurgery. 

Short communications (up to 1500 words)

Either brief papers describing completed projects of short duration or short papers on incomplete new projects.

The guidance is the same as for original articles with the following exceptions:

- The summary need not be a structured abstract.

- Authors should limit themselves to no more than ten references and two figures or tables.

Neurological Updates (up to 1000 words)

The will provide succinct reminders of the etiology and latest treatment of single topic neurological disorders. 

Technical Reports (up to 1000 words and 2-3 illustrations)

They will report on work-in-progress on diagnosis, treatment, equipment development or novel 

surgical techniques.

Case Reports (up to 3000 words and 2-3 illustrations)

ILLUSTRATIONS

Line Illustrations

All line illustrations should present a crisp black image on an even white background 127x173 mm, or no larger than 203x254 mm. Figures should be submitted appropriately lettered in capitals. The size of letters should be appropriate to that of the illustration. It is important to take into account the necessary size reduction. Be certain that the symbols utilized will be distinguished after reduction. If illustrations are computer generated, please avoid the use of grey tints. Solid black, solid white or hatched areas are acceptable. 
 
Photographic Illustrations and Radiographs

Photomicrographs should have the magnification and details of staining techniques shown. X-ray film should be submitted to bring out the detail to be illustrated, with an overlay indicating the area of importance. 

All illustrations should be clearly marked. Captions should be typed, double-spaced, on separate sheets from the main text. 

PATIENT CONFIDENTIALITY

Where illustrations must include recognisable individuals, living or dead and of whatever age, care must be taken to ensure that consent for publication has been given. If identifiable features are not essential to the illustration, please indicate where the illustration can be cropped. In cases where consent has not been obtained and recognizable features may appear, it will be necessary to retouch the illustration to mask the eyes or otherwise render the individual 'officially' unrecognisable. 

PERMISSION FOR REPRODUCTION OF PREVIOSULY PUBLISHED MATERIAL

Written permission to reproduce borrowed material must be obtained from the original publishers and authors, and submitted with the typescript. Borrowed material should be acknowledged in the captions in this style: 'Reproduced by the kind permission of . . . (publishers) from . . . (reference).' 

ABBREVIATIONS AND UNITS 

All measurements should be expressed in metric units. For more detailed recommendations, authors may consult the Royal Society of Medicine publication entitled Units, Symbols and Abbreviations: A Guide for Biological and Medical Editors and Authors or USA equivalent. 

PROPRIETARY NAMES 

Proprietary names of drugs, instruments etc. should be indicated by the use of initial capital letters. 

AUTHORSHIP

The list of authors should include all those who can legitimately claim authorship. This will be all those who have made a substantial contribution to the concept and design, conduct, analysis or writing up a study. Authors may if they wish supply details of their individual contributions to the work, but we do not insist on it, and the data will not be published. Contributions would be expected to fall into one of the following categories, though one of these may not be sufficient on its own to warrant authorship:

- Conceiving and designing the study 

- Obtaining funding and/or ethical approval 

- Collecting the data 

- Analysing the data 

- Interpreting the data 

- Writing the report in part or wholly 

- Revising the report 

Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the 

content relevant to their own contribution. We do not require all authors to sign the initial letter

accompanying submission. However, all authors must sign the declaration form sent with the 

Editor's response at the conclusion of peer review. In addition, at least one author should be 

designated as the guarantor for the integrity of the data on which the paper is based. This will 

normally be the author for correspondence.

PUBLISHING ETHICS

Neurological Research supports the ethical principles set out by the Committee on Publication 

Ethics (COPE) available on their website (http://www.publicationethics.org.uk/). It is important that authors understand the need for the research undertaken to conform to the Helsinki declaration.

The authors will normally have to confirm that the study has been approved by a named Research Ethical Committee to be considered for publication. In addition the authors must ensure that there is no risk of duplicate publication. All authors of any kind of article submitted must declare any competing interests by completing a standard form, which will be sent to all authors at the conclusion of the peer review process. This should be returned with the revised manuscript. COPE has given guidance on the definition of competing interests: that they may influence the judgement of author, reviewers, and editors; that they may be personal, commercial, political, academic or financial. As a rough guide, they have been described as those which, when revealed later, would make a reasonable reader feel misled or deceived. In addition, all authors must declare that, where relevant, patient consent has been obtained and that all reasonable steps have been taken to maintain patient confidentiality report (see http://jama.ama-assn.org/ifora_current.dtl for full requirements of informed consent).

Stage 2: INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SUBMISSION OF ACCEPTED ARTICLES

Please reread the instructions for the submission of articles to ensure that the requirements of Neurological Research have been followed.

PAGE PROOFS

PDF proofs are emailed to the corresponding author for checking. Corrections, which should be confined to essential typographical amendments only, must be returned by email, fax or post to: The Production Editor, Samantha Green, Maney Publishing, 1 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5DB, UK (samantha.green@materials.org.uk) promptly. All typescripts will undergo copy-editing to improve clarity, readability and consistency, so it is important to read your proofs carefully. 

COLOUR

There are charges for the use of colour. Please obtain costs from Samantha Green at the above address. A form is also available at http://ner.edmgr.com

FAST TRACK PUBLICATION

Maney now offers the facility for fast track publication, whereby accepted papers are made available online immediately following final correction. This enables papers to be published ahead of formal distribution of the printed and online issue in which papers will subsequently appear, and allows greater opportunities for authors' accepted contributions to be accessed and cited in subsequent research.

OFFPRINTS 

Offprints may be ordered by the author. An offprint order form will be sent to the author with the page proofs.