Author Instructions

Note:  The AJTMH welcomes manuscripts that have been posted on pre-peer review sites (e.g. bioRxiv, medRxiv).

Contents

Cover letter
Forms
Authorship
Manuscript types
Page charges
Ethical concerns
Submission process
Manuscript formatting
Additional information

The AJTMH publishes a broad range of papers covering topics in tropical medicine. Authors uncertain about the appropriateness of a manuscript for the Journal are encouraged to review recent issues of the Journal and to contact editorial staff with any questions. Manuscripts and correspondence should be submitted at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ajtmh. Questions about the submission process can be directed to the AJTMH editorial office and technical support questions should be sent to ts.mcsupport@clarivate.com.

COVER LETTER

All manuscripts should be accompanied by a cover letter with the following information:

1. The title of the paper.
2. A brief description of the significance of the paper to the readers of the AJTMH.
3. A statement confirming that the material is original, has not already been published, and has not and will not be submitted for publication elsewhere as long as it is under consideration by the AJTMH. This does not include preprints posted on bioRxiv or medRxiv.
4. Written disclosure of any relationships or support which might be perceived as constituting a conflict of interest.

Cover letters should be uploaded with the manuscript documents and designated as "For AJTMH Internal Use".

Back to top

FORMS

All manuscript co-authors will be required to submit an authorship form when the manuscript is accepted. The corresponding author will be required to sign a copyright form and an authorship form. Upon acceptance, an email will be sent to all authors from our submission system (ScholarOne). Each author will be required to submit their own forms using the link provided in their email. Please contact the editorial office at review@ajtmh.org with any questions. 

Back to top

AUTHORSHIP

There is no limit to the number of authors that may be listed (except for Images in Clinical Tropical Medicine articles; see below). However, only two individuals may be listed as first authors.

All authors will be required to sign authorship forms. Please be sure all co-author email addresses are correct in the ScholarOne submission system. Email addresses must be updated so coauthors can receive email and electronically sign the required authorship form if your paper is accepted. 

Please check the byline in your submitted paper to ensure it matches the list of submitted authors. 

Any changes to the author list after submission is not encouraged and will result in a delay of publication should your manuscript be accepted.  

Be sure that all listed co-authors meet authorship guidelines and can sign the required authorship forms electronically. Individuals who do not meet authorship guidelines can be listed in the Acknowledgments section. Co-authors from non-LMIC countries may be responsible for page charges.

All authors must meet the standards described in the ICMJE authorship guidelines: 1) Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; 2) Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; 3) Final approval of the version to be published, and; 4) Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved. Please read Section II.A.2 of the ICMJE recommendations for more information on authorship guidelines.

In some cases, for papers with a large number of authors participating in a working group, please refer to the ICMJE guidelines. Individuals who are listed as an author must meet authorship requirements. 

Back to top

MANUSCRIPT TYPES

Original research reports. These form the large majority of papers published by the AJTMH and consist of reports of novel research. There is no word limit or limit to the number of references, but efforts should be made to keep manuscripts succinct and limit the number of tables and figures.

Full reports should include separate sections entitled:

1. Abstract - 250 word limit and no subheads
2. Introduction
3. Materials and Methods
4. Results
5. Discussion

The following sections should be included after the text:

1. Acknowledgments
2. Financial Support
3. Disclosures regarding real or perceived conflicts of interest.
4. Authors’ current addresses: including affiliation, city, country, and email address
5. References (see Reference section below).

Original research papers with excessive figures or tables may be required to convert some of them to supplemental files. Otherwise, there may be an additional fee. 

Short reports. This format can be used for submission of important preliminary observations, technique modifications, or data that do not warrant publication as a full paper.
Short reports should:

1. Word limit - 1500
2. Abstract - 150 word limit and no subheads
3. Tables and/or figures - limit 3
4. Acknowledgments
5. Financial Support
6. Disclosures regarding real or perceived conflicts of interest.
7. Authors’ current addresses: including affiliation, city, country, and email address
8. References - limit 20 (see Reference section below).

Short reports that are over 1500 words may be changed to an Original Research Report. 

Reviews. The AJTMH will consider reviews on relevant topics in tropical medicine, global health, and related areas. Typically reviews will be submitted by leading authorities in a field. We encourage mini-reviews, providing concise reviews of focused topics in no more than 2000 words, but larger reviews will also be considered. Mini-reviews are an opportunity to examine a specific aspect of a disease in great depth to shed light on new perspectives or highlight key areas of interest. They may also be about diseases or fields that are poorly understood. Reviews require a short abstract.
Reviews should include:

1. Word limit - 2000
2. Abstract - 150 word limit
3. Text
4. Acknowledgments
5. Financial Support
6. Disclosures regarding real or perceived conflicts of interest.
7. Authors’ current addresses: including affiliation, city, country, and email address
8. References - (see Reference section below).

There may be an additional fee for reviews that are over 2000 words. 

Perspectives. These are short articles (1500 words) on timely topics that offer both a focused review of the subject and a balanced presentation of issues that may include key recent changes or areas of controversy. Perspectives may offer the opinions of authoritative experts on timely topics or personal accounts from those with compelling tropical medicine experiences. Please explain why the topic is important and relevant to the readership.
Perpsectives should include:

1. Word Limit - 1500
2. Abstract - 150 word limit
3. Text
4. Acknowledgments
5. Financial Support
6. Disclosures regarding real or perceived conflicts of interest.
7. Authors’ current addresses: including affiliation, city, country, and email address
8. References - (see Reference section below).

There may be an additional fee for perspectives that are over 1500 words. 

Case reports. Short reports of no more than 1500 words can describe a single case or small case series. These must present novel information about a tropical medicine problem of broad interest.
Case reports should include:

1. Abstract - 150 word limit
2. Case Report section - include only clinical information that is relevant to the manuscript
3. Brief Discussion 
4. Acknowledgments
5. Financial Support
6. Disclosures regarding real or perceived conflicts of interest.
7. Authors’ current addresses: including affiliation, city, country, and email address
8. References - (see Reference section below).

There may be an additional fee for case reports that are over 1500 words. 

Meeting Reports. These are summaries of recent meetings in the field of tropical medicine and are usually no longer than 1500 words. There may be an additional fee for Meeting Reports that are over 1500 words. 

Images in Clinical Tropical Medicine. Short reports (typically up to 200 words, but up to 400 words if complex descriptions are needed, with 5 references and no abstract) including images that demonstrate particularly informative, striking, or unusual presentations of tropical disease are welcome. Manuscripts that offer visual immediacy and clinical relevance will be prioritized. Images will be published in black and white in the print version of the Journal (author will have the option to pay for color) and in color online. Images articles should have no more than 3 authors. There may be an additional fee for Images articles that are over 400 words. 

There are no author page charges for the following manuscript types:

Stories From the Field. These articles are first person narrative stories that inform our readers about personal experiences in tropical medicine and global health. We are interested in compelling stories that relate interesting experiences, express opinions, challenge conventional viewpoints, highlight historical perspectives, share sustainable solutions, or encourage innovation. Essays should be titled but have no abstract, section headings, figures, or references. The maximum length is 1500 words. The maximum number of authors is 3, but as these articles are typically first-person accounts, reasons for more than one author should be explained. Stories should be written in the first person singular, unless there is a compelling storytelling reason to use a different format. When patients are discussed, they should be de-identified. Preapproval is not required before submission, but potential authors are welcome to request feedback on suggested topics before submission. Submissions from authors from LMICs are encouraged.

Book Reviews. These are occasionally solicited by the editors. They should have no sub-headings and be no more than 1000 words in length.

Letters to the Editor. Letters are uncommonly published and should only be responses to recently published articles in the AJTMH. Letters to the Editor should have an original title – not the same title as the manuscript that the letter references. If letters are deemed worthy of publication, they will typically be sent to the authors of the published paper for a response.

Back to top

PAGE CHARGES

There are charges to publish in the Journal. See here for more information.

Back to top

ETHICAL CONCERNS

Plagiarism. Plagiarism is not acceptable, and plagiarized content will not be considered for publication. If we suspect plagiarism, we will follow COPE guidelines.

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to, any of the following actions that are done without proper attribution:

• Directly copying text from other sources
• Copying ideas, images, or data from other sources
• Using ideas from another source with slightly modified language
• Reusing text from your own previous publications without attribution

If plagiarism is detected during the peer review process, the manuscript may be rejected. If plagiarism is detected after publication, we may issue a correction or retract the paper. We reserve the right to inform authors' institutions about plagiarism detected either before or after publication.

Post-publication comments and critiques. Comments and critiques on published papers may be submitted as letters to the editor. If a letter is to be published, we will generally invite the authors of the critiqued article to write a reply. Both the critique and response will receive editorial review and may receive full peer review.

Back to top

SUBMISSION PROCESS

Prepare your manuscript using a word processing program. The main document and tables must be submitted as a Microsoft Word .doc or .docx file. For items that accompany the text (figures, copyright forms, etc.), you may upload the following file types: .xls, .ppt, .gif, .pdf, .jpg, .png, and .tif.
(.rar files can not be processed.)

The final step in the submission process is to create a PDF. This PDF contains all files you uploaded except for those files you have marked as "For AJTMH Internal Use."  This PDF is how editors and reviewers will see your paper. Be sure that the main document appears first and that all components are visible. 

Other file types such as LaTeX files and QuickTime movies can be uploaded. Videos are best uploaded in mp4 format. Click here to submit your manuscript online.

Back to top

MANUSCRIPT FORMATTING

Click here for a manuscript formatting checklist.

Alt Text. This is a new requirement to meet the European Accessibility act. Alt Text will be required for every table, figure, image, and equation. Please refer to this link to learn how to generate Alt Text. Please add the Alt Text to your main document before the references with your figure legends. Please note figure legends and Alt Text are not the same. 

Spacing. The text should be in 11 or 12 point type, fully double-spaced, leaving a margin of 1 inch on all sides. Continuous line numbers (NOT restarting with each page) should be included throughout the manuscript and pages should be numbered consecutively.

Title page. The title page must be the first page of the main document. This should include, in the following sequence, the title, a list of all authors, and author institutions, identified by superscripts in Arabic numerals. The corresponding author should be denoted by an asterisk, with address, e-mail, and phone number at the bottom of the page. Also include a list of up to 5 key words and the word counts for the abstract and for the text (not including the abstract, figures, or references). The title page should also list the number of figures, tables, and other pertinent information such as supplementary materials.

Title. The manuscript title should be as succinct as possible. Titles should generally not include abbreviations. A running head, for use as a header, should also be provided; the running head should be not longer than 60 characters (including spaces).

Style. American spelling should be used. Indent the first sentence of each paragraph. Use only one space between sentences. For presentation of a series of terms, a serial comma (e.g. “red, white, and blue”) should be used. For italics, italicize the words and phrases in your text, but do not underline. Italicize genus and species. For words that were originally foreign, but are now standard English (e.g. i.e., e.g., in vitro, in vivo), italics are not necessary. For complex sentences, parentheses should enclose brackets. Punctuation should follow the parentheses. Superscripts, including reference numbers, should directly follow punctuation marks. Numbers in text should be in Arabic format, except for one. Insert a space between a number and a unit of measure and both before and after the < symbol, > symbol, and = symbol; no space is needed between a number and the % sign.

Abbreviations. Abbreviations are commonly overused, compromising the clarity of manuscripts. Authors are advised to keep abbreviations to a minimum, using them when they are clearer than long terms (e.g. PCR, DNA), but avoiding them when possible when they are non-standard and idiosyncratic. Abbreviations should conform to the AMA Style Manual. Terms should be spelled out with first usage in both the abstract and text, with the abbreviation following in parentheses. After this first usage, the abbreviation must be used consistently. Plurals of abbreviations do not require apostrophes.

Drug names. Proprietary names of drugs may not appear in the title but may be used in conjunction with the generic name when the drug is first mentioned in the abstract, and again when first mentioned in the text. Thereafter, use only the generic name.

Names of organisms. Genus and species should be italicized. After the first usage the genus should be abbreviated with a single letter (e.g. E. coli). For different species within a genus, the genus should be spelled out with the first usage of each. Adjectives referring to organisms (e.g. plasmodial, falciparum malaria) are not italicized. Viral nomenclature should be based on the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV; see the AMA Style Manual. A complete listing of ICTV recognized viral species can be found here.

Figures. Figures should be numbered in Arabic numerals and cited in the text. It should be noted that a fee is required for color illustrations in print, but authors can choose black & white in print, but color online at no charge. All figures should contain a brief legend. Figures should be uploaded as separate files. Please be sure to include figure legends in the main document. Please see figure specifications below. Figure accuracy is the responsibility of the authors. Does the information in the figure match the information in the paper? 

Figure specifications. Monochrome (1-bit) images/ line art: The preferred resolution for this type of image is between 1000 and 1200 ppi. Examples include charts and graphs made of solid black and white, with no gray values. Combination halftones: The preferred resolution for this type of image is between 600 and 900 ppi. Examples include color or grayscale figures containing halftone and line art elements. Halftones: The suggested minimum resolution for this type of image is 300 ppi. Examples include color or grayscale figures containing pictures only, with no text or thin lines. We prefer PDF files for line art and tiff files for images. Please do not embed figure files in word documents, as this decreases their resolution. Figures should be submitted as a separate file or files.

Please note that when converting charts and graphs to black and white, many colors are difficult to differentiate in grayscale. You may wish to consider differentiating data with dashes, dots or diagonal lines if you choose not to pay for color printing.

Tables. Tables should be serially numbered in Arabic numerals and cited in the text. Each table should be placed on a separate page at the appropriate point in the text or at the end of the manuscript. Tables must be editable - not a pasted picture of a table. Accuracy of the table is the responsiblity of the authors. Does the information in the table match the information in the paper? 

Supplementary material. Supplemental files must be uploaded as separate file(s) from the main document. Please be sure all supplemental materials are in one file, including figures and figure legends. Authors have the option of publishing tables and figures as supplementary online only material, and they will be referenced in the text. Authors are strongly encouraged to publish some tables and/or figures as supplementary online only material if the manuscript contains an excessive number of figures and/or tables. This will save space in the print journal and may decrease page charges to the authors. There is no charge for online supplementary figures, tables, or other supplementary material. Supplemental files must be uploaded as separate file(s) from the main document. Supplemental figures and tables should be numbered separately from figures and tables in the main document. For example: S1, S2, S3, etc.

Back to top

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Corresponding Author. The corresponding author who is listed in the final, accepted paper will be listed as the corresponding author in the published article (even if a there is a different corresponding author listed in our system). A corresponding author who is an ASTMH member will be eligible for the discounted membership page charge rate.

Co-Authors. All listed co-authors must meet authorship guidelines and must sign the required authorship forms. Co-authors from non-LMIC countries may be responsible for page charges. Individuals who do not meet authorship guidelines can be listed in the Acknowledgments section.

Co-Author Contact Information. Co-author contact information must be included in the manuscript before the references. Include their proper name (check spelling), institution, and email address. Co-author contact information must also be entered into the system upon submission. Be sure that all listed co-authors meet author guidelines and will be able to sign the required authorship forms.

Additional sections. The following sections should be included after the text: Acknowledgments, Financial Support, and Disclosures regarding real or perceived conflicts of interest. Manuscripts should end with a listing of all authors' current addresses, including affiliation, city, country, and email address, followed by References.

References. References must use standard AJTMH formatting; please refer to prior issues of the Journal and the information below to assure correct formatting. References should be cited by consecutive numbers in the text. The numbers should appear in superscripts that appear after closing punctuation. There should be no brackets around the references. All authors should be listed, unless a referenced manuscript has more than 10 authors; in that case, please list only the lead author then "et al". Abbreviate journal names as in PubMed, with journal name and volume number in italics. References should be from peer-reviewed publications. Unpublished sources, including abstracts, conference proceedings, dissertations, and manuscripts not yet accepted for publication, should be cited in parentheses in the text as unpublished data or a personal communication (e.g. Kazura, J., personal communication).

Examples of references:

• Durbin AP, Whitehead SS, 2013. The dengue human challenge model: has the time come to accept this challenge? J Infect Dis 207: 697–699.
• Muirhead-Thomson RC, 1953. Mosquito Behavior in Relation to Malaria Transmission and Control in the Tropics. London, UK: Edward Arnold and Company.
• White GW, 2007. Terminology of insect repellents. Debboun M, Frances SP, Strickman D, eds. Insect Repellents. Boca Rotan, FL: CRC Press, 31–46.
• GAVI, 2013. Cholera Vaccine Investment Strategy. Available at: http://www.gavialliance.org/about/strategy/vaccine-investment-strategy/. Accessed March 11, 2014.

Review process. After submission, manuscripts are first reviewed by editorial staff. Manuscripts with incorrect formatting or unacceptable language or style will be returned to authors for correction before transmission to the Editor-in-Chief. A common reason for return is unacceptable quality of English, so authors who are not fluent in English are encouraged to seek help with writing prior to submission. Resources for this include The Charlesworth Group Author Services, LetPub Language Editing Services, Editage English language editing services, Enago editing services, JournalEdit, and Oxford Language Editing Services. Acceptable manuscripts will be examined by the Editor-in-Chief and either accepted without review, rejected without review, or assigned to a Section Editor. Section Editors elicit reviews from qualified experts. Reviews are considered by Section Editors and the Editor-in-Chief, a decision is made, and authors are notified of review decisions as promptly as possible.

Requested and excluded reviewers. Authors must list at least 4 potential reviewers, including name and contact information. The careful selection of relevant experts as reviewers will facilitate and speed up the review process. Please do not list reviewers from within an author’s institution, and, especially for international authors, avoid only local reviewers. Authors may exclude up to 4 individuals as reviewers, although such exclusions should be uncommon.

Revision of manuscripts. Articles typically require revision before final acceptance. Authors are asked to respond by letter to all concerns raised by editors and reviewers. For each concern the authors should explain exactly how they have modified their manuscript based on the concern, or if they feel that no change is needed, they must justify this decision. Changes to the manuscript must be clearly described, with identification of the site of the change. With resubmission, authors should provide both a marked up version of the earlier submission, with all changes indicated (using Track Changes or highlighting), and a final version. Be sure to designate the clean version as the "Main Document" and the tracked changes version as "Tracked Changes". In response to revised manuscripts, editors may seek additional reviews and/or request a second revision, or they may reach a conclusion as to acceptability for publication. Final decisions are confirmed by the Editor-in-Chief.

Sharing of information. Newly determined nucleotide and/or amino acid sequence data must be deposited, and GenBank/EMBL/DDBJ accession numbers must be included in the Materials and Methods section. It is expected that the sequence data will be released to the public no later than the publication date of the paper. New information on arboviruses should be deposited into the  CDC arbovirus catalog.

Ethical guidelines. For all human research, the Material and Methods section must declare that informed consent was obtained from adult participants and from parents or legal guardians of minors and it must include the names of appropriate institutional review boards that approved the project. Clinical trials must have been registered with clinicaltrials.gov or an equivalent body, and the trial number should be provided. For studies involving experimental animals, the Materials and Methods section must declare that the experiments complied with guidelines for the humane use of laboratory animals from the National Institutes of Health or an equivalent organization, and it must include the names of appropriate institutional review boards that approved the project. The journal recommends adhering to the guidelines stated in the Belmont Report or those set forth by the Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences. Authors should take care to obscure the identity of patients in photographs; if this is not possible then a signed informed consent form from the patient is required.

AJTMH open access policy. Manuscripts may be made freely available online immediately upon publication for a flat fee of $3000 USD (or $2500 for ASTMH members), paid instead of the usual page charges. This fee does not include additional charges for print color figures. For articles for which the open access fee is not paid, authors must honor a 12-month embargo on current content, they may, however deposit their paper in a public repository. Please notify the managing editor after depositing your article. There are two types of Open Access. Papers with waivers are not eligible for open access. 

Gold Open Access means that the final published version of your article is permanently and freely available online for anyone to read at the time of publication. Your work may be reused with few restrictions, and people must credit you if they reuse your work. The journal uses the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY).

Green Open Access relates to self-archiving of your article. Authors who do not pay the open access fee may still deposit the final published version of their manuscript in institutional or subject repositories but we request that you keep them under embargo for 12 months. Green Open Access does not eliminate publishing fees. Publishing fees will still be assessed and collected. See our publishing fees page for details. 

Authors are responsible for knowing if their funder requires them to publish their work as open access. Published papers will be deposited in PubMedCentral (PMC) by the journal office. Open access articles will be made freely available on PMC at the time of publication. All other articles will be deposited in PMC but will not be available until the 12-month embargo period has expired. Wellcome Trust/Research Council UK authors can self-archive their manuscripts and make these available from PMC and Europe PMC 6 months after the publication date. 

Email delivery. In order to ensure that you continue to receive emails from us, we recommend that you ask your IT team make sure that the domain of amazonses.com and manuscriptcentral.com is safelisted/whitelisted to ensure email delivery continues uninterrupted.

Back to top