Conflicts of Interest, Grant Support, and Financial Disclosure Policy

Axis Journal of Medical and Biosocial Sciences (AJMBS)

Purpose

The Axis Journal of Medical and Biosocial Sciences (AJMBS) is deeply committed to maintaining academic transparency, ethical accountability, and scientific credibility. This policy outlines the journal’s standards for declaring conflicts of interest (COIs), financial disclosures, and grant support to ensure that research findings are free from undue influence or bias.

The goal is to protect the integrity of published research, promote reader confidence, and reinforce public trust in scientific scholarship.

1. Conflicts of Interest (COI)

A conflict of interest arises when financial, institutional, or personal relationships may affect—or appear to affect—an author’s objectivity, data interpretation, or publication judgment.

1.1 Disclosure Requirements for Authors

All authors must disclose any relationships or interests that could be viewed as influencing the work reported in their manuscript. These include, but are not limited to:

  • Financial Interests: Employment, consultancy, stock ownership, honoraria, speaker fees, paid expert testimony, patents (granted or pending), royalties, or reimbursement of travel expenses within the past three years.

  • Institutional Affiliations: Collaborations, advisory roles, or affiliations that could create perceived bias.

  • Non-Financial Interests: Personal, academic, political, or religious relationships that may affect judgment or research interpretation.

If no potential conflicts exist, the authors must include a clear statement in the manuscript such as:

“The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.”

1.2 Disclosure Timing

  • Disclosures must be made at the time of submission and confirmed during the final acceptance process.

  • Any new conflicts arising during the review or publication stages must be promptly communicated to the editorial office.

2. Grant Support and Financial Disclosure

AJMBS promotes transparency regarding all financial and institutional support that contributed to the research or publication.

2.1 Funding Acknowledgment

  • Authors must explicitly identify all sources of financial support, grants, sponsorships, or material contributions, including:

    • Research grants or institutional funding.

    • Provision of equipment, software, or research materials.

    • Financial assistance for data analysis, publication fees, or conference participation.

  • The name of the funding agency, grant number, and country of origin must be included in the Acknowledgments or Funding Statement section of the manuscript.

Example:

“This work was supported by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan under Grant No. HEC/23/1452. The funder had no role in study design, data collection, data interpretation, or manuscript preparation.”

2.2 Statement of Author Responsibility

  • Authors must confirm full and independent access to all study data and analytical results.

  • A statement must accompany the submission affirming that the authors take complete responsibility for the integrity, analysis, and interpretation of the data.

  • This ensures that funding sources do not influence scientific conclusions or reporting accuracy.

Required statement example:

“The authors had full access to all data in the study and take complete responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the data and analyses.”

3. Reviewer Disclosure

To uphold the impartiality of the peer-review process:

  • Reviewers must disclose any conflicts of interest that could affect their objectivity.

  • These may include recent collaborations with the authors, financial ties to the research topic, or competing professional interests.

  • Reviewers with identified conflicts will be recused, and an alternate expert reviewer will be assigned.

4. Editorial and Staff Disclosure

  • Editors and editorial board members are required to disclose any conflicts that could compromise their independence or neutrality.

  • Editors will not handle manuscripts involving their own work, co-authors, or institutional colleagues.

  • In such cases, manuscripts will be reassigned to another qualified editor to maintain impartiality.

5. Publication of Disclosures

AJMBS maintains a policy of full transparency by publishing all relevant disclosures alongside accepted articles.

  • The Conflict of Interest and Funding Statements will appear at the end of each article.

  • This allows readers to assess potential influences on the research outcomes.

  • Any financial or institutional affiliations disclosed post-publication will be updated in the online version with an editorial note or corrigendum.

6. Ethical and Legal Considerations

  • Disclosure of funding and conflicts aligns with international publication ethics frameworks established by COPE, ICMJE, and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME).

  • Authors are encouraged to consult the ICMJE Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form, which AJMBS accepts as a standard format.

  • False or incomplete disclosure is considered a breach of publication ethics and may lead to manuscript rejection, retraction, or notification of the author’s institution.

7. Compliance and Enforcement

  • Full compliance with this policy is a mandatory condition for publication in AJMBS.

  • Non-compliance or deliberate concealment of conflicts or funding sources will result in:

    • Immediate rejection of the manuscript during review, or

    • Retraction of the article if discovered post-publication.

  • The editorial office reserves the right to request supporting documentation (e.g., grant letters, funding agreements) when necessary.

8. Policy Review and Updates

This policy is reviewed annually to ensure consistency with evolving ethical standards and global best practices. Updates are implemented following approval by the AJMBS Editorial Board and Axis Exploration & Academics (Private) Limited’s governing body.

Conclusion

Through this comprehensive Conflicts of Interest, Grant Support, and Financial Disclosure Policy, the Axis Journal of Medical and Biosocial Sciences (AJMBS) reinforces its commitment to transparency, ethical authorship, and editorial independence. These principles ensure that every published article represents unbiased, reliable, and trustworthy research—upholding the confidence of both the academic community and the wider public.