Journal Policies and Publication Ethics
Environmental Medicine and Toxicology (EMT) is dedicated to upholding the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct in scholarly publishing. To create a fair and rigorous environment for authors, reviewers, and readers, we have developed a comprehensive set of policies that govern our editorial and publishing processes.
These policies detail our procedures for addressing a variety of issues, including allegations of misconduct, conflicts of interest, peer review standards, and long-term digital preservation. Our policies are fully aligned with the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). We encourage all authors, reviewers, and editorial board members to review these policies carefully before participating in the activities of our journal.
1. Allegations of Misconduct
Environmental Medicine and Toxicology (EMT) takes all allegations of research misconduct seriously. Misconduct includes, but is not limited to, data fabrication or falsification, image manipulation, and plagiarism. If an allegation is raised, the editorial team will investigate following the COPE guidelines. Authors may be asked to provide raw data or original images. If misconduct is confirmed, appropriate actions will be taken, which may include immediate rejection of the manuscript, retraction of the published article, and notifying the authors' institutions or funding agencies. All investigations are conducted confidentially.
2. Anonymisation, Confidentiality, and Informed Consent
For manuscripts containing personal information about identifiable individuals (especially Case Reports), EMT requires strict adherence to privacy and confidentiality. Authors must obtain informed consent from participants (or their legal guardians) not only for participation in the study but explicitly for the publication of the case details, images, or data. A statement confirming that informed consent was obtained must be included in the full-text version of the article. Participants have the right to withdraw consent at any time before publication.
3. Appeals
Authors have the right to appeal editorial decisions. If an author believes a decision was based on a misunderstanding or factual error, they may submit an appeal to the editorial office via email (emtjournal.official@gmail.com). The appeal must clearly state the reasons and provide any necessary supporting evidence. The appeal will be reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or a designated senior editor who was not involved in the original decision. The decision on the appeal is final and will be communicated promptly.
4. Author Fees
Environmental Medicine and Toxicology (EMT) currently does not charge any Article Processing Charges (APCs), submission fees, page charges, or color charges. There are absolutely no fees required from authors for publishing their manuscripts in this journal. This policy applies to all article types and all authors, regardless of their geographical location or institutional affiliation.
5. Authorship and Contributorship
Authorship must be based on the criteria established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). To qualify as an author, an individual must have made substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, drafting or revising it critically, approved the final version, and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work. The corresponding author is responsible for communicating with the journal and ensuring that all co-authors have approved the manuscript. Any changes to authorship (addition, deletion, or reordering) after submission must be approved in writing by all authors. Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged in the "Acknowledgments" section.
6. Complaints
EMT is committed to resolving complaints fairly and promptly. Complaints may relate to the journal's policies, editorial processes, or specific published content. All complaints should be directed to the editorial office (emtjournal.official@gmail.com). The editorial team will acknowledge receipt of the complaint within 5 working days and will aim to provide a full response within 30 days. If the complainant is not satisfied, the matter may be escalated to the Editor-in-Chief.
7. Conflicts of Interest
All participants in the publication process (authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members) must disclose any potential conflicts of interest. A conflict of interest exists when financial, personal, or professional relationships could inappropriately influence the work. Authors must include a "Conflict of Interest" statement in the manuscript (declaring none if applicable). Reviewers must decline to review if they have a conflict. Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where they have a conflict. Manuscripts submitted by editorial board members will be handled by an independent editor to ensure a fair and unbiased peer review process.
8. Copyright
Authors publishing in EMT retain the copyright of their work. Articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This allows others to copy, distribute, and adapt the material for any purpose, provided the original authors and source are properly cited. A copyright statement must be included in the full-text version of every published article.
9. Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions
EMT is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record. If an error is identified in a published article, the journal will publish a Correction (Erratum) to rectify the mistake. If there are concerns about the validity of an article or an ongoing investigation, an Expression of Concern may be published to alert readers. If an article is found to contain serious flaws or misconduct, it will be retracted following COPE guidelines, with a clear Retraction Notice linked to the original article.
10. Corresponding Author Contact Email Address
To ensure transparency and facilitate communication, the contact email address of the corresponding author must be explicitly included on the title page of the manuscript and in the final published full-text version of every article.
11. Ethics Approval
All research involving human or animal subjects must have been conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki (for humans) or ARRIVE guidelines (for animals). Authors must include an "Ethics Approval" statement in the manuscript, specifying the name of the ethics committee or Institutional Review Board (IRB), the approval code/ID, and confirming that informed consent was obtained. If the study is exempt from ethics approval, the authors must state the reason.
12. Funding
Authors must disclose all sources of financial support for the research, including the names of funding organizations, grant numbers, and the role of the funder in the study design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation. A "Funding" statement must be included in the full-text version of the published article. If no funding was received, authors must state "This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies."
13. Journal/Article Identifiers
Environmental Medicine and Toxicology (EMT) is officially registered with the International Standard Serial Number (ISSN). The Online ISSN (e-ISSN: 3150-4027) is prominently displayed on the journal's website. Furthermore, every published article is assigned a unique and persistent Digital Object Identifier (DOI), ensuring that the article can be reliably located and cited.
14. Licensing
The journal's licensing terms are based on the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This statement is prominently displayed on the journal website and is also embedded within the full-text version of every published article, clearly explaining the rights and permissions for readers to use the content.
15. Long-Term Digital Preservation (Archiving)
To ensure the long-term preservation and continuous accessibility of its scholarly content, Environmental Medicine and Toxicology (EMT) employs a robust digital backup strategy. All published articles, including their metadata, full-text files, and supplementary materials, are systematically archived and backed up by Sinaweb (the official hosting and development provider of the journal's website). These regular backups ensure that all published content remains secure and can be fully restored in the event of any unforeseen technical failure, system migration, or data loss.
Furthermore, EMT is committed to exploring future integration with recognized international long-term digital preservation services (such as Portico) as the journal continues to grow and expand its indexing status.
16. Peer Review
EMT operates a rigorous Single-Blind Peer Review process (reviewers know the authors' identities, but authors do not know the reviewers'). All submitted manuscripts are initially evaluated by the editorial team. If suitable, they are sent to at least two independent expert reviewers. Reviewers are required to maintain strict confidentiality regarding the manuscript. The expected time from submission to first decision is approximately 4 to 6 weeks. Reviewers must follow COPE guidelines and declare any conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment.
17. Website Security (HTTPS)
The official website of the journal (https://www.emtj.ir/) is fully secured using HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure). All traffic and data are encrypted to protect the privacy and security of authors, reviewers, and readers.