Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

Australian Journal of Natural Sciences (AJNS) is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and takes all possible measures against any publication malpractices. The journal follows the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) Recommendations.

Responsibilities of Editors

• Editors are responsible for deciding which articles are published, based solely on academic merit, originality, and relevance.
• Editors ensure fair, unbiased, and timely peer review.
• Editors maintain confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and declare any conflicts of interest.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

• Reviewers contribute to editorial decisions with objective, constructive feedback.
• Reviewers maintain confidentiality and declare conflicts of interest.
• Reviewers identify relevant published work not cited and alert editors to suspected misconduct.

Responsibilities of Authors

• Authors ensure originality of work, proper citation, and no plagiarism.
• Authors avoid simultaneous submission to multiple journals and disclose conflicts of interest.
• All listed authors must have made significant contributions (per ICMJE criteria).
• Authors obtain ethical approval for human/animal studies and informed consent where required.
• Authors disclose funding sources and use of AI tools (if any).

Research Integrity

• Allegations of misconduct (plagiarism, data fabrication, etc.) will be investigated following COPE flowcharts.
• Corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern will be issued as needed.

Conflicts of Interest

All parties (authors, reviewers, editors) must disclose financial or non-financial conflicts.

The journal encourages open access and transparency to promote research integrity.