Scope and purpose

Applied Biological Research (ABR) offers a means of prompt publication of original research papers, short communications and short notes dealing with all aspects of applied biological sciences, viz., agriculture, veterinary, ecology and environment, biotechnology, and other applied biological fields. ABR welcomes the submission of manuscripts that meet the general criteria of significance and academic excellence. Conceptual high-quality review articles of paramount significance in applied biological sciences may also be considered. However, authors are advised to seek prior consent from the Chief Editor for submission of a review article. All the manuscripts published in ABR are peer reviewed.

Manuscript submission

The manuscripts or the essence of their contents must not have been previously published nor should they be under simultaneous consideration by any other journal. Authors, along with manuscript submission, need to specifically declare if any similar work has been submitted to or published by any other journal. All the manuscripts received will be checked for duplicate publication and plagiarism. If detected, appropriate action will be taken in accordance with the International Ethical Guidelines. Three hard copies of the manuscript, complete in all respects including figures, tables, plates, etc., should be submitted to the Chief Editor, Applied Biological Research, Centre for Advancement of Applied Sciences (CAAS), Shalimar, Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir - 190 025 (India) either by surface mail or via e-mail caas.abr@gmail.com. Contribution should be concise and must not exceed ten printed pages, including tables and illustrations in case of a full-length paper, five printed pages in case of a short communication and two pages in case of a short note. Electronic submission of manuscripts is strongly recommended, provided that the text, tables and figures are included in a single Microsoft Word file. Manuscript may also be submitted on a diskette, using any major word processing software. The diskette should be clearly labelled with the author’s name, the title of the manuscript and the software used. The manuscript may be submitted as an email attachment to the Chief Editor, ABR, or mailed to caas.abr@gmail.com. After submission, a manuscript will be assigned an Index Number, and the same will be communicated to the corresponding author within 48 hours. The corresponding author has to submit a duly signed Author’s Declaration-cum-Copyright Transfer Certificate and token submission fee of Rs. 700/= (US $ 20/=) no sooner than the Index Number to the manuscript is assigned.

Author’s Declaration-cum-Copyright Transfer Certificate

Submission of a manuscript implies that the manuscript, or the essence of work presented, has neither been published previously elsewhere (except in the form of an abstract or a part of a published lecture or academic thesis or as an electronic preprint) nor is under consideration for publication elsewhere in any other journal. The manuscript has not been submitted/published elsewhere in the same form or in any other language without the written consent of the publisher. The paper has been exclusively submitted to this journal only.

i) The manuscript is the original work of the author(s) and not copied (in whole or in part) from any other work. ii) The manuscript presents the work conducted by the authors as part of their M.Sc. /PhD thesis research submitted to ………………………………….... (name of the Institute/University) OR Research Project work approved by the ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... (name of Institution/University) and all the Funding Agencies have duly been acknowledged in the manuscript. iii) The manuscript has been seen and approved by all authors as well as tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities at the Institute/ university where the work has been carried out. iv) All the authors have practically contributed to the work described in the manuscript, and their practical contribution in the research work presented is as …, …, …, & …% in descending order of authorship. v) If and when the manuscript is accepted for publication, the authors agree to the automatic transfer of the Copyright to the Publisher, i.e. Centre for Advancement of Applied Sciences, Srinagar, J&K (India). vi) The manuscript as such or any part thereof will not be published by the authors elsewhere in any language without the consent of the Copyright holder; vii) Written permission for the materials/information used from other copyrighted sources has been obtained by the authors, and that any costs associated with obtaining this permission are the authors’ responsibility. No material/information submitted as part of this manuscript infringes the existing copyrights or the rights of a third party. viii) If any of the above information is found incorrect, the Editorial Board may initiate any action, including the outright rejection of the paper, blacklisting of authors, passing on the information to the concerned institute/ university for appropriate action, etc.

While submitting a manuscript, the corresponding author must ensure to send the above certificate, duly signed by all the authors, reflecting the paper title and names of all authors and their e-mail addresses as well. The papers without the above certificate will not be considered for publication.

Peer-review process

All the manuscripts are reviewed by the Editorial Board and by qualified reviewers from the concerned field. The corresponding authors must submit, along with the manuscript, the names, addresses and e-mail addresses of at least 4 potential reviewers. It is the sole right of the editor to decide whether or not the suggested reviewers will be considered. The reviewer’s comments will be sent to the corresponding author for appropriate action. Manuscripts and figures for review will not be returned to authors, regardless of the editorial decision to accept, revise, or reject. All short notes must include at least one table and/ or one figure.

Preparation of the manuscript

Manuscript should be in English, typed double-spaced on good-quality A-4-size bond paper in single column format with ample margin on the left side. The pages should be numbered consecutively. The manuscripts may be organised as follows:

Title

It should be short, specific, informative and written in capital letters. The title should be without any abbreviations and should enlighten the contents of the manuscript. The name(s) of author(s) should be written on the next line after the title, followed by the address of the department(s) and institution(s) from where the work was actually carried out. Give each author’s affiliation or a footnote indicating the present address of any author no longer at the institution at which the work was performed. The title of the paper, name(s) of author(s), complete address (including telephone number and e-mail address) and a short running title may also be given on a separate page. If the research paper is a part of M.Sc. or PhD thesis submitted to any University/Institution, it is obligatory upon the authors to mention the same as a footnote on the very first page.

Abstract

It should be concise and informative. It should briefly describe the purpose of the work, techniques and methods used, main findings with some data & conclusions. Neither references nor abbreviations are cited in this part. The abstract should not exceed 200 words for a full-length paper and 150 words for a short communication.

Keywords

It should follow the abstract. A maximum of seven keywords relevant to the work will be given. Abstract and keywords may be given on a separate page.

Abbreviations

Non-standard abbreviations should be listed, and the full form of each abbreviation should be given in parentheses at first use in the text.

Introduction

Beginning with a new page, it should be brief and limited to the statement of the problem, clearly define the current knowledge gaps with a brief literature survey pertinent to the type of work presented, proposed solution, scope and justification of the work done and objectives of the experiments.

Materials and methods

It should include relevant details on the nature of the material, experimental design, the techniques employed and statistical methods used. Well-established procedures need not be described; instead, relevant references should be cited. However, new methods or modifications of previously published methods, if any, may be fully described. Be sure that sufficient information is given to allow others to repeat the experiments. Capitalize trade names and indicate the manufacturer’s name, make & model of the instrument/ equipment and the source of material used in experiments.

Results and discussion

The Results and discussion should be clubbed to avoid the repetition of statements. It should include important findings discussed concisely. Wherever necessary, elaborate on the tables and figures without repeating their contents. Interpret the findings in view of the results obtained in this work and past studies on this topic. State the conclusions in a few sentences at the end of the paper.

Acknowledgements (if necessary)

It is obligatory on the authors to acknowledge the people who assisted in manuscript preparation, funding for research, facilities for work, etc. It must be precise and put at the end, but prior to references.

References

The references in the text must be cited as (Bhat, 1991; Mir and Wani, 1992; Malik et al., 1995). All the references cited in the text should be listed at the end of the manuscript in alphabetical order according to the surname of the first author. The name of the journal cited should not be abbreviated, but the complete name of the journal should be given. The specimen for quoting references is given below:

Harley, J.L. 1989. The significance of mycorrhizae. Mycological Research, 92: 129-139.

Hander, H.L., Neuvonen, S., Seibar, T. and Petrini, A. 1993. Simulated acid rain affects the birch leaf endophyte population. Microbial Ecology, 26: 227-236.

Walter, H. 1973. Vegetation of the Earth. Springer Verlag, New York, USA. p. 274.

Dar, G.H., Anand, R.C. and Sharma, P.K. 1993. Genetically engineered microorganisms to rescue plants from frost injury. pp. 1-19. In: Advances in Biochemical Engineering/ Biotechnology, Volume 49 (ed. F. Flechture), Springer Verlag, Berlin, Germany.

Zargar, M.Y. and Johri, B.N. 1989. Effect of HCH on amylolytic and proteolytic activities of soil microorganisms. pp. 85-87. In: Proceedings of the National Symposium on Impact and Management of Pollutants on Crop Productivity, Feb. 16-18, 1989, Haryana Agricultural University, Hissar, India.

When two or more works of an author have been published during the same year, the reference should be identified by the letters "a", "b", "c", etc., placed after the year of publication. This should be followed both in the text and the reference section. The papers in preparation or submitted for publication, unpublished observations, personal communications, etc., should not be quoted in the reference section but should be mentioned in text only as (Sharma, A.K., University of Kolkata, personal communication). The author is responsible for the accuracy and completeness of references and for their correct textual citation. Failure to do so may result in the paper being withdrawn from the evaluation process.

Tables

It should be typed on separate sheets and numbered consecutively in Arabic numbers. Each table should have a heading stating its contents, including units, clearly and concisely. Footnotes to tables should be referred to by italic superscript letters beginning with ‘a’ in each table. Tables should be explanatory enough to be understandable without any text reference. The data provided should be analysed using an appropriate statistical method.

Figures

It should be of good quality and neatly drawn in black Indian ink on good-quality tracing paper. The captions of figures should be concise and typed on a separate page, not in the figure area. The figures should not exceed 18 x 15 cm in size. Figures should be self-explanatory. Information presented in the figure should not be repeated in the table. All symbols and abbreviations used in the illustrations should be defined clearly. Figure legends should be given below the figures.

Photographs

The photographs for publication should be of high contrast on glossy paper without folds or creases. Each illustration or plate should be on a separate sheet with the name(s) of author(s) and figure number printed lightly with soft pencil on the reverse side.

Equations

All the equations should be typed. Mathematical notations should be simple and suitable for a multi-disciplinary audience. Meaning of all the symbols used should be given immediately after the equation at first use. All the data should be in metric units with a maximum of two decimals. The analysed data must be statistically analyzed. The papers not conforming to the above format will not be processed.

Units

Internationally accepted rules and the international system of units (SI) should be used. If other units are mentioned, please give their equivalent in SI.

Nomenclature

For biological nomenclature, the conventions of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature, the International Code of Nomenclature of Bacteria and the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature should be followed. The scientific names of all living materials (plants, insects, birds, mammals, bacteria, fungi, etc.) along with authority should be mentioned in parentheses at first use of their English term. The chemical nomenclature, as laid down in the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry and the official recommendations of the IUPAC-IUB Combined Commission on Biochemical Nomenclature, should be followed. All biocides and other organic compounds must be identified by their genuine Geneva names when first used in the text. Active ingredients of all formulations should be likewise identified.

Ethical consent

All authors have to follow the ethical guidelines for journal publication. All the manuscripts reporting the findings of experimental studies involving human/ animal subjects should provide a statement confirming that each subject or subject's guardian obtains informed consent, after the approval of the experimental protocol by the ethics committee or IRB. Authors have to state in the manuscript that the work presented has been conducted in accordance with The Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association (Declaration of Helsinki) for Experiments Involving Humans [http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/ 10policies/b3/index.html]; EU Directive 2010/63/EU for Animal Experiments [http://ec.europa.eu/ environment/chemicals/lab_animals/ legislation_en.htm]; Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals [http://www.icmje.org]. While reporting the experiments on animals, authors should indicate whether the institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed or not. Needless cruelty in animal experimentations is not acceptable to the journal. 

Open Access publication 

The management of the journal has decided to promote open access publishing so that readers can have free, unrestricted online access to the research output. Open-access content is open to all without any access fees or subscription charges. Articles are freely available immediately after publication without any registration. This means the researchers, students, readers, scholars, and any layperson from anywhere and anytime have rapid access to the latest research content via the Innovative Open Access (OA) Policy.

Plagiarism

The journal holds no responsibility for plagiarism. If a published paper is found later to be extensively plagiarised and is found to be a duplicate or redundant publication, a note of retraction will be published, and copies of the correspondence will be sent to the authors’ Head of the Institute/University.

Conflict of interest

Authors must disclose conflicts of interest at the end of the manuscript. Also, they must disclose the financial and personal relationships with other people or organisations that could inappropriately influence (bias) their work.

Contributors

Each author is required to declare his or her individual contribution to the article: all authors must have materially participated in the research and/or article preparation, so the roles for all authors should be described. The statement that all authors have approved the final article should be true and disclosed.

Authorship issue

All authors must have substantially contributed to the concept and design of the study, or in data collection, analysis and interpretation or in the critical write-up of the manuscript. Authors are expected to carefully list and order the authors before manuscript submission. Any addition, deletion or rearrangement of author names in the authorship is discouraged by the journal, unless and until proper reasons for the act are provided by the corresponding authors along with written confirmation (e-mail, letter) from all authors, including the affected ones, that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. Only in rare cases does the journal consider such changes in authorship.

Galley proof

The Editorial Office will send galley proof of the accepted manuscript to the corresponding author as an email attachment for final proofreading. It will be the responsibility of the corresponding author to return the galley proof materials appropriately corrected within the stipulated time. Authors will be asked to check any typographical or minor clerical errors in the manuscript at this stage. No major changes in the manuscript shall be permitted.

Reprints

The authors shall have to bear nominal processing charges for publication. The authors interested in purchasing reprints should send their reprint requests at the time of submission of the revised manuscript.

Open Access Charges

The management of the journal has decided to have an Open Access publishing policy; hence, the authors shall have to bear the nominal Open Access charges for publication. Open access charges levied on authors are the only source of income that is utilised to meet the administrative and print expenses, and online management of the journal. The open access charges for the papers received from India are ₹ 1200/- per print page of the journal, and for the papers from other countries are US$ 40/- per print page of the journal. The authors interested in purchasing reprints should send their reprint requests at the time of submission of the revised manuscript.

Waiver Policy

The journal has a waiver policy for researchers from Least Developed Countries so as to help and support them to meet some of the costs associated with publishing Open Access (OA) articles. They, at the time of article submission, can apply to the Chief Editor for a maximum of 25% waiver in the Open Access charges of the paper.

Disclaimer

The manuscripts, short communications and short notes published by the journal (ABR) represent the sole opinions of their authors. The publisher shoulders no responsibility or liability whatsoever for the use or misuse of the information published by the journal.