Writing for Publication

Watchara Kasinrerk Department of Medical Technology Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences Chiang Mai University

Writing for Publication

Scientific paper

What is publications?

Why we have to published paper?

How to write a manuscript?

How to select journal for publishing?

How manuscript is accepted for publishing?

How to write a good paper?

What is publications?

Why we have to published paper?

Researcher(s)

A person(s) who systematically investigates and studies things in order to discover or establish facts, knwoledge, events, behaviours, or theories, or to make practical applications with the help of such facts, laws or theories. doing research search (re-search) for new knowledge, new information, new process, new inventions, new products and …..

Aims: people having a better life

Students Researchers do research

Basic New New

Research

• New

tion exploitation

Public uses Commercializations

Why we have to published papers?

Researchers should (have to) publish papers: Sharing the new knowledge, new findings and results to other researchers and to community Don’t lazy to publish your new findings…..

Your publications may can change our world.

Manuscript preparation

Researchers (students)

Basic research

Research outputs

Selection of journal

Submission

Review/evaluate

publishing

The way of a submitted manuscript

Manuscript Peer review journals By editor Rejection Reviewers (2-3) (Referees) Rejection Authors - Response to reviewer’s comments - Answers - Experiments

Publishing

Dear Dr. Kasinrerk: I regret that your manuscript entitled: “xxxxxxxx" has been rejected for publication in The Journal of Immunology.

Each manuscript submitted to The Journal of Immunology is reviewed by experts in the field as well as by members of the Editorial Board. The priority for publication is based on assessment of originality, subject matter and interest, scope of research, biological significance, scientific merit, and clarity. Please see below for a summary of the concerns that were raised by our referees. Although several specific comments are given, the final decision was made on the basis of overall priority. The Journal of Immunology receives more papers than it can publish, and only those with the highest priorities can be accepted. Unfortunately, your paper did not receive a sufficiently high priority for publication.

We appreciate your interest in publishing your work in The Journal of Immunology.

Sincerely yours, Robert R. Rich, M.D.

Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of Immunology

Dear Dr. Kasinrerk, Many thanks for submitting the above manuscript to Immunobiology for publication.

Your paper is of interest to the journal but, unfortunately, the reviewers felt that the paper required revision.

Consequently, we would like you to adjust your manuscript as suggested in the enclosed reviewers' comments and re-submit.

Please accompany your re submission with a covering letter detailing the changes that have been made to the manuscript. Your amended manuscript should be returned within four months from the date of this letter. If we do not hear from you within this period we shall assume that you have chosen to withdraw the paper, and any further submission from you will be dealt with on a fresh basis.

Once again, I would like to thank you for your interest in the journal and hope you will continue to support it.

Regards, Professor Wilhelm Schwaeble, Editor-in-Chief, Immunobiology

Dear Dr. Kasinrerk: It is a pleasure to accept your revised manuscript entitled "Na, K ATPase |*beta*|3 subunit (CD298): Association with |*alpha*| Subunit and Expression on Peripheral Blood Cells" for publication in Tissue Antigens. Martin Childs Production Editor Blackwell Publishing 101 George St Edinburgh EH2 3ES

How to write a manuscript for publication?

Step I:

Selection of Journal

There are a large number of journals for publication. Biomedical Science Journals > 5,500 journals.

Select the journal that fit to the work to be published - field (area) - Quality of the journal Each journal has different aim and scope for publication, So select journal that fit to your work.

The aim and scope of the journal can be found from the journal.

Hard copy or web site.

Quality of the journal Journals have different degree of quality.

Every journal has impact factor.

Impact factor indicates the quality of the journal.

Journal impact factor

A quantitative measure of the frequency with which the "average article" published in a given scholarly journal has been cited in a particular year or period. It is calculated each year by the Institute for Scientific Information

Impact factor

Quality of Journal Quality of published article

Journal Cell Nature Science J Exp Med Blood Cancer Res J Immunol Eur J Immunol J Leukcyte Biol Immunology Immunobiology Immunol Lett J Trop Med Hyg Asia Pac J Aller Immun Impact factor 37.297

27.368

24.675

14.384

9.507

8.425

6.937

5.255

3.906

2.550

1.378

1.096

0.916

0.100

High impact journal (good journal): very difficult to publish

Journal Impact Factor 2005 Abbreviated Journal Title ISSN

CA-CANCER J CLIN ANNU REV IMMUNOL NEW ENGL J MED ANNU REV BIOCHEM NAT REV CANCER SCIENCE NAT REV IMMUNOL REV MOD PHYS NAT REV MOL CELL BIO CELL NATURE NAT MED 0007-9235 0732-0582 0028-4793 0066-4154 1474-175X 0036-8075 1474-1733 0034-6861 1471-0072 0092-8674 0028-0836 1078-8956

2005 Impact Total Cites Factor

4218 14745 167894

49.794

47.4

44.016

16313

33.456

9823

31.694

345991

30.927

8686

30.458

19446

30.254

11438

29.852

132371

29.431

372784

29.273

40386

28.878

Immediacy 2005 Cited Index

21.3

10.828

13.422

Articles

20 29 308

Half-life

3 6 6.9

4.857

3.935

6.398

3.792

5.633

6.225

6.238

5.825

6.6

28 77 827 72 30 80 319 1065 155 8.4

7.5

5 2.8

>10.0

3.2

7.9

2.9

7.3

Research outputs Manuscript

submit

High impact factor journal Rejection Manuscript Rejection Manuscript Lower impact factor journal Lower impact factor journal

For all scientists: Rejection is normal.

After journal selection: Go to “Author Guidelines” of the selected journal. - Type of articles Review Research (original article) Communication Short report etc.

-Style Each journal has different writing style.

You have to follow it.

- References Each journal has different writing style.

Step I:

Selection of Journal

Step II:

Preparation of manuscript

Getting start for writing a manuscript

Manuscript Evaluate by

Editor/Review’s View

What does an editor/reviewer look for when he/she reviews a manuscript?

Is it ORIGINAL?

Is it CORRECT/ACCURATE?

Is it INTERESTING?

Are the data REPRODUCEBLE?

Are previous works proper CITES?

Writing a manuscript

Pattern of published paper

A paper can be divided into several sections Title Abstract Introduction Methodologies Results and Discussion (together or separate) References

1. Title

Indicate the story “hi-light” of the paper

Should be informative and specific

Example: Novel leukocyte surface molecule CD298 Novel leukocyte surface molecule CD298: Association with a subunit and expression on peripheral blood cells. - Vague, non-specific, not interesting

A Simple Manual Rosetting Method for Absolute CD4+ Lymphocyte Counting. A Simple Manual Rosetting Method for Absolute CD4+ Lymphocyte Counting in Resource-Limited Countries. In general, scientific paper use the main pertinent finding to be the title A novel approach of using streptavidin magnetic bead sorting in vivo biotinylated survivin for monoclonal antibody production

2. Abstract The most important section Do it the last.

We talk on it later.

3. Introduction Begin this section by answering the following questions:

1. What is new and why is your work important?

2. Read and summarize all pertinent works in the field.

3. What is already known about the system that you are investigating? Reference the most important 4.

experimental/theoretical previous work. Think that “How is your research significantly different from those described in the other paper?” 5. Indicate the advantage of your work that improve the existing knowledge or technology in general.

From: Guidelines for writing a good scientific paper: Brochure distributed by TRF and CHE

Introduction:

start writing

In general, this section can be several paragraphs.

Paragraph 1

: Overview of the previous works that related to your works. Reference the cited papers. Paragraph 2: Introduce your work in the introduction section: Why you have to do it? Give in the major objective of your work. The Advantages or usefulness of your work? Introduction is one of the most difficult sections.

A clearly written builds the foundation for keeping the interest of the reader.

4. Methodologies

This is the most easy part for writing.

This section aim to assists other scientists in reproducing your results.

To write this section: - Use specific, informative language and include precisely what you have done.

- Omit unwanted information. Readers are not interested in superfluous details or asides.

- If you modified the method from the previous work, say exactly what you have done, even if it is a minor change.

For methods

• Always use past simple tense, especially in passive voice, because you are describing the methods you have already done. Note: It is different between writing manuscript and research proposal.

For research proposal or thesis proposal use future tense, because you describe what you are going to do.

For manuscript use past tense, because you describe what you have done.

5. Results and Discussion

Some journal, results and discussion are in the same section.

But some journal, results and discussion are separated.

For Results

This section is to display what is your findings. Before start writing • Think about the ordering or sequence of the results to be presented. Make your finding like a story of invention. • Do not assume that readers are as familiar with your work as you are.

Writing results

• Summarize and illustrate your finding by using simple, informative sentences, but not superfluous.

• Always include short introduction on the purpose of the experiment in each result.

• Use figures and tables for understanding your findings.

• Ensure that figures are legible and are presented in an eye-catching format.

• All tables and figures should numbered and referenced in the text.

• All figures have to has the figure legend for explaining their content.

Always look at other publications and learn the pattern of presented figures.

Tips • Always use past simple tense in the result section, because you are describing the done work.

• Example of some sentences: It was found that….

These results indicate that or indicating….

Figure 1 illustrates that…….

As was shown in Table 1,…... In order to study……, we measured….

For Discussion This is a difficult part.

•Interpret your findings described in the result part.

•Compare your findings with the previous reports. (For this you have to do a huge literatures review).

•Discuss all points of your findings that both agree or disagree with those of other researchers with a proper scientific reasons.

•Introduce your new finding and its utility.

Conclusion

All papers have to end up with “conclusion”.

Give a summary of the main points of your finding.

You may use this sentens: Taken together, ………… In summary,……………

Abstract

This is the most important section but should be the last to be written.

Writing the abstract

Briefly state the problems or purposes of the research.

Indicate the theoretical or experimental plan used.

Summarize the major findings and point out major conclusions.

Note: some journals limit the word used in the abstract.

6. References

All paper always end with the references section.

Use the correct reference form (Different journal have different style.

Check whether all references cited in the text are in the references list. (This is very importance.) Check spelling: title, name of scientists, journal and published date.

After finish writing

Always give the manuscript to native English speaker for language correction.

Tips for writing publications

1. Short and concise is always better than long and vague.

2. Consider the tense used. 3. Abstract, Materials and method and results use past tense.

4. Start drafting the paper from the section that you feel most comfortable and confident with.

5. Avoid repetition. (Results and Discussion) 6. Finally; Check all information appearing in the paper at least three times.

If you have co-authors, have them check it as well.

Beware: Any factual statement in the paper is the author’s responsibility.

Writing for publication is not easy and take a lot of time.

But it can be trained. Do it, practice it, then you can do it.

This lecture, major information was obtained from “Guidelines for writing a good scientific paper”, published by TRF and CHE.