ASIAN JOURNAL OF ANDROLOGY

Information for Authors

GENERAL

The Asian Journal of Andrology (AJA) is the official publication of the Asian Society of Andrology, and is sponsored by the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Shanghai Jiao Tong University. The Journal has been included in 14 indexing systems, including BIOSIS, CA, CAB Abstracts, CAB Health, Chemical Abstracts, CSCD, CSTPC, Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, EMBASE, Index Medicus, MEDLINE, PASCAL, Research Alert and SCI Expanded.

The Journal welcomes current Original Articles in all areas of andrology, both experimental and clinical, including modern, traditional and epidemiological studies, from any part of the world.  Review Articles based primarily on authors own research on internationally important topics are accepted.  Complementary Medicine, Short Communications, Clinical Experiences, Case Reports, and Letters to the Editor are also welcome.

Permissions and Declaration      By submitting a manuscript the authors warrant that they have obtained permission to use any copyrighted or previously published material.  Authors must declare any financial support or relationships that may pose conflict of interest.

Ethics      Human experiments should be performed only in accordance with the ethical standards provided by the responsible committee of the institution and in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki (as revised in Tokyo 2004), available at http://www.wma.net/e/policy/b3.htm.  Animal experiments should be in accordance with the instructions for the care and use provided by the institution at which the research was carried out.  All investigations on human subjects must include a statement that the subject gave informed consent.  Patient anonymity should be preserved. Photographs need to be cropped sufficiently to prevent human subjects being recognized (or an eye bar should be used).

MANUSCRIPT   CONTENTS

The manuscript may be arranged with the following sections: (1) Title page, (2) Abstract, (3) Keywords, (4) Introduction, (5) Materials and methods, (6) Results, (7) Discussion, (8) Acknowledgments, (9) References, (10) Abbreviations, (11) Tables and (12) Figures.  Authors may use another format if it is more appropriate.

1     Title page      The title page should contain, on separate lines:

(1) The title of the manuscript and a running title of no more than 40 letters.  The title must be informative, specific, and concise.

(2) The name(s) and affiliations of the author(s).  All authors should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the content.  Written approval signed by all authors should be presented with the manuscript.  The affiliation is the department and/or institution where the work was done.

(3) The name, present mailing address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address of the author to whom the correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed.

2      Abstract       Full-length submissions should include an abstract of up to 250 words in structured form, consisting of the Aim, Methods, Results and Conclusion.  Abstract for review articles should be unstructured.  The abstract should emphasize the new and important aspects of the study, and must be informative rather than indicative.

3     Keywords      Provide 310 keywords or phrases for indexing purposes, using terms from the latest US National Library of Medicine's Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) browser list at (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/meshhome.html).  If appropriate MeSH terms are not available, other suitable terms may be used.

4     Introduction      The introduction summarizes the rationale, provides a concise research background (not an exhaustive review) and states in one sentence the objective of the study.  Do not include any results or the conclusions of the study.

5     Materials and methods      The materials and methods provide technical information about the study.  Do not describe methodological details that have been published previously.  Specifications (including the manufacturer, city, and the country) should be given for the main drugs, chemicals and instruments.  The statistical methods used and the statistical significance should be indicated.

6     Results      The results are the findings, using SI units and identifying statistical significance with superscripts (a, b, and c) following the data     (^aP > 0.05, ^bP < 0.05, ^cP < 0.01).   In a sample, the number of effective digits is determined by the variation within the sample, that is, one-third of the standard deviation.  Digits may be separated into groups of three by a small space.

7     Discussion      The discussion deals with the interpretation of the results and their comparison with those of other studies.  Do not repeat the results, do not review the literature, do not repeat textbook knowledge and do not cite references that do not have a close relationship with the present results.  End with a brief conclusion linking back to the objective of the study.

8     Acknowledgments      Authors should obtain written permission for everyone acknowledged by name, since readers may infer their endorsement of the paper and its conclusions.  Sources of support in the form of financial aid, grants, or equipment should be included.

9     References      The Journal advocates the citation of new papers; old references are better replaced with updated ones.  It is the authors responsibility to ensure that all references are accurate.  References are numbered consecutively in the order in which they appear in the text. Citations should be labeled with square bracket and should appear in front of the period or comma at the end of the sentence/clause.  All references should be cited.

References to unpublished data, personal communications and manuscripts submitted for publication should be clearly identified and listed in parentheses within the text.  These items should not be included in the list of references.  References to abstracts are not permitted.

References should be listed in numerical order in the Reference section.  Journal titles should be abbreviated according to the list of Journals Indexed in Index Medicus or MEDLINE (www.nlm.nih.gov).  Please note that no periods are used after the authors initials or journal abbreviations. A period is used at the end of each reference.  The type and punctuation of references is consistent with the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (http://www.ICMJE.org/).  Some examples follow.

Journal article up to six authors (list all authors)

Kihara K, Sato K, Ando M, Sato T, Oshima H. Ability of lumbar splanchnic nerves and inability of thoracic nerves to generate seminal emission in dogs. J Urol 1992; 147: 2603.

Journal article more than six authors (list first six and add et al.):

Nantel F, Monaco L, Foulkes NS, Masquilier D, Le Meur M, Henriksen K, et al. Spermiogenesis deficiency and germ cell apoptosis in CREM-mutant mice. Nature 1996; 380: 16972.

Book:

Armitage P. Statistical Methods in Medical Research. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific Publishers; 1971. p239.

Chapter in a book:

Morley JE, Kaiser FE, Jonson LE. Male sexual function. In: Cassel CK, Riesenberg DE, Sorensen LB, Walsh JR, editors. Geriatric Medicine. New York: Springer-Verlag; 1990. p25670.

10    Abbreviations      The use of abbreviations, except for units of measure, is discouraged.  At the first appearance in the abstract and the text, abbreviations should be preceded by words for which they stand.

11    Tables      Tables must be concise and cited consecutively using Arabic numerals in the text (Table 1, Table 2, etc.).  Each table should be typed on a separate sheet.  The title of the table should clearly indicate the nature of the contents and sufficient detail should be included to facilitate interpretation without reference to the text. Use horizontal rules only.

12    Figures      Figures (photographs, drawings, diagrams and charts) should be clear, easily legible and cited consecutively using Arabic numerals in the text (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.).  Color plates are also welcome.  Figures should be of high quality (300 dpi or greater, clear, and in good focus).

Scale Bar should be indicated in the photographs.

Figure Legends      Please do not embed or flatten the text into the image files.  Figure legends should be typed and submitted in .rtf (rich text format) on a separate sheet.

Accepted Figure File Formats      We support .jpg, .tif and .psd files.  When sending image files, please do not embed them in Word or PowerPoint.  You may submit mixed file formats (Image1.jpg, Image2.tif, Image3.psd, etc.).  If you have created Photoshop image files containing separate layers with arrows or text, please send us the layered files (unflattened).  Color files should be submitted in the CMYK color space.

File Naming Convention      Figures should be named consecutively such as Figure 1.tif, Figure 2.jpg, etc., with the file extension appended (.tif, .jpg, etc.).   Each figure should be saved as a separate electronic file.

Multiple Panel Figures      Do not mount multiple part figures.  Please submit each panel (image) separately.  However, you may submit a multiple panel version to suggest the order in which you would like the panels arranged.  You may also include a written, suggested layout.  Each individual panel should be of the highest possible quality (300 dpi or higher) at actual print size.

Upon Acceptance of Manuscript      Authors of accepted manuscripts will be asked to provide the Editorial Office with publication quality digital files (300 dpi or higher) in an approved format (preferably .tif or .psd) at publication size (85 mm for 1-column width, or 175 mm for 2-column width).

PUBLICATION  PROCESS

Preparation of the Manuscript      Prepare manuscripts in English according to Information for Authors in a recent issue of the AJA.  Number the headings in decimal pattern: 1, 1.1, 1.1.1, etc.  Please indicate both the page and line numbers in your manuscripts to facilitate reviewing.

Cover Letter      All new manuscripts must be accompanied by a cover letter from the corresponding author indicating 1) the title of the manuscript and its main point; 2) a statement that the manuscript has not been published in part or whole (except in the form of abstract) or is under consideration for publication elsewhere by any language; 3) a statement that all authors have agreed to be so listed and have seen and approved the manuscript, its consent and its submission to AJA; 4) a full current postal address, telephone and fax numbers and current email address.  We usually communicate with authors by email.

Copyright Transfer Form      A copyright transfer form signed and dated by all authors must accompany each new manuscript.  The title of the manuscript and the names of all authors, in the order in which they appear on the manuscript, must be printed in the designated spaces in the form.  The form is available online at www.asiaandro.com.

The submission of a manuscript by authors implies that they automatically agree to assign exclusive copyright of the article to AJA, including the right to reproduce the article in all forms and media, if the manuscript is accepted for publication.  All rights of the articles published in the AJA are reserved.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical or otherwise) without permission from AJA.  AJA will not refuse any reasonable request by authors to reproduce any of their contributions to the Journal. Please note that manuscripts will NOT be processed until the editorial office has received this signed copyright form.

Online Submission      The manuscript should be submitted online through our online submission and review system, ScholarOne Manuscript Central (http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aja).  It will enable us to handle your manuscript quickly and efficiently.  Please read the Author Guide before submitting your manuscript online.  Detailed Author Guide is available at http://www.asiaandro.com/guide.htm.

Manuscript Receipt      Upon the receipt of the manuscript AJA will immediately assign a code number (e.g. AJA-1600) which must be used in subsequent correspondence.

Peer Review      After being preliminary reviewed by the editors, most of the submitted manuscripts are peer reviewed by at least two external referees.  Authors are encouraged to recommend preferred or unpreferred referees, but AJA reserves the right of final selection.

Revision      The manuscript should be revised according to the referees comments with track kept.  Point-to-point answers to comments are required. A revised manuscript will be considered a new submission if not returned to the Editorial Office within 2 months.

Rejected Manuscripts      If a manuscript is not accepted for publication, the authors will receive a decision letter along with the comments.

Proofreading      Proofs are sent to the corresponding authors as a PDF attachment to an e-mail.  Corrections are restricted to printer's errors. Answer all queries (in the interests of accuracy) on the proof.  If the authors feel that it is very important to include new information, insert it with the permission of the Editorial Office.  Corrected files should be returned by e-mail to aja@sibs.ac.cn within 7 days or within the period that the editors required.  If the time limit is exceeded, the publication of the article might be postponed.

Reprints      Reprints with elegant journal cover may be ordered on the Reprint Order Form, which will accompany the proofs.

Cover Art      Authors are encouraged to submit color figures or colorful diagrams of models pertaining to their manuscripts for consideration for use on the cover of the Journal with extra publication charge.  The Editors-in-Chief chooses a new cover image for each issue.  If you wouldn抰 like your work considered for the cover, please indicate in your Cover Letter.  In order for work to be considered, you must be able to provide a digital file with .psd and/or .tif format at minimum 300 dpi resolution at 190 mm wide in CMYK color mode.  Even if your manuscript has been provisionally chosen for the cover, the cover choice will be given to another manuscript if the appropriate file specifications cannot be provided.

Page Charge and Color Charge      From 2008, each manuscript submitted should be accompanied by a manuscript-handling fee of US$ 60 (RMB 400).  The page charge of US$ 65 (RMB 500) per printed page will be levied on all manuscripts accepted for publication.  The cost for color photographs US$ 250 (RMB 2 000) per page is borne by the authors. The charge for the Cover Art is US$ 400 (RMB 3 200).

Address for Editorial Office Correspondence      Asian Journal of Andrology, Floor 3, Building 16, 294 Taiyuan Rd, Shanghai 200031, China. Tel: +86-21-5492-2824, Fax: +86-21-5492-2825, E-mail: aja@sibs.ac.cn or aja@mail.shcnc.ac.cn (Chinese authors can use: 200031 上海市太原路294号16号楼3楼，《亚洲男性学杂志》编辑部).

Updated Dec 15, 2007