Publication Ethics

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

Plant Diversity of Central Asia is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics. Our policies are based on the Core Practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and apply to all parties involved in the act of publishing: authors, editors, reviewers and the publisher.

Duties of Editors

  • Editors evaluate manuscripts solely on their intellectual merit, without regard to the authors’ race, gender, religion, nationality or institutional affiliation.
  • Editors ensure a fair, timely and confidential double-blind peer-review process.
  • Editors do not disclose information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers and the publisher.
  • Editors recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a conflict of interest.

Duties of Reviewers

  • Reviewers assist editors in making editorial decisions and help authors improve their manuscripts.
  • Reviews are conducted objectively; personal criticism of authors is not acceptable.
  • Reviewers treat manuscripts as confidential documents and declare any conflict of interest.
  • Reviewers identify relevant published work that has not been cited and alert the editor to any substantial similarity with other papers.

Duties of Authors

  • Authors present an accurate account of the work performed and its objective significance. Fabrication and falsification of data constitute unethical behaviour.
  • Manuscripts must be original, not published elsewhere, and not under consideration by another journal. Proper acknowledgement of the work of others must always be given.
  • Authorship is limited to those who have made a significant contribution. All co-authors must approve the final version.
  • Authors disclose all sources of funding and any conflicts of interest.

Plagiarism and Misconduct

All submissions are screened for plagiarism. Manuscripts found to contain plagiarism, data manipulation, redundant publication or other misconduct are rejected. Where misconduct is detected after publication, the journal will issue a correction, expression of concern or retraction in accordance with COPE guidelines.

Corrections and Retractions

When errors are identified, the journal publishes a correction. Serious errors or ethical breaches may lead to retraction. The original article is retained with a clear retraction notice to preserve the scholarly record.

Complaints and Appeals

Complaints regarding editorial decisions or the conduct of the journal may be addressed to the editorial office and are handled promptly and fairly.