Guide for Authors

1.1 Aim&Scope
The aim of the journal is to contribute to science by publishing high-quality publications of scientific importance. For this purpose, original research articles, reviews, case reports and letters to the editor are published in all fields related to veterinary medicine, animal husbandry and experimental animals. Research and Practice in Veterinary and Animal Science (REPVAS) is an independent, double-blind peer-reviewed, open access and online journal that aims to publish articles in all relevant fields. Articles must describe original data that has not previously been published or submitted for publication elsewhere. The editor and reviewers reserve the right to reject articles on ethical grounds when they are of the opinion that the severity of injury to animals is not justified by the scientific value or originality desired by the author. Manuscripts that comply with REPVAS submission rules and the scope of the journal are sent to at least two referees who are experts in their field for scientific evaluation. Discussing its suitability, REPVAS Editorial Board members then consider reviewers' comments on each submission. The final decision for all submitted articles belongs to the Editor-in-Chief. The Editorial Board of REPVAS Journal is committed to complying with the criteria of the International Council of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1.2 Open Access
Research and Practice in Veterinary and Animal Science (REPVAS) is a fully open access journal, with free online access to all content. No page charges or publication fees are collected. There is no payment at any stage of the article publishing process.

2. Guide for Authors

2.1 Article Types
Original research articles, review articles, short communications, case reports, and letters to the editor are welcome
The total number of pages of the relevant subsections as required for the journal in question and the references (with figures and tables) excluding supplements should not exceed 6 pages, 12 pages, 20 pages, and 30 pages for case studies/case reports, research notes/short communications, research articles, and review articles, respectively. The editor-in-chief can change the manuscript type after the manuscript submission.

2.1.1 Research Articles: Research papers, reports the results of original research and assesses its contribution to the body of knowledge in a given area with the relevant data and findings in an orderly, logical manner. Research articles should be no longer than 20 pages, should have an abstract of at least 250 and at most 300 words, should contain a limit of 50 references, and should have no more than 10 figures and tables combined.

2.1.2 Review Articles: Review article will be accepted as invited article.
A review article is written to summarize the recent developments, improvements, discoveries, and ideas in various subjects. Review articles should present an unbiased summary of the current understanding of the topic.
Review articles should cover subjects that fall within the scope of the journal and are of active, current interest. Review articles should be no longer than 30 pages, should have an abstract of at least 250 and at most 300 words, should contain a limit of 100 references, and should have no more than 12 figures and tables combined. All reviews should contain an introduction section and a conclusion section, with relevant section headings in between. The introduction should explain the importance of the subject, the text should be comprehensive and detailed, and the references should be exhaustive. Review articles should be written with the support of original published studies of the author(s).

2.1.3 Research Notes/Short Communications: Research notes/short communications are short papers that present original and significant material for rapid dissemination. A research note/short communication may focus on a particular aspect of a problem or a new finding that is expected to have a significant contribution to science. Research notes/short communications should be a concise but complete description of a limited investigation that will not be included in a later paper. These should be as completely documented, both by reference to the literature and by description of the experimental procedures employed, as a regular paper. Research notes/short communications should be no longer than 12 pages, should have an abstract of at least 250 and at most 300 words, and are limited to 30 references and to 5 figures and tables combined. Research notes/short communications should include all relevant study background and contain all of the sections described below, but without section titles or numbers.

2.1.4 Case Studies/Case Reports: A case study/case report is a detailed report of the symptoms, signs, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of the subject of the investigation. Case studies/case reports should contain introduction, case history, and results and discussion sections. The introduction should indicate the interest of the case for practitioners, the case history should describe the case and the procedures in detail, and the results and discussion section should outline the results with a pertinent discussion and diagnosis. Results and discussion should not be divided into two separate headings. Photographs are desirable. Case studies should be no longer than 6 pages, should have an abstract of at least 250 and at most 300 words, and are limited to 20 references. 

2.1.5 Letters to the Editor: Letters to the editor reflect the opinions of other researchers on articles in previously published issues of the same journal. Typically, letters address the contents of an original journal article for one or more of the following reasons: to identify errors and make a correction, provide an alternate theory, provide additional information, offer additional evidence, or provide a counterpoint.
The letter should be brief and concise. Letters to the editor should be under 500 words, with no abstract, and a maximum of one table, one figure, and 15 references. Letters are always written to the editor; they are never addressed to the authors of the article in question. While writing a letter, one should avoid assuming a personal and biased attitude or the use of aggressive language. All suggestions should be supported by scientific data. General comments not reinforced by logical arguments are not acceptable (e.g., “I think that this is a very important article” or “I think that this article is worthless”). Reference formatting should be used in letters; however, all the references used should be published works. Materials that were not published or reported elsewhere should not be used. Otherwise, the letter will not be accepted. The writer should not repeat the original article at length in his/her letter.
Only letters submitted within 4 months of the original publication date will be considered. The reason for this is that corrections to the record should be done in a timely manner. If there will be a reply to the letter, the next step is to designate which issue of the journal it will be published in. Thus, letters are not necessarily published in the very next issue since it may take some time for the original author to reply. The letter authors’ names and affiliations should be written clearly at the top of the letter, and the title of the article about which the letter is written should be clearly stated in the introduction of the letter.

ARTICLE PREPARATION
3. ORCID

All authors are required to provide their ORCID ID during the submission process so that the process of evaluation and publishing of the manuscripts can continue in accordance with our publishing policy. If you do not have an ORCID ID, you can visit https://orcid.org/ to get your unique 16-digit ORCID ID number.

 

4.  Instructions for Authors/Submission Guidelines

You must proofread your manuscript before submission to check for spelling and grammatical errors. During submission, please choose the most suitable category (article type) for your paper. The manuscript should be in standard MS word document format only, and you will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of the various files.
Papers are accepted for evaluation on the understanding that

• they have not been published,
• they are not being considered for publication simultaneously elsewhere,
• they are not going to be submitted for publication elsewhere.

After a manuscript has been submitted, it is not possible for authors to be added or removed or for the order of authors to be changed. If authors do so, their submission may be canceled (see Policies and Publishing Ethics Section for details).
During the first check, journal administrators may return the articles for the following reasons:

• The manuscript is not prepared in the format provided on the journal’s website,
• The manuscript file is not the same as the manuscript template file given on the journal’s website,
• The number of references or pages exceed the specified limits,
• The authors did not perform the requested corrections or provide the necessary documents within the requested time,
• Similarity report (iThenticate result) must be uploaded by corresponding author.
• Similarity index (iThenticate result) is higher than the permitted threshold. There is no single number for the similarity percentage since each report is investigated in detail, but submissions exceeding 15% (excluding reference) score are generally returned to authors. The resubmission of the same title without reducing the similarity score may cause a ban of the authors from the journal. Similarity reports with more than 50% scores, even in a single submission, may cause a ban from the journal and the authors’ future submissions may not be considered for publication.

REPVAS accepts posting of preprints of primary research manuscripts on preprint servers, authors’ or institutional websites. Author(s) should indicate on the title page that a preprint of the article has been published. In such cases, the similarity rates on the pre-printed pages are ignored.
 

4.1. Preparation of the Manuscript

Manuscripts that are not prepared using the template will not be considered for publication.
All authors who report experiments on animals are required to give assurance in the “Materials and methods” section that the animals were treated in accordance with the guidelines of the local ethics committee; approval reference number should be included where relevant.
 

1. 1. 1. Title page

All submissions must include a title page, which is to be uploaded as a separate document. Do not repeat the information from the title page within the main manuscript document. The title page should contain the full title in sentence case (e.g., Urothelial cancers: clinical and imaging evaluation), the full names (last names fully capitalized) and affiliations of all authors in English (Department, Faculty, University, City, Country), the ORCID iDs of all authors, and the contact e-mail address for the clearly identified corresponding author. Only one corresponding author is permitted per manuscript. Do not repeat this information in the main document. If your manuscript is accepted for publication, this information will be moved to the main document after the peer review process is completed.
 

1. 1. 1. Title and abstract

The first page of the main manuscript should begin with the title. Do not include author names or affiliations here. Directly below the title, an informative abstract must accompany each manuscript word capacity. The abstract should not contain citations and subtitle. Abstracts of review articles should be a brief overview of the main points from the review.
 

1. 1. 1. Key words

Please provide a minimum of 3 and maximum of 5 key words or phrases to enable retrieval and indexing. Only the first letter of the first key word should begin with a capital letter; the other key words should be written in lower case and sorted alphabetically. Please do not put a period at the end of the list of key words. Acronyms should be avoided. Key words should not be a virtual copy of the title.
 

1. 1. 1. Acknowledgments/disclaimers/conflict of interest, if any

Please include any necessary acknowledgments or disclaimers here. Names of funding organizations should be written in full.
All authors should also disclose any conflict of interest that may have influenced either the conduct or the presentation of the research.
 

1. 1. 1. Informed Consent

Manuscripts reporting the results of experimental investigations conducted with humans must clearly state that the study protocol received institutional review board approval and that all participants provided informed consent in the format required by the relevant authorities and/or boards. Please reference the relevant review board(s) and approval code(s) here.

WRITING RULES

1. 1. 1. Style and Format

In general, the journal follows the conventions of Scientific Style and Format, The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers, Council of Science Editors, Reston, VA, USA (7th ed.).
Manuscripts should be 1,5 space line with 2.5-cm margins on all sides of the page, in Times New Roman font size 11. Every page of the manuscript, including the title page, references, tables, etc., should be numbered. All copies of the manuscript should also have line numbers starting with 1 on each consecutive page. Manuscripts must be written in English. Contributors who are not native English speakers are strongly advised to ensure that a colleague fluent in the English language or a professional language editor has reviewed their manuscript. Concise English without jargon should be used. Repetitive use of long sentences and passive voice should be avoided. It is strongly recommended that the text be run through computer spelling and grammar programs. Either British or American spelling is acceptable but must be consistent throughout.
 

1. 1. 1. Symbols, Units, and Abbreviations

If symbols such as ×, μ, η, or ν are used, they should be added using the symbols menu of Word in Times New Roman font. Degree symbols (°) must be used from the symbol menu, not superscripted letter o or number 0. Multiplication symbols must be used (×), not the letter x. Spaces must be inserted between numbers and units (e.g., 3 kg) and between numbers and mathematical symbols (+, –, ×, =, <, >) but not between numbers and percent symbols (e.g., 45%). Please use SI units. All abbreviations and acronyms should be defined at first mention. Any Latin terms such as et al., in vitro, or in situ should not be italicized.
 

1. 1. 1. Tables and Figures

All illustrations (photographs, drawings, graphs, etc.), not including tables, must be labeled “Figure.” Figures must be submitted both in the manuscript and as separate files.
All tables and figures must have a caption and/or legend and be numbered (e.g., Table 1, Figure 2), unless there is only one table or figure, in which case it should be labeled “Table” or “Figure” with no numbering. Captions must be written in sentence case (e.g., Macroscopic appearance of the samples.). The font used in the figures should be Times New Roman. If symbols such as ×, μ, η, or ν are used, they should be added using the symbols menu of Word in Times New Roman font. All tables and figures, including subfigures, must be numbered consecutively as they are referred to in the text; e.g., Figures 2a, 2b, and 2c should be referred to in the text in that order before Figure 3. Please refer to tables and figures with capitalization and unabbreviated (e.g., “As shown in Figure 2…”, and not “Fig. 2” or “figure 2”). The tables and figures themselves should be given at the end of the text only, after the references, not in the running text.
The resolution of images should not be less than 118 pixels/cm when the width is set to 16 cm. Images must be scanned at 1200 dpi resolution and submitted in jpeg or tiff format. Graphs and diagrams must be drawn with a line weight between 0.5 and 1 point. Graphs and diagrams with a line weight of less than 0.5 point or more than 1 point are not accepted. Scanned or photocopied graphs and diagrams are not accepted. Charts must be prepared in 2 dimensions unless required by the data used. Charts unnecessarily prepared in 3 dimensions are not accepted.
Figures that are charts, diagrams, or drawings must be submitted in a modifiable format, i.e. our graphics personnel should be able to modify them. Therefore, if the program with which the figure is drawn has a “save as” option, it must be saved as *.ai or *.pdf. If the “save as” option does not include these extensions, the figure must be copied and pasted into a blank Microsoft Word document as an editable object. It must not be pasted as an image file (tiff, jpeg, or eps) unless it is a photograph.
Tables and figures, including caption, title, column heads, and footnotes, must not exceed 16 × 20 cm and should be no smaller than 8 cm in width. For all tables, please use Word’s “Create Table” feature, with no tabbed text or tables created with spaces and drawn lines. Please do not duplicate information that is already presented in the figures. Tables must be clearly typed, each on a separate sheet, and one half-spaced. Tables may be continued on another sheet, if necessary, but the dimensions stated above still apply.
 

1. 1. 1. References

Each reference must be cited with first author’s surname and publication year (Altuğ, 2019; Altuğ and Şenyüz, 2020; Altuğ et al., 2021) in the text.
In references list, when more than 6 authors are included in a reference, et al replaces the names of all authors after the first 3. Inclusive page ranges should be given where applicable. Accepted work in press includes the journal title or the publisher if it is a book. Material not accepted for publication cannot be included as a reference and should be cited parenthetically in the text as unpublished data, including all participants’ initials and surnames and the year. Abbreviations of journal titles should conform to those used in the National Library of Medicine (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/journals). The reference list should be organized according to the example in APA style. (http://www.genaqua.org/uploads/APA_Referencing.pdf )

The style and punctuation of references should follow the formats illustrated by the following examples:

1. Journal Article with Up to 6 Authors
Altuğ N., Muz M.N., Muz D., Altinok Yipel F. (2022). The molecular prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi, Babesia spp., and Anaplasma spp. in shelter dogs of the Thrace Region in Turkey. Turkish Journal of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, 46(3): 483-493.

2. Journal Article with More Than 6 Authors
Şenyüz, H.H., Ünay, E., Erişek, A., et al. (2022). The conservation method effects of the Barley-Vetch mixture planted together on theperformance of pregnant ewes. Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences, 46(2), 218-225.

3. Abstract of a Paper Presented at a Meeting
Altug N., & Agaoglu Z.T. (2000). Serum adenosine deaminase activity in dogs: it’s importance in experimental liver toxicity [abstract]. Veterinary Clinical Pathology, 29(4): 140.

4. Whole Book
Shaw, D.H., & Ihle, S.L. (2013). Small Animal Internal Medicine. Iowa, USA.Blackwell Publishing.
Nelson, R.W., & Couto, C.G. (2019). Small Animal Internal Medicine-E-Book: Sixth Ed. Missouri, USA.  Elsevier Health Sciences.

5. Chapters in books
Chalmers, H.J., & Ducharme, N.G. (2009). Ultrasonographic examination of the upper airway. In: Robinson NE (editor). Current Therapy in Equine Medicine. 6th ed. St Louis, MO, USA: Saunders; 2009. pp. 243-249.

6. Conference proceedings
Altuğ, N., Yüksek, N., Özkan, et al. (2017). Serum potassium-lowering effects of insulin plus dextrose and adrenalin treatment that enhance intracellular potassium transitions in hyperkalemic diarrheic calves. 2nd ICAVST, 4-8 Oct. Skopje, Macedonia. pp: 50.

7. Theses
Altuğ, N. (2005). Investigation on the relationship between haematological findings, immunological parameters, adenosine deaminase and its isoenzyme activities in immunosuppressive dose methylprednisolone applied dogs. PhD, Yuzuncu Yıl University, Van, Türkiye.

8. For web address;
Author known: The author's surname and initials of his/her name(s), subject title, web address, and access date must be stated.
Nicoletti P. Brucellosis in cattle. https://www.msdvetmanual.com/reproductive-system/brucellosis-in-large-animals/brucellosis-in-cattle, Accessed at: 13.02.2023.
Author unknown: Company (or Institution) or Anonymous, subject title (if any), web address, access date must be specified.
Vetal. Septicol. https://vetal.com.tr/septicol, Access date: 13.02.2023
Anonymous. https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/veterinary-regulatory/overview/veterinary-medicinal-products-regulation, Access date: 13.02.2023.

4.1.10 Conflicts of Interest
The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors’ definition of conflicts of interest is as follows: “A conflict of interest exists when professional judgment concerning a primary interest (such as patients’ welfare or the validity of research) may be influenced by a secondary interest (such as financial gain). Perceptions of conflict of interest are as important as actual conflicts of interest.”
A conflict of interest defines the situations that might raise the question of bias, direct or indirect, in the work reported. These situations occur when an individual’s objectivity is potentially compromised by a desire for financial gain, prominence, professional advancement, or a successful outcome. Conflicts can also arise for other reasons, such as personal relationships or rivalries, academic competition, and intellectual beliefs.
Authors should avoid entering into agreements with study sponsors, both for- profit and nonprofit, that interfere with authors’ access to all of the study’s data or that interfere with their ability to analyze and interpret. In order to preserve the reliability of the REPVAS academic journal, authors are required to disclose all and any potential conflicts of interest when they submit their manuscripts.
Conflicts of interest are the most likely to undermine the credibility of the journal, the authors, and science itself. That is why our editors are working diligently to ensure that what is published in our journals is balanced, evidence-based, and evaluated independently. In this manner, editors and reviewers are required to notify the journal if they find they do not have the necessary expertise to assess the relevant aspects of a manuscript, if they decide that the manuscript is very similar to one in preparation or under consideration by another journal, or if they suspect the identity of the author(s), which raises potential competing or conflicting interests.

4.2 Main Document (not including names and addresses)
Main document is usually divided into following sections:
» Title of manuscript
» Number of pages
» Number of Tables
» Number of Figures
» Abstract with key words:
» Abstract should not exceed;
     · 300 words in research papers,
    ·  300 words in reviews, and
     · 200 words in short reports and technical notes.
     ·  Three to five key words (not existing in the title) should be listed below the abstract.
     ·  The abstract must be in English
» Introduction
» Materials & Methods
» Results
» Discussion
» Conclusion
» Acknowledgements
» References
» Tables
» Figures

5. Copyright Release Form
During the submission process, authors will be directed to download and complete a ”Copyright Release Form’’ which will have to be signed by a corresponding author.

6. Reviewer Suggestion
Please provide the names and institutional e-mail addresses of at least 3 potential reviewers within the Cover Letter section in the Online Submission system.
Authors that have submitted manuscripts to REPVAS may be asked to be reviewers in the future.

7. Peer-Review
Double-blind review system with at least two reviewers is used to evaluate manuscripts for publication. Editors have the right to reject the manuscripts without peer-review when the manuscript:
»  is on a topic outside the scope of the Journal,
»  lacks technical merit,
»  exhibits narrow regional scope and significance,
»  presents conflicting results,
»  is poorly written,
»  represents a case of scientific miscoduct,
»  when the journal is overburdened with too many submissions, editors have right to reject manuscripts without peerreview based on their perceived merit.
Editors are responsible for the final decision regarding acceptance or rejection of articles.

8. Submission checklist
Please carefully check and adhere to the following list to avoid losing time and repeated resubmissions:
» In case of resubmitting rejected manuscripts in REPVAS, changes and point-by-point responses to the reviewers' comments are provided in Cover Letter section
» Copyright Release Form is enclosed, completed and signed by the corresponding author (in pdf or jpeg format)
» English Title, Abstract and Key Words are provided
» Abstract does not exceed 300 words (300 words in cae of reviews, and 200 words for short reports and technical notes.)
» Three to five key words (not presented in the title) are listed below the abstract.
» Spelling and grammar checks have been completed
» Main document is 1,5 spaced throughout, with 25 mm margins including Abstract, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, and References
» Font and font size is 11 pt Times New Roman and there will be a 2.5 cm gap on the top, bottom and left sides and 2.5 cm on the right side.
» All abbreviations and acronyms are defined at first mention
» Main document does not contain names and institutions (in line with the double blind review system)
» Title page contains names of authors, written in full (NOT abbreviated)
» Title page contains author address(es), provided in English
» ORCID links are added to the title page.
» Acknowledgements are provided on the title page
» The percent sign appears without a space after the number (e.g., 53%) and not before (e.g., NOT %53)
» Decimals are indicated by decimal points and not by commas (e.g., 10.24 NOT 10,24)
» et al. is in italics (et al.)
» Latin terms such as species’ names are in italics (e.g., Oncorhynchus mykiss)
» Degree symbols are inserted from the Symbols menu, and are not superscript letter 'o' or number '0'
» Multiplication symbol is used (×) and not small "x" letters
» Spaces are inserted between numbers and units (e.g. 3 kg) and between numbers and mathematical symbols (+, ?, ×, =, <, >) but not between numbers and percent symbols (e.g. 45%)
» Significant level symbol; ‘P< or P>’ is in italics and upper case
» High quality figures are enclosed (if any)
» Figures are referred to consecutively in the paper (if any)
» Tables are referred to consecutively in the paper (if any)
» Unpublished references (project reports, etc.) are not referred to or cited
» References are listed in alphabetical order in the style shown in the instructions
» References are cited in the text according to APA-6
» DOI links of references are indicated (if available)
» Full names of journal titles are provided in the reference list (NOT abbreviated)
» All pages and lines are numbered
» Sections are not numbered
» Tables and figures, if applicable, must be included in the main document. They are also uploaded separately via online submission system.
» Reviewer suggestions are provided in the Cover Letter

9. After acceptance
Once the manuscript is accepted for publishing in REPVAS, authors will receive e-mail notification with all necessary information on further steps in publishing process. Accepted manuscript can be tracked via the link that will be sent by email. Proof will be provided for corrections, before the paper is published in its final form.
Authors should indicate all corrections on the paper published as Proof by sending all comments by email to [email protected]
Please notice that REPVAS reserves the right to reject a paper even after it has been accepted, if it becomes apparent that there are serious problems with its scientific content, or the publishing policies of journal have been violated.

10. Sharing social media
Authors of accepted articles will be asked to provide up to 3 photographs and 1 video (~60 sec.) that present the study, which will be used to share information on oursocial media accountsin order to increase paper’s publicity.
If possible, twitter user names of authors should be also provided.
The preferable format for video clips is MP4 (maximum file size is up to 200 MB), and for images either JPEG, GIF or PNG (maximum file size per image is 5MB, and 3MB for animated gifs).
Please send the photographs and video to journal by email to [email protected]