Human and Animal Rights

Human-participant research

Every clinical study must follow the guidelines set out in the Declaration of Helsinki. Research involving human participants, identifiable human material, or identifiable data must have prior approval from an appropriate research ethics committee or institutional review board unless a documented exemption or waiver applies. The manuscript must state the committee name, institution, approval or protocol number, approval date where required, and the ethical standard followed. Authors must explain any exemption or waiver and provide supporting documentation on request.

Authors must obtain informed consent to participate where required and protect privacy, confidentiality and vulnerable participants. Clinical trials must be registered prospectively in a publicly accessible registry where applicable, and the registration number must appear in the manuscript.

 

Animal research

Research involving vertebrate animals or regulated invertebrates must have prior approval from the appropriate animal ethics or care committee. The manuscript must identify the committee, approval number, species, welfare measures, anaesthesia and analgesia where applicable, humane endpoints, euthanasia method, and reporting guideline used, including ARRIVE where relevant.

The eighth edition of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals" (https://grants.nih.gov/grants/olaw/guide-for-the-care-and-use-of-laboratory-animals_prepub.pdf), published by the National Academy of Sciences, The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C., should be consulted by authors when conducting research involving animals to determine whether the protocols followed meet the standards. The NC3Rs ARRIVE Guidelines should be followed when conducting research involving animals. Visit https://www.nc3rs.org.uk/arrive-guidelines for information on in vivo research.

 

 

Field studies, protected species and biological materials

Authors must state permits for fieldwork, collection, transport, protected species, genetic resources, or regulated biological materials where applicable. International guidance is cited only when relevant to the study and does not replace applicable local law or institutional approval.

All plant experiments must comply with international regulations, regardless of whether they involve cultivated or wild specimens. The manuscript must be accompanied by a declaration that the field studies comply with all applicable regulations and/or licenses issued in the IUCN Policy Statement on Research Involving Species at Risk of Extinction and the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

 

Editorial verification

TUJNAS may request approval letters, consent forms, trial-registration evidence, permits, protocols or welfare documentation. A missing or unclear ethics statement may delay review or result in rejection. Concerns identified after publication are handled under the Publication Ethics and Research Integrity Policy.

 

Article statements

Every applicable article must include separate headings for Ethics Approval, Consent to Participate, Consent for Publication, and Animal Ethics/Welfare, with “Not applicable” only when accurate.