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Introduction



The International Journal for Parasitology publishes the results of innovative basic and applied findings in all aspects of parasitology. Areas include but are not restricted to human and veterinary medicine, agriculture, ecology and studies on the microbiota in the context of host-parasite relationships.

Innovative research includes the development of novel concepts and ideas, as well as experimental and observational science that raises new hypotheses. Contributions of broader context are favoured over highly specialised ones.

The Journal publishes two forms of research paper: Full-length and Succinctus. Both must contain substantial results from a major program of research. It also publishes Special Issues incorporating papers on select topical themes. The Journal commissions Reviews and Current Opinions on topical, strategic, or controversial matters in parasitology.

Because of the breadth of disciplines covered, the aims and significance of all contributions should be made clear to readers who are not expert in the particular field of study.

Types of paper

There are two types of papers, structured as follows:

Original Research Papers

Title page. Contains the title, authors' names, addresses, name and contact details of the corresponding author.

Abstract. The second page contains an Abstract of not more than 300 words in a single paragraph. At the foot of this page a list of up to 8 Index Keywords should be provided.

Text. (see sections above) In addition to major headings two forms of subheadings are used: (a) the numbered italicised side subheading referring to several paragraphs; (b) the italicised paragraph subheading at the beginning of a single paragraph used only in Materials and methods.

′Succinctus′

The journal offers an avenue for publishing succinct papers that describe significant research findings of broad interest. Articles are limited to 3,000 words, not divided into sections, and contain not more than three display items (figures or tables). The manuscript should be marked ′Succinctus′ on the top left-hand corner of the title page. The first page should show title, author and address details. A short Abstract of not more than 100 words in the same style as for full papers plus up to six Keywords should follow. The body of the paper should be written with a minimum number of paragraphs and unstructured (i.e. no headings). Text describing the methods should be included in the manuscript body and/or figure legends; the methodology should be succinct but contain sufficient information and/or suitable references to allow readers to replicate the work. Not more than 25 references should be cited. Other instructions are the same as those for original research papers.

Contact details for submission

General enquiries prior to submission should be directed to the Editorial Office: [email protected]

Submission checklist

You can use this list to carry out a final check of your submission before you send it to the journal for review. Please check the relevant section in this Guide for Authors for more details.

Ensure that the following items are present:

One author has been designated as the corresponding author with contact details:
• E-mail address
• Full postal address

All necessary files have been uploaded:
Manuscript:
• Include keywords
• All figures (include relevant captions)
• All tables (including titles, description, footnotes)
• Ensure all figure and table citations in the text match the files provided
• Indicate clearly if color should be used for any figures in print
Graphical Abstracts / Highlights files (where applicable)
Supplemental files (where applicable)

Further considerations
• Manuscript has been 'spell checked' and 'grammar checked'
• All references mentioned in the Reference List are cited in the text, and vice versa
• Permission has been obtained for use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Internet)
• A competing interests statement is provided, even if the authors have no competing interests to declare
• Journal policies detailed in this guide have been reviewed
• Referee suggestions and contact details provided, based on journal requirements

For further information, visit our Support Center.

Before you begin

Ethics in publishing

Please see our information on Ethics in publishing.

Policy and ethics

Care of experimental animals. It is the responsibility of authors to ensure that their practices conform with their national animal ethics guidelines. Submitted papers must contain precise details on the care and use of animals and of experimental procedures, especially interventions such as surgery and tissue sampling, and methods of euthanasia. Referees are asked to indicate whether there is any reason to consider that experimental animals were not well treated or care not taken to avoid distress, and papers may ultimately be rejected on such grounds.

Declaration of interest

All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) their work. Examples of potential competing interests include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or other funding. Authors must disclose any interests in two places: 1. A summary declaration of interest statement in the title page file (if double anonymized) or the manuscript file (if single anonymized). If there are no interests to declare then please state this: 'Declarations of interest: none'. 2. Detailed disclosures as part of a separate Declaration of Interest form, which forms part of the journal's official records. It is important for potential interests to be declared in both places and that the information matches. More information.

Declaration of generative AI in scientific writing

The below guidance only refers to the writing process, and not to the use of AI tools to analyse and draw insights from data as part of the research process.

Where authors use generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process, authors should only use these technologies to improve readability and language. Applying the technology should be done with human oversight and control, and authors should carefully review and edit the result, as AI can generate authoritative-sounding output that can be incorrect, incomplete or biased. AI and AI-assisted technologies should not be listed as an author or co-author, or be cited as an author. Authorship implies responsibilities and tasks that can only be attributed to and performed by humans, as outlined in Elsevier’s AI policy for authors.

Authors should disclose in their manuscript the use of AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process by following the instructions below. A statement will appear in the published work. Please note that authors are ultimately responsible and accountable for the contents of the work.

Disclosure instructions
Authors must disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process by adding a statement at the end of their manuscript in the core manuscript file, before the References list. The statement should be placed in a new section entitled ‘Declaration of Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process’.

Statement: During the preparation of this work the author(s) used [NAME TOOL / SERVICE] in order to [REASON]. After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the publication.

This declaration does not apply to the use of basic tools for checking grammar, spelling, references etc. If there is nothing to disclose, there is no need to add a statement.

Submission declaration and verification

Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract, a published lecture or academic thesis, see 'Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication' for more information), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, including electronically without the written consent of the copyright-holder. To verify compliance, your article may be checked by Crossref Similarity Check and other originality or duplicate checking software.

Use of inclusive language

Inclusive language acknowledges diversity, conveys respect to all people, is sensitive to differences, and promotes equal opportunities. Content should make no assumptions about the beliefs or commitments of any reader; contain nothing which might imply that one individual is superior to another on the grounds of age, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability or health condition; and use inclusive language throughout. Authors should ensure that writing is free from bias, stereotypes, slang, reference to dominant culture and/or cultural assumptions. We advise to seek gender neutrality by using plural nouns ("clinicians, patients/clients") as default/wherever possible to avoid using "he, she," or "he/she." We recommend avoiding the use of descriptors that refer to personal attributes such as age, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability or health condition unless they are relevant and valid. When coding terminology is used, we recommend to avoid offensive or exclusionary terms such as "master", "slave", "blacklist" and "whitelist". We suggest using alternatives that are more appropriate and (self-) explanatory such as "primary", "secondary", "blocklist" and "allowlist". These guidelines are meant as a point of reference to help identify appropriate language but are by no means exhaustive or definitive.

Reporting sex- and gender-based analyses

Reporting guidance
For research involving or pertaining to humans, animals or eukaryotic cells, investigators should integrate sex and gender-based analyses (SGBA) into their research design according to funder/sponsor requirements and best practices within a field. Authors should address the sex and/or gender dimensions of their research in their article. In cases where they cannot, they should discuss this as a limitation to their research's generalizability. Importantly, authors should explicitly state what definitions of sex and/or gender they are applying to enhance the precision, rigor and reproducibility of their research and to avoid ambiguity or conflation of terms and the constructs to which they refer (see Definitions section below). Authors can refer to the Sex and Gender Equity in Research (SAGER) guidelines and the SAGER guidelines checklist. These offer systematic approaches to the use and editorial review of sex and gender information in study design, data analysis, outcome reporting and research interpretation - however, please note there is no single, universally agreed-upon set of guidelines for defining sex and gender.

Definitions
Sex generally refers to a set of biological attributes that are associated with physical and physiological features (e.g., chromosomal genotype, hormonal levels, internal and external anatomy). A binary sex categorization (male/female) is usually designated at birth (""sex assigned at birth""), most often based solely on the visible external anatomy of a newborn. Gender generally refers to socially constructed roles, behaviors, and identities of women, men and gender-diverse people that occur in a historical and cultural context and may vary across societies and over time. Gender influences how people view themselves and each other, how they behave and interact and how power is distributed in society. Sex and gender are often incorrectly portrayed as binary (female/male or woman/man) and unchanging whereas these constructs actually exist along a spectrum and include additional sex categorizations and gender identities such as people who are intersex/have differences of sex development (DSD) or identify as non-binary. Moreover, the terms ""sex"" and ""gender"" can be ambiguous—thus it is important for authors to define the manner in which they are used. In addition to this definition guidance and the SAGER guidelines, the resources on this page offer further insight around sex and gender in research studies.

Changes to authorship

Authors are expected to consider carefully the list and order of authors before submitting their manuscript and provide the definitive list of authors at the time of the original submission. Any addition, deletion or rearrangement of author names in the authorship list should be made only before the manuscript has been accepted and only if approved by the journal Editor. To request such a change, the Editor must receive the following from the corresponding author: (a) the reason for the change in author list and (b) written confirmation (e-mail, letter) from all authors that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. In the case of addition or removal of authors, this includes confirmation from the author being added or removed.
Only in exceptional circumstances will the Editor consider the addition, deletion or rearrangement of authors after the manuscript has been accepted. While the Editor considers the request, publication of the manuscript will be suspended. If the manuscript has already been published in an online issue, any requests approved by the Editor will result in a corrigendum.

Article transfer service
This journal is part of our Article Transfer Service. This means that if the Editor feels your article is more suitable in one of our other participating journals, then you may be asked to consider transferring the article to one of those. If you agree, your article will be transferred automatically on your behalf with no need to reformat. Please note that your article will be reviewed again by the new journal. More information.

Copyright

Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' (see more information on this). An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form or a link to the online version of this agreement.

Subscribers may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of articles including abstracts for internal circulation within their institutions. Permission of the Publisher is required for resale or distribution outside the institution and for all other derivative works, including compilations and translations. If excerpts from other copyrighted works are included, the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article. Elsevier has preprinted forms for use by authors in these cases.

For gold open access articles: Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'License Agreement' (more information). Permitted third party reuse of gold open access articles is determined by the author's choice of user license.

Author rights
As an author you (or your employer or institution) have certain rights to reuse your work. More information.

Role of the funding source

You are requested to identify who provided financial support for the conduct of the research and/or preparation of the article and to briefly describe the role of the sponsor(s), if any, in study design; in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; and in the decision to submit the article for publication. If the funding source(s) had no such involvement, it is recommended to state this.

Open access

Please visit our Open Access page for more information about open access publishing in this journal.

Language (usage and editing services)
Please write your text in good English (American or British usage is accepted, but not a mixture of these). Authors who feel their English language manuscript may require editing to eliminate possible grammatical or spelling errors and to conform to correct scientific English may wish to use the Language Editing service available from Elsevier's Language Services.

Submission

Submission to this journal proceeds totally online and you will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of your files. The system automatically converts source files to a single PDF file of the article, which is used in the peer-review process. Please note that even though manuscript source files are converted to PDF files at submission for the review process, these source files are needed for further processing after acceptance. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revision, takes place by e-mail removing the need for a paper trail. Submitted manuscripts are first reviewed by a specialist editor to assess significance and general suitability for the journal. Approximately half of all submissions progress to peer review.

The final pdf should be no larger than 5 MB.
If file size cannot be reduced to less than 10 MB, the author should contact the IJP Editorial Office for instructions ([email protected]).

Required Information:
Name, affiliation, email, telephone and fax numbers and mail address information for one corresponding author.
This must be the same person nominated as corresponding author on the manuscript title page and this person must submit the manuscript on-line.
The corresponding author, through the web access, is responsible for actions with respect to each paper. E-mail prompts will be delivered only to the corresponding author. Articles can also be tracked by the corresponding author via the online system.
Name and affiliations of all other authors.
Cover letter is mandatory for all submissions and should address the novelty, significance of the work.
Note: Current Opinions and Invited Reviews are by invitation only).

Order of files

Manuscript should contain (in order) Title, Authors and addresses, Corresponding Author and address, Abstract, Keywords. In numbered sections: 1. Introduction; 2. Materials and methods; 3. Results; 4. Discussion; then Acknowledgements; References; Legends to Figures. Tables with their legends (in separate or combined files, numbered, in order). Figures (in separate files); preferred formats: JPEG, EPS or PDF. Supplementary and multimedia files.

Format

The preferred format for the text is Microsoft Word. The title page, abstract and text should be formatted with line numbers. The manuscript should be formatted to A4 size paper, in English, double spaced and with 2 cm margins.

Further journal requirements

During submission you will also have to:

Confirm that all authors have read the manuscript and accept responsibility for its contents.
Agree to an ′ Ethics in Publishing′ document.

Suggesting reviewers
Please submit the names and institutional e-mail addresses of several potential reviewers.

You should not suggest reviewers who are colleagues, or who have co-authored or collaborated with you during the last three years. Editors do not invite reviewers who have potential competing interests with the authors. Further, in order to provide a broad and balanced assessment of the work, and ensure scientific rigor, please suggest diverse candidate reviewers who are located in different countries/regions from the author group. Also consider other diversity attributes e.g. gender, race and ethnicity, career stage, etc. Finally, you should not include existing members of the journal's editorial team, of whom the journal are already aware.

Note: the editor decides whether or not to invite your suggested reviewers.

Additional information

Statistical Analysis

Authors should seek advice on data analysis prior to submission. A commentary (Morrison, D.A., 2002. How to improve statistical analysis in parasitology research publications. Int. J. Parasitol. 32, 1065-1070) may also be consulted. Papers may be sent to referees with particular expertise in statistics and modelling.

Preparation

Peer review

This journal operates a single anonymized review process. All contributions will be initially assessed by the editor for suitability for the journal. Papers deemed suitable are then typically sent to a minimum of two independent expert reviewers to assess the scientific quality of the paper. The Editor is responsible for the final decision regarding acceptance or rejection of articles. The Editor's decision is final. Editors are not involved in decisions about papers which they have written themselves or have been written by family members or colleagues or which relate to products or services in which the editor has an interest. Any such submission is subject to all of the journal's usual procedures, with peer review handled independently of the relevant editor and their research groups. More information on types of peer review.

Use of word processing software
It is important that the file be saved in the native format of the word processor used. The text should be in single-column format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. In particular, do not use the word processor's options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts, superscripts etc. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns. The electronic text should be prepared in a way very similar to that of conventional manuscripts (see also the Guide to Publishing with Elsevier). Note that source files of figures, tables and text graphics will be required whether or not you embed your figures in the text. See also the section on Electronic artwork.
To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spell-check' and 'grammar-check' functions of your word processor.

Article structure

Subdivision - numbered sections
Divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections (only in sections 2 and 3) should be numbered 2.1 (then 2.1.1, 2.1.2, ...), 2.2, etc. (the abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this numbering also for internal cross-referencing: do not just refer to 'the text'. Any subsection may be given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line.

Introduction
State the objectives of the work and provide an adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature survey or a summary of the results.

Material and methods
Provide sufficient details to allow the work to be reproduced by an independent researcher. Methods that are already published should be summarized, and indicated by a reference. If quoting directly from a previously published method, use quotation marks and also cite the source. Any modifications to existing methods should also be described.

A Theory section should extend, not repeat, the background to the article already dealt with in the Introduction and lay the foundation for further work. In contrast, a Calculation section represents a practical development from a theoretical basis.

Results
Results should be clear and concise.

Discussion
This should explore the significance of the results of the work, not repeat them. A combined Results and Discussion section is often appropriate, however it is not a standard format for this journal; reasons for using the combined format must be provided in the submission cover letter. Avoid extensive citations and discussion of published literature.

Appendices
This journal does not publish appendices. Information should be included within the manuscript text or provided as supplementary material. If there is more than one appendix, they should be identified as A, B, etc. Formulae and equations should be given separate numbering: Eq. (A.1), Eq. (A.2), etc.; in a subsequent section, Eq. (B.1) and so on.

Essential title page information

Title. Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae where possible.
Author names and affiliations. Please clearly indicate the given name(s) and family name(s) of each author and check that all names are accurately spelled. You can add your name between parentheses in your own script behind the English transliteration. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and, if available, the e-mail address of each author.
Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also post-publication. This responsibility includes answering any future queries about Methodology and Materials. Ensure that the e-mail address is given and that contact details are kept up to date by the corresponding author.
Present/permanent address. If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.

Highlights

Highlights are mandatory for this journal as they help increase the discoverability of your article via search engines. They consist of a short collection of bullet points that capture the novel results of your research as well as new methods that were used during the study (if any). Please have a look at the example Highlights.

Highlights should be submitted in a separate editable file in the online submission system. Please use 'Highlights' in the file name and include 3 to 5 bullet points (maximum 85 characters, including spaces, per bullet point).

Abstract

A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, References should be avoided, but if essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Also, non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.

Graphical abstract

Authors should supply a thumbnail image for all types of manuscripts. Articles accepted for publication will be featured via a copy of the article abstract together with a thumbnail image to direct people to the manuscript. An image that serves to illustrate the theme of the paper is desired. It can be a figure from the paper or a related image that typifies the content of the paper. Authors must supply the thumbnail image separately as an electronic file. The maximum final dimensions of the thumbnail image will be 5 cm x 5 cm. Please consider readability after reduction, especially if using one of the figures from the article itself.

Keywords

Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 6 keywords, using UK spelling and avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, "and", "of"). Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly established in the field may be eligible. These keywords will be used for indexing purposes.

Abbreviations

Avoid the use of abbreviations, but if necessary, authors should use the list (click here to see list) as a guide to those terms that need not be given in full, or define each abbreviation on first use.

Acknowledgements

Authors should provide confirmation of consent from persons acknowledged in manuscripts eg. personal communications. This can be provided in a covering letter or by e-mail to the editorial office.

Formatting of funding sources
List funding sources in this standard way to facilitate compliance to funder's requirements:

Funding: This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [grant numbers xxxx, yyyy]; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA [grant number zzzz]; and the United States Institutes of Peace [grant number aaaa].

It is not necessary to include detailed descriptions on the program or type of grants and awards. When funding is from a block grant or other resources available to a university, college, or other research institution, submit the name of the institute or organization that provided the funding.

If no funding has been provided for the research, it is recommended to include the following sentence:

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Units
Follow internationally accepted rules and conventions: use the international system of units (SI). If other units are mentioned, please give their equivalent in SI.

Math formulae
Please submit math equations as editable text and not as images. Present simple formulae in line with normal text where possible and use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line for small fractional terms, e.g., X/Y. In principle, variables are to be presented in italics. Powers of e are often more conveniently denoted by exp. Number consecutively any equations that have to be displayed separately from the text (if referred to explicitly in the text).

Footnotes

Footnotes should only be used in tables.
Table footnotes
Indicate each footnote in a table with a superscript lowercase letter.

Artwork

Electronic artwork
General points
• Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork.
• Embed the used fonts if the application provides that option.
• Aim to use the following fonts in your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Times New Roman, Symbol, or use fonts that look similar.
• Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
• Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files.
• Provide captions to illustrations separately.
• Size the illustrations close to the desired dimensions of the published version.
• Submit each illustration as a separate file.
• Ensure that color images are accessible to all, including those with impaired color vision.

A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available.
You are urged to visit this site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.
Formats
If your electronic artwork is created in a Microsoft Office application (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) then please supply 'as is' in the native document format.
Regardless of the application used other than Microsoft Office, when your electronic artwork is finalized, please 'Save as' or convert the images to one of the following formats (note the resolution requirements for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below):
EPS (or PDF): Vector drawings, embed all used fonts.
TIFF (or JPEG): Color or grayscale photographs (halftones), keep to a minimum of 300 dpi.
TIFF (or JPEG): Bitmapped (pure black & white pixels) line drawings, keep to a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF (or JPEG): Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (color or grayscale), keep to a minimum of 500 dpi.
Please do not:
• Supply files that are optimized for screen use (e.g., GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); these typically have a low number of pixels and limited set of colors;
• Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.

Color artwork
Illustrations of all kinds should be listed together under ′ Legend to Figures′ numbered consecutively and their positions indicated in the text. Figures should be high quality, of an adequate size to ensure clarity, and letters and numbers should be at least 4 mm in height. Magnification should be indicated by inclusion of a scale bar in the figure and its value should be indicated on the figure or in the legend. Each figure should be obvious from its file name. If images have been altered, describe the nature of changes made and software used. This information should be included in the ′ Materials and methods′ section of the manuscript.

In general, figures will be printed and appear on electronic versions of papers in black and white. Where appropriate, colour figures can be provided on the electronic version, but black and white in the printed version. In this instance, authors are required to submit both colour and high quality black and white versions of figures. Authors should note that the figure legend will be the same in both versions. While there is no charge for colour in electronic versions, there generally is a fee for printed colour figures. Please contact the Editorial Office for the current policy.

Figure captions
Ensure that each illustration has a caption. Supply captions separately, not attached to the figure. A caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum but explain all symbols and abbreviations used.

Tables

Please submit tables as editable text and not as images. Tables can be placed either next to the relevant text in the article, or on separate page(s) at the end. Number tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text and place any table notes below the table body. Be sparing in the use of tables and ensure that the data presented in them do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article. Please avoid using vertical rules and shading in table cells.

References

Correct references are the responsibility of the author. Please ensure that all references cited in the text are included in the reference list.

References in the text start with the name of the author(s), followed by the publication date in brackets, e.g. 'Combes (2001) has shown the importance of ...', or '... has been described (Combes, 2001; Kumar et al., 2004) ...', using date order. More than one paper from the same author in the same year must be identified by the letters a, b, c, etc., placed after the year of publication. In the text, when referring to a work by two authors, use (Sangster and Dobson, 2002) or for more than two authors, the name of the first author should be given followed by et al. There is an output style available for EndNote. Please refer to the EndNote website or contact the Editorial Office for a copy of this style file.

The references in the reference list should be in alphabetical order. References to journal articles should contain names and initials of all author(s), year of publication, article title, abbreviation of the name of the journal, volume number and page numbers and the article DOI.

Unpublished data, personal communications and papers ′ in preparation′ or ′ submitted′ , abstracts (whether published or not) and theses should not be listed in the references (but may be incorporated at the appropriate place in the text); work "in press" may be listed only if it has been accepted for publication. Personal communications must be accompanied by a letter or e-mail from the named person(s) giving permission to quote such information. References to books should also include the title (of series and volume), initials and names of the editor(s) and publisher and place of publication.

Examples:

Combes, C., 2001. Parasitism. The ecology and evolution of intimate interactions. University of Chicago Press, Chicago and London.

Kumar, N., Cha, G., Pineda, F., Maciel, J., Haddad, D., Bhattacharyya, M.K., Nagayasu, E., 2004. Molecular complexity of sexual development and gene regulation in Plasmodium falciparum. Int. J. Parasitol. 34, 1451-1458.

Pettersson, E.U., Ljunggren, E.L., Morrison, D.A., Mattsson, J.G., in press. Functional analysis and localisation of a delta-class glutathione S-transferase from Sarcoptes scabiei. Int. J. Parasitol.

Sangster, N.C., Dobson, R.J., 2002. Anthelmintic resistance. In: Lee, D.L. (Ed.), The biology of nematodes. Taylor and Francis, London and New York, pp. 531-567.

Citation in text
Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice versa). Any references cited in the abstract must be given in full. Unpublished results and personal communications are not recommended in the reference list, but may be mentioned in the text. If these references are included in the reference list they should follow the standard reference style of the journal and should include a substitution of the publication date with either 'Unpublished results' or 'Personal communication'. Citation of a reference as 'in press' implies that the item has been accepted for publication.

Web references
As a minimum, the full URL should be given and the date when the reference was last accessed. Any further information, if known (DOI, author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.), should also be given. Web references to published articles can be included in the reference list. Other web references such as software programs, databases and individual web pages, should have the reference details included at the appropriate place within the text.

Data references
This journal encourages you to cite underlying or relevant datasets in your manuscript by citing them in your text and including a data reference in your Reference List. Data references should include the following elements: author name(s), dataset title, data repository, version (where available), year, and global persistent identifier. Add [dataset] immediately before the reference so we can properly identify it as a data reference. The [dataset] identifier will not appear in your published article.

[dataset] Oguro, M., Imahiro, S., Saito, S., Nakashizuka, T., 2015. Mortality data for Japanese oak wilt disease and surrounding forest compositions. Mendeley Data, v1. http://dx.doi.org/10.17632/xwj98nb39r.1.

Preprint references
Where a preprint has subsequently become available as a peer-reviewed publication, the formal publication should be used as the reference. If there are preprints that are central to your work or that cover crucial developments in the topic, but are not yet formally published, these may be referenced. Preprints should be clearly marked as such, for example by including the word preprint, or the name of the preprint server, as part of the reference. The preprint DOI should also be provided.

References in a special issue
Please ensure that the words 'this issue' are added to any references in the list (and any citations in the text) to other articles in the same Special Issue.

Reference management software
Most Elsevier journals have their reference template available in many of the most popular reference management software products. These include all products that support Citation Style Language styles, such as Mendeley. Using citation plug-ins from these products, authors only need to select the appropriate journal template when preparing their article, after which citations and bibliographies will be automatically formatted in the journal's style. If no template is yet available for this journal, please follow the format of the sample references and citations as shown in this Guide. If you use reference management software, please ensure that you remove all field codes before submitting the electronic manuscript. More information on how to remove field codes from different reference management software.

Journal abbreviations source
Journal names should be abbreviated according to the NLM catalogue: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/serials/lji.html.

Video

Elsevier accepts video material and animation sequences to support and enhance your scientific research. Authors who have video or animation files that they wish to submit with their article are strongly encouraged to include links to these within the body of the article. This can be done in the same way as a figure or table by referring to the video or animation content and noting in the body text where it should be placed. All submitted files should be properly labeled so that they directly relate to the video file's content. In order to ensure that your video or animation material is directly usable, please provide the file in one of our recommended file formats with a preferred maximum size of 150 MB per file, 1 GB in total. Video and animation files supplied will be published online in the electronic version of your article in Elsevier Web products, including ScienceDirect. Please supply 'stills' with your files: you can choose any frame from the video or animation or make a separate image. These will be used instead of standard icons and will personalize the link to your video data. For more detailed instructions please visit our video instruction pages. Note: since video and animation cannot be embedded in the print version of the journal, please provide text for both the electronic and the print version for the portions of the article that refer to this content.

Data visualization

Include interactive data visualizations in your publication and let your readers interact and engage more closely with your research. Follow the instructions here to find out about available data visualization options and how to include them with your article.

Supplementary data

For non-integrated supplementary files, a footnote should be typed on the title page of the manuscript: ′ Note: Supplementary data associated with this article′ . A copy of supplementary material should be submitted at the same time as the manuscript. Preferred formats are Microsoft Office for text or graphics and avi for movie files. Maximum size of files is 10 MB. If files cannot be reduced to 10MB, authors should contact the IJP Editorial Office ([email protected])

Research data

This journal encourages and enables you to share data that supports your research publication where appropriate, and enables you to interlink the data with your published articles. Research data refers to the results of observations or experimentation that validate research findings, which may also include software, code, models, algorithms, protocols, methods and other useful materials related to the project.

Below are a number of ways in which you can associate data with your article or make a statement about the availability of your data when submitting your manuscript. If you are sharing data in one of these ways, you are encouraged to cite the data in your manuscript and reference list. Please refer to the "References" section for more information about data citation. For more information on depositing, sharing and using research data and other relevant research materials, visit the research data page.

Data linking
If you have made your research data available in a data repository, you can link your article directly to the dataset. Elsevier collaborates with a number of repositories to link articles on ScienceDirect with relevant repositories, giving readers access to underlying data that gives them a better understanding of the research described.

There are different ways to link your datasets to your article. When available, you can directly link your dataset to your article by providing the relevant information in the submission system. For more information, visit the database linking page.

For supported data repositories a repository banner will automatically appear next to your published article on ScienceDirect.

In addition, you can link to relevant data or entities through identifiers within the text of your manuscript, using the following format: Database: xxxx (e.g., TAIR: AT1G01020; CCDC: 734053; PDB: 1XFN).

Data statement
To foster transparency, we encourage you to state the availability of your data in your submission. This may be a requirement of your funding body or institution. If your data is unavailable to access or unsuitable to post, you will have the opportunity to indicate why during the submission process, for example by stating that the research data is confidential. The statement will appear with your published article on ScienceDirect. For more information, visit the Data Statement page.

After acceptance

Online proof correction

To ensure a fast publication process of the article, we kindly ask authors to provide us with their proof corrections within two days. Corresponding authors will receive an e-mail with a link to our online proofing system, allowing annotation and correction of proofs online. The environment is similar to MS Word: in addition to editing text, you can also comment on figures/tables and answer questions from the Copy Editor. Web-based proofing provides a faster and less error-prone process by allowing you to directly type your corrections, eliminating the potential introduction of errors.
If preferred, you can still choose to annotate and upload your edits on the PDF version. All instructions for proofing will be given in the e-mail we send to authors, including alternative methods to the online version and PDF.
We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately. Please use this proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables and figures. Significant changes to the article as accepted for publication will only be considered at this stage with permission from the Editor. It is important to ensure that all corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Please check carefully before replying, as inclusion of any subsequent corrections cannot be guaranteed. Proofreading is solely your responsibility.

Offprints

The corresponding author will, at no cost, receive a customized Share Link providing 50 days free access to the final published version of the article on ScienceDirect. The Share Link can be used for sharing the article via any communication channel, including email and social media. For an extra charge, paper offprints can be ordered via the offprint order form which is sent once the article is accepted for publication. Corresponding authors who have published their article gold open access do not receive a Share Link as their final published version of the article is available open access on ScienceDirect and can be shared through the article DOI link.

Additional information

Submission of sequence data to databases

Novel nucleotide or protein sequence data must be deposited in the GenBank™ , EMBL or DDBJ databases and an accession number obtained before the paper can be accepted for publication. Submission to any one of the collaborating databanks is sufficient to ensure entry in all. The accession number should be included as a footnote on the title page of the manuscript: 'Note: Nucleotide sequence data reported in this paper are available in the GenBank™ , EMBL and DDBJ databases under the accession number(s)'. If requested the database will withhold release of data until publication. The usual method for submitting sequence data is by the World Wide Web to either GenBank (via BankIt: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/BankIt/), EMBL (via WebIn: http://www.ebi.ac.uk/subs/allsubs.html) or to DDBJ (via SAKURA: http://sakura.ddbj.nig.ac.jp/). Special types of submissions, such as genomes, bulk submissions, segmented sets, and population/phylogenetic/mutation studies, can be more easily prepared with the Sequin programme (available from the above Web sites). Authors are encouraged by the databases to update their entries as the need arises.

GenBank/DNA sequence linking. In order for automatic links to be made between papers and GenBank, authors should type the accession number in bold, underlined text. Letters in the accession number should always be capitalised. (See the example). When published they will appear in normal type.

Example: ′ GenBank accession nos. AI631510, AI631511, AI632198, and BF223228), a B-cell tumor from a chronic lymphatic leukemia (GenBank accession no. BE675048), and a T-cell lymphoma (GenBank accession no. AA361117)′ .

Additionally, any multiple alignments of nucleotide or protein data must be submitted to a recognised database and must also receive a unique accession number. The accession number can appear in the text in the relevant section of the Results, as: ′ Alignment files are available by anonymous FTP from FTP.EBI.AC.UK in directory/pub/databases/embl/align or via the EMBLALIGN database via SRS at http://srs.ebi.ac.uk; under accession(s)′ . The usual method for submitting alignments is by the World Wide Web to the European Bioinformatics Institute (via Webin-Align: http://www.ebi.ac.uk). Microarray data, in MIAME-compliant format, should be submitted to ArrayExpress (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/arrayexpress/) or GEO (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/). Accession identifiers relating to the data should be provided in the manuscript text.

Policy on bioinformatics papers. In silico analysis: The following guidelines apply to papers that exclusively use in silico analysis or rely heavily on this approach for analysis and conclusions. Such papers should address a significant biological issue or issues. Bioinformatic data should be supported by novel or published biological data. Work would typically use information from a number of databases and even from a number of parasite or host species and use a number of analytical methods. Types of ′ metaanalysis′ are encouraged either across a wide range of parasites or, say, at a number of points in a metabolic or signalling pathway or an immune cascade. In silico analysis may be especially suitable for review articles.


Guidelines for the reporting of protein identifications using mass spectrometry: The following information should be provided for protein or peptide identifications using mass spectrometry:

1. The program, and version number, used to create peak lists and the parameters used in the creation of the list.
2. The program, and version number, of the program used for database searching. Parameters used for searching should be specified, including, but not limited to, precursor-ion mass tolerance, fragment-ion mass tolerance, modifications allowed for, missed cleavages and enzymes used in protein cleavage.
3. The name and version number of the sequence database used in searches. If a custom-made database is used then complete information on the origin of the sequences and database size should be disclosed. Given the dependence of scoring on database size, the use of a small database, or one excluding contaminants, should be justified. 4. A short description of the methods use to interpret the significance of search results, including any statistical analysis, confidence thresholds and other values specific to judging the certainty of the identification.
5. For large-scale experiments a false-positive determination should be reported. This may be the result of randomized database searches or other approaches.
6. Each protein identification should include the accession number, score generated by the search algorithm used, sequence coverage and the number of unique peptide sequences assigned in the protein identification.
7. Single peptide identifications should include an annotated MS/MS spectrum showing fragment assignments together with the peptide sequence, precursor mass, charge and error.
8. Identifications arising from peptide mass fingerprinting should include an annotated mass spectrum. The number of matched peaks, the number of unmatched peaks and the sequence coverage should also be reported along with all parameters and thresholds used to analyse the data. This includes mass accuracy, resolution, calibration methods, contaminant exclusions along with the scoring scheme used and measure of the false-positive rate.

Taxonomic publications. Taxonomic papers are considered only if they are of broad interest, going beyond purely morphological descriptions which are best suited to specialist journals. Examples of contributions of broader interest include description of new taxa which do not fit within accepted classifications, analyses which are of phylogenetic or biogeographic significance employing a range of analysis techniques or which include information on host-parasite relationships or deleterious effects on the host. Presentations which include description of new species should conform to a prescribed pattern as follows: where the new species name is written for the first time, ′ n.sp′ should succeed it. The name should be followed by: (1) a description, in telegraphic style, i.e. without articles and verbs, of the specific characters; accompanied by illustrations depicting the main differentiating characters; (2) a diagnosis, emphasising the characters of the new species or genus; (3) the details of type material, (host, location in host, geographic locality, collector, place of deposition and registration). Synopses (a brief summary of a small taxonomic group of parasites) and checklists (a list of parasites from particular hosts in particular localities) are acceptable, provided species named are critically evaluated, identifications are sound and the results are of broad scientific interest. Authors byshould comply with the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.


Ecological Papers. Specimens upon which new host or locality records are based must be deposited in a museum or recognised collection to be available for further study and registration numbers must be cited.

Author inquiries



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