Publication Ethics

Details of the Ethics

The Journal of Phytochemical Insights (JPCI) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics, research integrity, transparency, and responsible scholarly publishing. The journal expects all participants in the publication process—including authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher—to uphold ethical principles throughout manuscript submission, peer review, publication, and post-publication activities.

JPCI's publication ethics policies are informed by internationally recognized principles of responsible research publishing and are intended to protect the integrity, reliability, and credibility of the scientific literature.

1. Research Integrity

Authors are expected to conduct and report research honestly, accurately, transparently, and responsibly. Submitted manuscripts should present original work supported by reliable data and appropriate methodology. Authors should accurately describe their research methods, results, and interpretations without fabrication, falsification, selective reporting, or misleading presentation.

All research should comply with applicable ethical, legal, and institutional requirements relevant to the study.

2. Originality and Duplicate Publication

Manuscripts submitted to JPCI must represent original work that has not been published previously and is not under consideration by another journal. Authors must appropriately acknowledge the work of others through accurate citation and referencing.

• Plagiarism is strictly prohibited.
• Duplicate publication is not permitted.
• Redundant or overlapping publication should be avoided.
• Self-plagiarism must be disclosed where applicable.

3. Data Integrity

Authors are responsible for ensuring that the data presented in their manuscripts are accurate, complete, and honestly reported. Data should not be fabricated, falsified, manipulated, or selectively omitted in a manner that could mislead readers or influence scientific conclusions.

Authors should retain original research data and make them available when reasonably requested by the Editorial Office or reviewers, subject to ethical, legal, and confidentiality considerations.

4. Image Integrity

Images, figures, gels, micrographs, and other visual materials must accurately represent the original data. Adjustments to brightness, contrast, or color are acceptable only when applied uniformly and when they do not alter, obscure, remove, or misrepresent scientific information.

Any inappropriate image manipulation may result in editorial investigation and possible rejection or retraction of the manuscript.

5. Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial intellectual contributions to the conception, design, execution, analysis, or interpretation of the research. All listed authors should have reviewed and approved the final manuscript and agreed to its submission for publication.

Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately. Guest authorship, gift authorship, honorary authorship, and ghost authorship are considered unethical and are not permitted.

6. Conflict of Interest

All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence, or be perceived to influence, the objectivity of the research or editorial process. Full disclosure promotes transparency and helps readers evaluate potential sources of bias.

If no competing interests exist, authors should explicitly state that they have no conflicts of interest to declare.

7. Funding Disclosure

Authors must disclose all sources of financial support for the research, including grant numbers where applicable. Funding agencies should not influence the study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, or publication decisions.

If the research did not receive external financial support, authors should clearly state that no specific funding was received.

8. Confidentiality

Editors, reviewers, and Editorial Office staff must maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts throughout the editorial and peer-review process. Unpublished information obtained during manuscript evaluation must not be disclosed or used for personal, academic, or commercial advantage without the authors' written permission.

9. Ethical Approval

Research involving human participants, animals, biological specimens, or sensitive data must have received approval from an appropriate institutional ethics committee or review board before the study was conducted. Authors should include the name of the approving committee and the approval or reference number in the manuscript whenever applicable.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their research complies with applicable national regulations, institutional policies, and internationally recognized ethical principles.

10. Research Involving Human Participants

Research involving human participants must be conducted in accordance with internationally accepted ethical principles and applicable institutional and national regulations. Authors should confirm that informed consent was obtained from all participants or their legally authorized representatives before participation. Manuscripts should include an ethics approval statement identifying the approving ethics committee and approval number, where applicable.

11. Research Involving Animals

Studies involving animals must comply with recognized animal welfare regulations and institutional guidelines. Authors should make every effort to minimize animal suffering and use the minimum number of animals necessary to achieve scientifically valid results. The manuscript should include the name of the approving ethics committee together with the approval or protocol number, where applicable.

12. Artificial Intelligence (AI)-Assisted Content

Authors may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to assist with language editing, grammar improvement, or manuscript preparation, provided that the scientific content remains entirely the responsibility of the authors. AI tools must not be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for the integrity, originality, or accuracy of scholarly work.

Where AI tools have made a meaningful contribution to manuscript preparation, authors should disclose their use appropriately in the manuscript.

13. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

When significant errors or ethical concerns are identified after publication, JPCI will take appropriate action to preserve the integrity of the scientific record. Depending on the nature of the issue, this may include publication of a correction, an expression of concern, or a retraction. Such actions will be taken transparently and in accordance with the journal's editorial policies.

14. Allegations of Research Misconduct

The journal takes all allegations of research or publication misconduct seriously. Reports concerning plagiarism, data fabrication, data falsification, duplicate publication, image manipulation, inappropriate authorship, citation manipulation, or other unethical practices will be investigated confidentially and fairly. Authors may be asked to provide original data, supporting documentation, or additional explanations during an investigation.

Where misconduct is confirmed, the journal may reject the manuscript, retract the published article, notify the relevant institutions or funding organizations, and implement other appropriate editorial measures.

15. Ethical Oversight

The Editorial Office is responsible for overseeing ethical matters arising during manuscript handling and publication. Ethical concerns are evaluated impartially, confidentially, and in accordance with the journal's policies. When necessary, the Editorial Office may seek independent expert advice before reaching a final decision.

16. Policy Review and Updates

This Publication Ethics Policy is reviewed periodically to reflect developments in scholarly publishing, research integrity, and international best practices. The Journal of Phytochemical Insights reserves the right to revise or update this policy whenever necessary. Revised policies become effective upon publication on the journal website unless otherwise stated.