Guide for Authors

Language

Manuscripts must be written in English in a clear and concise manner. Any author who is not fluent in idiomatic English is urged to seek assistance with manuscript preparation prior to submission. Reviewers are not expected to correct grammatical errors and any deficiency in this area may detract from the scientific content of the paper and result in acceptance delays or rejection.

Online Submission

Manuscripts should be submitted by one of the authors of the manuscript through the online Manuscript Tracking System (MTS) following the instructions given on the screen. Only Word (.doc, .docx, .rtf) files can be submitted through the MTS, and there is no page limit. Submissions by anyone other than one of the authors will not be accepted. The submitting author takes responsibility for the manuscript during submission and peer review. If for some technical reason submission through the MTS is not possible, the author can contact to ABSB@azhar.edu.eg. for support.

Terms of Submission

Manuscripts must be submitted on the understanding that they have not been published elsewhere and are only being considered by this journal. The submitting author is responsible for ensuring that the article’s publication has been approved by all the other coauthors. It is also the submitting author’s responsibility to ensure that the article has all necessary institutional approvals. Only an acknowledgment from the editorial office officially establishes the date of receipt. Further correspondence and proofs will be sent to the author(s) before publication, unless otherwise indicated. It is a condition of submission that the authors permit editing of the manuscript for readability. All inquiries concerning the publication of accepted manuscripts should be addressed to ABSB@azhar.edu.eg.

Referees

Please submit the names and institutional e-mail addresses of at least 5 potential referees. Note that the editor retains the sole right to decide whether or not the suggested reviewers are used.

General information

  • Authors should submit their manuscripts to the editorial office as word files (word 2007 or higher) via the online Manuscript Tracking System. Manuscripts with mathematical content can also be submitted in Latex  

  • The original manuscript should be formatted with double line spacing using Times New Roman fonts (10 pt) and fully justified right and left.

  • The text must be in a single-column format with justified margins. Use bold face, italics, subscripts, and superscripts where appropriate.

  • To avoid unnecessary errors, the authors are strongly advised to use the "spell-check" and "grammar-check" functions of their word processing software.

  • Use continuous line numbering throughout the text and all manuscript pages must be numbered.

  • Use the equation editor or Math Type for equations.

  • Use the table function to make tables.

  • Use the decimal system of heading with no more than three levels, for instance, 1., 2., 2.1, 2.1.1, …etc.

Revised manuscripts

The authors must submit the revised version of their submissions within one month of receiving the editorial decision. Revision does not mean that the manuscript will be accepted for publication, as the amended submissions could be sent out for reevaluation. In response to reviewers’ comments, the authors must ensure that each comment is followed by their revision

and/or response. In instances where an author disagrees with a comment or suggestion of a reviewer, please justify the reason. Any associated changes in the manuscript must be highlighted on the revised form of the manuscript to facilitate the process of re-evaluation.

Peer Review

All manuscripts are subjected to peer review and are expected to meet the standards of academic excellence. If approved by the editor, submissions will be considered by peer reviewers, whose identities will remain anonymous to the authors and vice versa, identities of authors will remain anonymous to the reviewers (Double-blind peer review). The decision regarding acceptance or rejection of a manuscript is the responsibility of the editorial board and is based on the recommendations of the reviewers (peer-reviewed process).

Our Research Integrity team will occasionally seek advice outside standard peer review, for example, on submissions with serious ethical, security, biosecurity, or societal implications. We may consult experts and the academic editor before deciding on appropriate actions, including but not limited to recruiting reviewers with specific expertise, assessment by additional editors, and declining to further consider a submission.

Types of Articles

Al-Azhar Bulletin of Science- Basic Science Sector seeks to publish four types of contributions  in the form of original articles, short communications, reviews, and mini reviews.

1. Original articles: Articles which represent in-depth research in various scientific disciplines.

2. Short communications: Should be complete manuscripts of significant importance. However, their length and/or depth do not justify a full-length paper. The total number of figures and tables should not exceed 4. The number of words should be = 3,000

3. Review articles: Should normally comprise less than 10,000 words; contain unstructured abstract and includes up-to-date references. Meta-analyses are considered as reviews. Special attention will be paid to the teaching value of review papers.

4. Mini reviews: These are reviews of important and recent topics that are presented in a concise and well-focused manner. The number of words is limited to 5,000 words.

Article structure

The manuscript should be compiled in the following order:

1. Title page

2. Abstract, Key words

3. Introduction

4. Material and methods (Experimental or Methodology or Patients and methods)

5. Results

6. Discussion (Results and discussion can be combined in one section)

7. Conclusion

8. Acknowledgment(s)

9. Conflicts of Interest

10. References

11. Arabic Abstract

12. Tables

13. Figures

Title page

The title page should include the following in English and Arabic:

1. Title: The title should be brief, concise, and descriptive. It should not contain any literature references or compound numbers or non-standardized abbreviations. It should be centered, typed in Times New Roman 14 point and boldface.

2. Authors and affiliations: Supply given names, middle initials, and family names for complete identification. They should be centered beneath the title and typed in Times New Roman 11-point, non-italic and boldface. Use superscript lowercase letters to indicate different affiliations, which should be as detailed as possible and must include department, faculty/college, University, city with zip code or P.O. Box and country. The primary affiliation for each author should be the institution where most of their work was done. if an author has subsequently moved, the current address may additionally be stated. Addresses will not be updated after publication of the article.

3. Corresponding author: Should be indicated with an asterisk, and contact details (Tel., fax, and e-mail address) should be placed in a footnote. If available, the 16-digit ORCID of the corresponding author.

Title, Authors, and affiliations in Arabic should be provided in the same order as mentioned above in a separate page in the same file.

Short running title (running head) with 80 characters as maximum.

Abstract

The abstract should be self-contained, citation-free, and should not exceed 300 words. The abstract should briefly describe the purpose of the study, how the investigation was performed, the most important results and the principal conclusions that were drawn from the results, respectively. Nonstandard or uncommon abbreviations should be defined at first mention within the abstract. The abstract should be typed in Times New Roman, 9-point, non-italic and non- boldface.

Keywords

Authors are asked to provide (4 to 6) keywords, separated with semicolons and should be typed in Times New Roman, 10-point, non-italic and non-boldface.

Introduction

This section should be succinct, with no subheadings. The author(s) should strive to define the significance of the work and the justification for its publication. Any background discussion should be brief and restricted to pertinent material.

Material and methods (Experimental or Methodology or Patients and methods)

This part should contain sufficient detail that would enable all procedures to be repeated. It can be divided into subsections if several methods are described. Authors should be as concise as possible in experimental descriptions. The experimental section must contain all of the information necessary to guarantee reproducibility. Previously published methods should be indicated by a reference and only relevant modifications should be described. All vendor details, including company, city, and country, should be mentioned for chemicals, reagents, strains, etc. For statistical analysis, please state the appropriate test(s) in addition to hypothesized p-value or significant level (for example 0.05).

Results and Discussion

They should be combined. The study results should be clear and concise. Restrict the use of tables and figures to depict data that is essential to the message and interpretation of the study. The results should be presented in a logical sequence in the text, tables and illustrations. The discussion should explore the significance of the results of the work, not repeat them. Include in the discussion the implications of the findings and their limitations, how the findings fit into the context of other relevant work, and directions for future research.

Conclusion(s)

The main conclusion(s) of the study should be presented in a short conclusion statement highlighting the goals of the study and its importance. State new hypotheses when warranted. Include recommendations when appropriate.

Acknowledgment(s)

All acknowledgments (if any) should be included at the very end of the manuscript before the references. Anyone who made a contribution to the research or manuscript, but who is not a listed author, should be acknowledged (with their permission).

Conflicts of Interest

Authors must declare all relevant interests that could be perceived as conflicting. Authors should explain why each interest may represent a conflict. If no conflicts exist, the authors should state this. Submitting authors are responsible for co-authors declaring their interests.

References

Text: Indicate references by Arabic numerals in brackets, which run in order of appearance throughout the text (Vancouver style). For instance [4] or [7-10, 13,15]. The actual authors can be referred to, but the reference number(s) must always be given.

List: Number the references (e.g., 1.) in the list in the order in which they appear in the text. Journal names should be

abbreviated according to Index Medicus journal abbreviations: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/serials/lji.html.

Examples of references (if 6 or fewer authors, list all; if 7 or more, list first 6 and add "et al."):

For journal articles

[1] Abd El-Aty AM, Goudah A, Zhou HH. Pharmacokinetics of doxycycline after administration as a single intravenous bolus and intramuscular doses to non-lactating Egyptian goats. Pharmacol Res. 2004; 49(5): 487-91.

[2] Kramarz P, DeStefano F, Gargiullo PM, Chen RT, Lieu TA, Davis RL, et al. Does influenza vaccination prevent asthma exacerbations in children? J Pediatr 2001; 138:306-10.

[3] Cozzi F, Morini F. Possible mechanisms of pacifier protection against SIDS [letter]. J Pediatr 2001; 138:783.

For articles in press (online)

[1] Hellems MA, Gurka KK, Hayden GF. A review of The Journal of Pediatrics: The first 75 years. J Pediatr (2008). doi:10.1016/j.jpeds.2008.08.049.

For Books

[1] Rosenstein BJ, Fosarelli PD. Pediatric pearls: the handbook of practical pediatrics. 3rd ed. St Louis: Mosby; 1997.Virginia Law Foundation. The medical and legal implications of AIDS. Charlottesville (VA): The Foundation; 1987.

For book chapters

[1] Neufeld EF, Muenzer J. The mucopolysaccharidoses. In: Scriver CR, Beaudet AL, Sly WS, et al, eds. The metabolic and

molecular bases of inherited diseases. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2001. p. 3421-52.

Web References

For websites

[1] American Medical Association [homepage on the Internet]. Chicago: The Association; c1995-2002 [updated 2001 Aug 23; cited 2002 Aug 12]. AMA Office of Group Practice Liaison; [about 2 screens]. Available from: http://www.amaassn. org/ama/pub/category/1736.html -219.

For more samples please check:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html

http://www.library.uq.edu.au/training/citation/vancouv.pdf

Arabic abstract

It should be a brief summary of the significant items of the main paper with the title of the paper without names of author(s). The Arabic summary should no more than 300 words. It should be at the end of the manuscript after the references.

Figures

Figures and tables should not be submitted in separate files. If the article is accepted, authors will be asked to provide the source files of the figures. Each figure should be supplied in a separate electronic file. All figures should be cited in the manuscript in a consecutive order. Figures should be supplied in either vector art formats (Illustrator, EPS, WMF, FreeHand,

CorelDraw, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.) or bitmap formats (Photoshop, TIFF, GIF, JPEG, etc.). Bitmap images should be of 300 dpi resolution at least unless the resolution is intentionally set to a lower level for scientific reasons. If a bitmap image has labels, the image and labels should be embedded in separate layers. Figures should be referred to as Fig. 1, Figs. 2, 3-5, using Arabic numerals. Ensure that all tables, figures, and schemes are cited in the text in numerical order.  Figure parts should be denoted by lowercase letters (a,b,c,..etc).

Tables

Tables should be cited consecutively in the text. Every table must have a descriptive title and if numerical measurements are given, the units should be included in the column heading. Vertical rules should not be used. Figure and table captions should be 9-point Times New Roman, boldface and non-italic. Initially capitalize only the first word of the caption. Figure captions are to be below the figures and Table titles are to be fully justified right and left above the table.

Funding Statement

Authors must state how the research and publication of their article was funded, by naming financially supporting body(s) (written out in full) followed by associated grant number(s) in square brackets (if applicable), for example: “This work was supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [grant numbers xxxx, yyyy]; the National Science Foundation [grant number zzzz]; and a Leverhulme Trust Research Project Grant”. If the research did not receive specific funding but was performed as part of the employment of the authors, please name this employer. If the funder was involved in the manuscript writing, editing, approval, or decision to publish, please declare this.

Nomenclature and Units

All measurements and data should be given in SI units where possible, or in other internationally accepted units in parentheses throughout the text. Illustrations and Tables should use conventional units, with conversion factors given in legends or footnotes.

After acceptance

Upon accepting, your article will be exported to production to undergo typesetting. once the typesetting is complete, you will receive the proofs.

Proofs

One set of page proofs (as PDF files) will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author. Please use this proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables, and figures. We will do our best to get your article published quickly and accurately. Therefore, it is important to ensure that all of your corrections are sent back in one communication within 48 h. proofreading is solely your responsibility. Note that the publisher may proceed with the publication of an article if no response is received.

Copyright and Permissions

The use of general descriptive names, trade names, trademarks, and so forth in this publication, even if not specifically identified, does not imply that these names are not protected by the relevant laws and regulations. The submitting author is responsible for securing any permissions needed for the reuse of copyrighted materials included in the manuscript. While the advice and information in this journal are believed to be true and accurate on the date of its going to press, neither the authors, the editors, nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein.

Ethical Guidelines

In any studies on human or animal subjects, the following ethical guidelines must be observed. For any experiments on humans, all work must be conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki (1964). Manuscripts describing experimental work which carries a risk of harm to human subjects must include a statement that the experiment was conducted with the human subjects’ understanding and consent, as well as a statement that the responsible Ethical Committee has approved the experiments. In the case of any animal experiments, the authors must provide a full description of any anesthetic or surgical procedure used, as well as evidence that all possible steps were taken to avoid animal suffering at each stage of the experiment.

Supplementary materials

Authors can publish online supplementary files along with their articles or a book chapter. Each supplementary file should include article title, journal name, authors names, affiliations, and email address of the corresponding author. supplementary files will be published as received from the authors without any conversion, editing, or reforming.