Guide for Authors
The
European Journal of Pharmacology publishes full-length papers on the mechanisms of action
of chemical substances affecting biological systems. The journal also considers short reviews (not exceeding 12 pages in print) intended
to debate recent advances in rapidly developing fields that are within its scope.
Full-length papers are grouped under the following
headings: Behavioral pharmacology, Neuropharmacology and analgesia, Cardiovascular pharmacology, Pulmonary, gastrointestinal and urogenital
pharmacology, Endocrine pharmacology, Immunopharmacology and inflammation, and Molecular and cellular pharmacology.
Manuscripts
submitted to the journal are accepted on the understanding that they are subject to editorial review.
Types of paper
The journal publishes the following article types:
1. Research Paper
2. Review Article
Please
note that the journal no longer accepts submission of Rapid Communications and Short Communications.
Ethics in Publishing
For information
on Ethics in Publishing and Ethical guidelines for journal publication see
http://www.elsevier.com/publishingethics and
http://www.elsevier.com/ethicalguidelines.
Conflict of interest
All
authors are requested to disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest including any financial, personal or other relationships
with other people or organizations within three years of beginning the submitted work that could inappropriately influence, or be perceived
to influence, their work. See also
http://www.elsevier.com/conflictsofinterest.
Submission declaration
Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except
in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), 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carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, without
the written consent of the copyright-holder.
Copyright
Upon acceptance
of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' (for more information on this and copyright see
http://www.elsevier.com/copyright).
Acceptance of the agreement will ensure the widest possible dissemination of information. 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 (please consult
http://www.elsevier.com/permissions). 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: please consult
http://www.elsevier.com/permissions.
Retained author rights
As an author you (or your employer or institution) retain certain rights; for details
you are referred to:
http://www.elsevier.com/authorsrights.
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 paper for publication. If the funding source(s) had no such
involvement then this should be stated. Please see
http://www.elsevier.com/funding.
Funding body agreements and policies
Elsevier has established agreements and developed policies to allow authors whose
articles appear in journals published by Elsevier, to comply with potential manuscript archiving requirements as specified as conditions
of their grant awards. To learn more about existing agreements and policies please visit
http://www.elsevier.com/fundingbodies.
Language and language services
Please write your text in good English (American or British usage is accepted,
but not a mixture of these). Authors who require information about language editing and copyediting services pre- and post-submission
please visit
http://www.elsevier.com/languagepolishing or our customer support site at
http://epsupport.elsevier.com
for more information. Please note Elsevier neither endorses nor takes responsibility for any products, goods or services offered by outside
vendors through our services or in any advertising. For more information please refer to our Terms & Conditions:
http://www.elsevier.com/termsandconditions.
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.
Additional information
Please make sure to adhere to the following word limits:
Abstract: max. 250 words
Introduction: max. 500 words
Discussion: max. 1500 words
Use of wordprocessing software
It is important that the file be saved
in the native format of the wordprocessor 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 wordprocessor's
options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts, superscripts etc. Do not embed "graphically
designed" equations or tables, but prepare these using the wordprocessor's facility. 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:
http://www.elsevier.com/guidepublication). Do not import the figures into the text file but, instead, indicate
their approximate locations directly in the electronic text and on the manuscript. See also the section on Electronic illustrations.
To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the "spell-check" and "grammar-check" functions of your wordprocessor.
Article structure
Subdivision - numbered sections
Divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered 1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2, ...), 1.2,
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.
Please make sure to limit
the length of this paragraph to max. 500 words.
Material and methods
Provide sufficient detail to allow the work to be reproduced. Methods already published should be indicated by a reference: only
relevant modifications should be described.
Results
Results should
be clear and concise.
Discussion
This should explore the significance
of the results of the work, not repeat them. Avoid extensive citations and discussion of published literature. Please make sure to limit
the length of this paragraph to max. 1500 words.
Conclusions
The main
conclusions of the study may be presented in a short Conclusions section, which may stand alone or form a subsection of a Discussion
section.
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.
Where the family name may be ambiguous (e.g., a double name), please indicate this clearly.
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.
Ensure that telephone
and fax numbers (with country and area code) are provided in addition to the e-mail address and the complete postal address.
•
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.
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.
Keywords
Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 6 keywords, using American spelling and nomenclature,
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
Abbreviations are a hindrance for the reader. Use as few abbreviations as possible and write
out names of compounds, receptors, etc., in full throughout the text of the manuscript, with the exceptions given
HERE.
Unnecessary abbreviations. Unnecessary abbreviations such as AP, TEP, TFT, CER, nAc and LTFSE (for
afterpotential, transepithelial potential, Tail-flick test, cold-exposed rats, nucleus accumbens and sympatho-excitatory lateral tegmental
field) are
not acceptable.
Receptor abbreviations. Receptor abbreviations such as
βAR, mAChR, BZR for
β-adrenoceptor, muscarinic receptor, benzodiazepine receptor, respectively, should
not be used. For receptors avoid
the abbreviation "R". With receptor subtypes mention the full receptor name throughout the manuscript e.g., adenosine A
1 receptor,
dopamine D
2 receptor, melanocortin MC
3 receptor, endothelin ET
A receptor.
Generic names.
Generic names should
not be abbreviated. For example, AMP, HAL, HIST, RAMH, TAM, SST, for amphetamine, haloperidol, histamine,
(R)-a -methylhistamine, tamoxifen, somatostatin, are not accepted. Abbreviations such as (e.g., NA, DA, ACh, ET for noradrenaline, dopamine,
acetylcholine, endothelin, should
not be used.
Abbreviations which have come to replace the full term. Abbreviations
which have come to replace the full term (e.g., GABA, DOPA, EDRF, 5HT, for γ-aminobutyric acid, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine, endothelium-derived
relaxing factor, 5-hydroxytryptamine) may be used, provided the term is spelled out in the abstract and in the body of the manuscript
the first time the abbreviation is used.
Unwieldy chemical names. Unwieldy chemical names may be abbreviated. For example,
8-OH-DPAT, DOI, DTG, BAPTA, for 8-hydroxy-2-(di-
n-propylamino)tetralin, 1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenyl)-aminopropane, 1,3-di(2-tolyl)-guanidine,
1,2-bis(
o-aminophenoxy)ethane-
N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid, are acceptable; however, the full chemical name should be
given once in the abstract and in the body of the manuscript, followed in both cases by the abbreviation.
Code names. Code
names may be used, but the full chemical name should be given in the abstract and in the text.
Authors not conforming to these
demands will have their manuscripts returned for correction, with delayed publication as the result.
Acknowledgements
Collate acknowledgements in a separate section at the end of the article before the references
and do not, therefore, include them on the title page, as a footnote to the title or otherwise. List here those individuals who provided
help during the research (e.g., providing language help, writing assistance or proof reading the article, etc.).
Nomenclature and Units
Only generic and chemical names of drugs should be used, although a proprietary equivalent
may be indicated once, in parentheses. The nomenclature of chemical substances should be consistent, clear and unambiguous, and should
conform to the usage of the American Chemical Society and the convention recommended by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry
(IUPAC,
http://www.iupac.org/general/FAQs/ns.html) When in doubt, writers should consult the indexes of Chemical Abstracts;
the various reports and pamphlets of the American Chemical Society Committee on Nomenclature, Spelling and Pronunciation; the recommendations
of the IUBMB (
http://www.chem.qmul.ac.uk/iubmb) When drugs which are mixtures of stereoisomers are used, the fact that they
have a composite nature and the implication of this for interpretation of the data and drawing of conclusions should be made clear. The
use of the appropriate prefix is essential. Use of the generic name alone without a prefix would be taken to refer to agents with no
stereoisomers. The nomenclature of receptors and their subtypes and of ion channels should conform to NCIUPHAR (
http://www.iuphar.org/nciuphar.html)
he trivial name of enzymes may be used in the text, but the systematic name and classification number according to Enzyme Nomenclature
of the NC-IUBMB (
http://www.chem.qmul.ac.uk/iubmb/enzyme/), rev. edn. (Academic Press, New York, NY, 1984) should be quoted
the first time an enzyme is mentioned.
Accession numbers
Accession numbers
are unique identifiers in bioinformatics allocated to nucleotide and protein sequences to allow tracking of different versions of that
sequence record and the associated sequence in a data repository [e.g., databases at the National Center for Biotechnical Information
(NCBI) at the National Library of Medicine ('GenBank') and the Worldwide Protein Data Bank]. There are different types of accession numbers
in use based on the type of sequence cited, each of which uses a different coding. Authors should explicitly mention the
type of
accession number together with the actual number, bearing in mind that an error in a letter or number can result in a dead link
in the online version of the article. Please use the following format: accession number type ID: xxxx (e.g., MMDB ID: 12345; PDB ID:
1TUP). Note that in the final version of the
electronic copy, accession numbers will be linked to the appropriate database,
enabling readers to go directly to that source from the article.
Math formulae
Present simple formulae in the line of 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 be used sparingly. Number them consecutively throughout the article, using superscript
Arabic numbers. Many wordprocessors build footnotes into the text, and this feature may be used. Should this not be the case, indicate
the position of footnotes in the text and present the footnotes themselves separately at the end of the article. Do not include footnotes
in the Reference list.
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.
• Save text in illustrations as "graphics"
or enclose the font.
• Only use the following fonts in your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Times, Symbol.
• Number
the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
• Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files.
•
Provide captions to illustrations separately.
• Produce images near to the desired size of the printed version.
• Submit
each figure as a separate file.
A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available on our website:
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions
You are urged to visit this site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.
Formats
Regardless
of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalised, 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: Vector drawings.
Embed the font or save the text as "graphics".
TIFF: color or grayscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi.
TIFF: Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF: Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (color or grayscale): a
minimum of 500 dpi is required.
DOC, XLS or PPT: If your electronic artwork is created in any of these Microsoft Office applications
please supply "as is".
Please do not:
• Supply embedded graphics in your wordprocessor (spreadsheet, presentation)
document;
• Supply files that are optimised for screen use (like GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low;
•
Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.
Color artwork
Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF, EPS or MS Office
files) and with the correct resolution. If, together with your accepted article, you submit usable color figures then Elsevier will ensure,
at no additional charge, that these figures will appear in color on the Web (e.g., ScienceDirect and other sites) regardless of whether
or not these illustrations are reproduced in color in the printed version.
For color reproduction in print, you will receive information
regarding the costs from Elsevier after receipt of your accepted article. Please indicate your preference for color in print or on
the Web only. For further information on the preparation of electronic artwork, please see
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions.
Please note: Because of technical complications which can arise by converting color figures to "gray scale" (for the printed version
should you not opt for color in print) please submit in addition usable black and white versions of all the color illustrations.
The use of color for graphics or tables is strongly discouraged (exceptions are made for invited reviews).
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
Number tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text. Place footnotes to tables below the
table body and indicate them with superscript lowercase letters. Avoid vertical rules. Be sparing in the use of tables and ensure that
the data presented in tables do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article.
References
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. Any further information, if known (DOI, author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.),
should also be given. Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the reference list) under a different heading if desired,
or can be included in the reference list.
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 Style
Text: All citations
in the text should refer to:
1.
Single author: the author's name (without initials, unless there is ambiguity) and the year
of publication;
2.
Two authors: both authors' names and the year of publication;
3.
Three or more authors:
first author's name followed by "et al." and the year of publication.
Citations may be made directly (or parenthetically). Groups
of references should be listed first alphabetically, then chronologically.
Examples: "as demonstrated (Allan, 1996a, 1996b, 1999;
Allan and Jones, 1995). Kramer et al. (2000) have recently shown ...."
List: Authors are responsible for the accuracy and
completeness of their references as these will not be checked by the editorial office. References should be listed alphabetically (see
sample references). Articles written by the same first author with different second authors should be listed according to the first author's
surname and then according to the second author's surname. Articles written by the same first author with more than one co-author should
be listed alphabetically according to the first author's surname and then according to the year of publication. Two or more references
to the same first author with the same publication year should have a, b, c etc. suffixed to the year indicating the alphabetical order
of the second or third author, etc.
References to books should include the title and name and city of the publisher. References
in the text should be cited by the author's name(s) and the year of publication. Examples: De Groat (1990) or Downie and Larsson (1990)
and (De Groat, 1990; Downie and Larsson, 1990; Stoof and Kebabian, 1984). For three or more authors the name of the first author followed
by et al. should be used. Examples: Hicks et al. (1988) and (Hicks et al., 1988, 1989; Seeman et al., 1990, 1991a,b,c).
Sample references
Periodicals:
Barnes, P.J., Karin, M., 1997. Nuclear factor-k β -a pivotal transcription factor in chronic inflammatory
diseases. N. Engl. J. Med 336, 1066 -1071. Paivio, A., Jansen, B., Becker, L.J., 1975. Comparisons through the mind's eye. Cognition
37, 635-647.
Books:
Strunk, W., White, E.B., 1979. The Elements of Style, third ed. Macmillan, New York, NY. Gurman,
A.S., Kniskern, D.P., 1981. Family therapy outcome research: knowns and unknowns. In: Gurman, A.S., Kniskern, D.P. (Eds.), Handbook of
Family Therapy. Brunner/Maazel, New York, NY, pp. 742-775.
Order of references:
De Groat, W., 1990.
Maggi, C.A.,
1988.
Maggi, C.A., Lecci, A., 1987
Maggi, C.A., Meli, A., 1986
Maggi, C.A., Santicoli, P., Meli, A., 1984.
Magi,
C.A., Giuliani, S., Patacchini, R., Rovero, P., Giachetti, A., Meli, A., 1989a.
Maggi, C.A., Patacchini, R., Rovero, P., Giachetti,
A., Meli, A., 1989b.
Maggi, C.A., Guiliani, S., Patacchini, R., Santicoli, P., Giachetti, A., Meli, A., 1990
Monsma Jr., F.J.,
1989
Van der Giessen, A., 1990.
Journal abbreviations source
Journal names should be abbreviated according to
Index Medicus journal abbreviations:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/serials/lji.html;
List of serial title word abbreviations:
http://www.issn.org/2-22661-LTWA-online.php;
CAS (Chemical Abstracts Service):
http://www.cas.org/sent.html.
Supplementary material
Elsevier
accepts electronic supplementary material to support and enhance your scientific research. Supplementary files offer the author additional
possibilities to publish supporting applications, movies, animation sequences, high-resolution images, background datasets, sound clips
and more. Supplementary files supplied will be published online alongside the electronic version of your article in Elsevier Web products,
including ScienceDirect:
http://www.sciencedirect.com. In order to ensure that your submitted material is directly usable,
please ensure that data are provided in one of our recommended file formats. Authors should submit the material in electronic format
together with the article and supply a concise and descriptive caption for each file. Video files: please supply 'stills' with your files:
you can choose any frame from the video or make a separate image. These will be used instead of standard icons and will personalize the
link to your supplementary information. For more detailed instructions please visit our artwork instruction pages at
http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions.
Submission checklist
It is hoped that this list will be useful during the final checking of an article prior to sending it to the journal's Editor for review. Please consult this Guide for Authors for further details of any item.
Ensure
that the following items are present:
One Author designated as corresponding Author:
• E-mail address
• Full
postal address
• Telephone and fax numbers
All necessary files have been uploaded
• Keywords
• All figure
captions
• All tables (including title, description, footnotes)
Further considerations
• Manuscript has been "spellchecked"
and "grammar-checked"
• References are in the correct format for this journal
• 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 Web)
• Color figures are clearly marked as being intended for color reproduction on the Web (free of charge)
and in print or to be reproduced in color on the Web (free of charge) and in black-and-white in print
• If only color on the
Web is required, black and white versions of the figures are also supplied for printing purposes
For any further information please
visit our customer support site at
http://epsupport.elsevier.com.
Use of the Digital Object Identifier
The Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
may be used to cite and link to electronic documents. The DOI consists of a unique alpha-numeric character string which is assigned to
a document by the publisher upon the initial electronic publication. The assigned DOI never changes. Therefore, it is an ideal medium
for citing a document, particularly 'Articles in press' because they have not yet received their full bibliographic information. The
correct format for citing a DOI is shown as follows (example taken from a document in the journal
Physics Letters B):
doi:10.1016/j.physletb.2003.10.071
When you use the DOI to create URL hyperlinks to documents on the web, they are guaranteed never to change.
Proofs
One set of page proofs (as PDF files) will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author (if we do
not have an e-mail address then paper proofs will be sent by post) or, a link will be provided in the e-mail so that authors can download
the files themselves. Elsevier now provides authors with PDF proofs which can be annotated; for this you will need to download Adobe
Reader version 7 (or higher) available free from
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html. Instructions on how
to annotate PDF files will accompany the proofs (also given online). The exact system requirements are given at the Adobe site:
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/acrrsystemreqs.html#70win.
If you do not wish to use the PDF annotations function, you may list the corrections (including replies to the Query Form) and
return them to Elsevier in an e-mail. Please list your corrections quoting line number. If, for any reason, this is not possible, then
mark the corrections and any other comments (including replies to the Query Form) on a printout of your proof and return by fax, or scan
the pages and e-mail, or by post. 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. We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately. Therefore, it is important to ensure
that all of your 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. Note that Elsevier may proceed with the publication of
your article if no response is received.
Offprints
The corresponding author,
at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article
and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use. Additional paper
offprints can be ordered by the authors. An order form with prices will be sent to the corresponding author.
For inquiries relating to the submission of articles (including electronic submission
where available) please visit this journal's homepage. You can track accepted articles at
http://www.elsevier.com/trackarticle
and set up e-mail alerts to inform you of when an article's status has changed. Also accessible from here is information on copyright,
frequently asked questions and more. Contact details for questions arising after acceptance of an article, especially those relating
to proofs, will be provided by the publisher.
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