Reviewer Guidelines

Single-blind by default; double-blind review is available on request.

Accept an invitation only if the manuscript is within your expertise, you have no conflict of interest with the authors or the work, and you can return a report by the date given. Decline promptly otherwise, and suggest alternative reviewers if you can.

The manuscript and your report are confidential. Do not share the manuscript with colleagues without the editor's permission, and do not use its content before publication. After submitting the review, reviewers should securely delete downloaded manuscript files and must not retain or use unpublished material.

For double-blind manuscripts, reviewers must not attempt to identify the authors.

Reviewers must obtain journal permission before using AI to assist with a review. Any permitted use must be disclosed, and confidential manuscript content must not be uploaded where confidentiality cannot be assured.

A useful report tells the editor and the authors what the study claims, whether the evidence supports it, and what would improve it. Consider:

• Scope: does the work fit the journal, and is the article type appropriate?
• Design and controls: are the experiments or analyses suited to the question, with appropriate controls and replication?
• Reagents and methods: are sequences, reagents, software and parameters described well enough to reproduce the work?
• Data: are sequence, expression and structural data deposited, and are image data complete and unmanipulated?
• Statistics: are methods appropriate and are conclusions proportionate to the evidence?
• Ethics and reporting: are approvals, consent, registration and reporting guidelines addressed where applicable?
• Presentation: is the manuscript clear, and do the references support the statements made?

Separate comments for the authors from confidential comments to the editor, and keep both specific and civil.

State a recommendation: accept, minor revision, major revision or reject. Editorial decisions are based on scope, scientific quality, methodological rigor, ethical compliance, reporting quality, and relevance to the journal. The editor makes the decision, informed by your report.

Report suspected plagiarism, data or image manipulation, undisclosed conflicts or ethical problems to the editor confidentially. Do not investigate or contact the authors yourself.

Researchers who would like to review for the journal can register interest at info@openaccesspub.org.