Article types
- Research Articles
- Short Communications
- Methods & Techniques
- Theory & Modelling
- Reviews
- Commentaries
- Perspectives
- Conversation
- Correspondence
- Inside JEB
- Outside JEB
- Centenary Articles
Research Articles
Research Articles should be fully documented reports of original research and are always peer reviewed. They should be written in as concise a style as possible but should still be accessible to the broad readership of JEB.
The total length of the article should not exceed 7000 words (including the main text and figure legends, but not the title page, abstract, materials and methods section or reference list), with a 250-word abstract and a maximum of 10 display items (figures/tables). Supplementary information (figures, tables, movies, datasets, methods) may be published online at the discretion of the editor and reviewers (a strict limit of 50 Mb of supplementary information exists per article).
Manuscripts should be divided into the following sections, in this order:
- Title page
- Abstract (max. 250 words)
- Introduction
- Materials and methods
- Results
- Discussion
- List of symbols and abbreviations
- Appendix (if applicable)
- Acknowledgements
- Competing interests
- Author contributions
- Funding
- Data availability
- References
- Figure legends
- Tables
Short Communications
Short Communications are short, peer-reviewed articles focusing on a high-quality, hypothesis-driven, self-contained piece of original research and/or the proposal of a new theory or concept based on existing research. They should not be preliminary reports or contain purely incremental data and should be of significance and broad interest to the field of comparative physiology.
The total length of the article (including the main text and figure legends, but not the title page, abstract, materials and methods section or reference list) should not exceed 2500 words, with a 150-word abstract and a maximum of 3 display items (figures/tables). Supplementary information (figures, tables, movies, datasets, methods) may be published online at the discretion of the editor and reviewers (a strict limit of 50 Mb of supplementary material exists per article).
Articles focusing on original research should be divided into the following sections, in this order:
- Title page
- Abstract (max. 150 words)
- Introduction
- Materials and methods
- Results and discussion
- Acknowledgements
- Competing interests
- Author contributions
- Funding
- Data availability
- References
- Figure legends
- Tables
Methods & Techniques
Methods & Techniques are short, peer-reviewed articles reporting innovative methodological advances or significant modifications to recognized methods of data collection and analysis.
The total length of the article (including the main text and figure legends, but not the title page, abstract, materials and methods section or reference list) should not exceed 5000 words, with a 150-word abstract and a maximum of 5 display items (figures/tables).
Where possible, the use of the method should be demonstrated by applying it to real physiological data, but it is not necessary to apply the method to test a hypothesis. Methods should be described in enough detail to allow others to replicate and verify the protocol and must show a significant improvement on previous techniques. All methodology should be given within the Materials and methods section, although additional figures, tables and movies may be published online as supplementary information at the discretion of the editor and reviewers (there is a strict limit of 50 Mb per article). Mathematical calculations should be placed in an Appendix if they are likely to interrupt the flow of the manuscript.
Manuscripts should be divided into the following sections, in this order:
- Title page
- Abstract (max. 150 words)
- Introduction
- Materials and methods
- Results and discussion
- Appendix (if applicable)
- Acknowledgements
- Competing interests
- Author contributions
- Funding
- Data availability
- References
- Figure legends
- Tables
Theory & Modelling
Theory & Modelling articles are peer-reviewed research papers that document the development, analysis and/or application of a theory or modelling framework to address a new biological question, without the requirement for substantial new biological data. They should be written in clear, concise language that minimizes technical jargon and should be accessible to the broad readership of JEB.
The total length of the article should not exceed 10,000 words [including the main text, materials and methods section (or equivalent) and figure legends, but excluding the title page, abstract and reference list], with a 250-word abstract and a maximum of 10 display items (figures/tables/boxes). Supplementary information (figures, tables, movies, datasets, methods) may be published online (maximum 50 Mb per article). Authors must provide clear and free access to code and data associated with the paper, as detailed in our data deposition policy.
The Discussion must include text that explains the biological relevance of the theory or model. This text should provide guidance on how the theory or model can aid in interpreting experimental data, explain the testable hypotheses and predictions, and discuss the types of experiments needed to test these hypotheses.
Manuscripts should be divided into the following sections, in this order:
- Title page
- Abstract (max. 250 words)
- Introduction
- Materials and methods (or structured with major headings more compatible with theoretical work)
- Results and Discussion (combined or separate)
- List of symbols and abbreviations
- Appendix (if applicable)
- Acknowledgements
- Competing interests
- Author contributions
- Funding
- Data availability — must include a link and reference to a specific code version
- References
- Figure legends
- Tables
Reviews
Reviews aim to provide a timely, insightful and accessible overview of a particular field or aspect of experimental biology research, ideally by bringing together data from different fields and organisms. Reviews can take a systematic approach, including incorporating meta-analyses. Although authors are free to express their opinions in a Review, they are asked to provide counterbalancing viewpoints where appropriate and to ensure that opinion and fact are clearly distinguishable.
Reviews are peer-reviewed and predominantly commissioned. They can be up to 7000 words in length, with up to 8 display items (figures, tables or boxes).
Authors wishing to submit an unsolicited Review should first contact the Reviews Editor.
Commentaries
Commentaries aim to convey the author's perspective on a particular topic of relevance to experimental biology. This may include detailing questions that remain unanswered, presenting a fresh viewpoint on existing problems, challenging current paradigms, introducing novel ideas and new hypotheses, and proposing how innovative approaches and methods will advance our understanding of the field.
Commentaries are peer-reviewed and predominantly commissioned. They can be up to 4500 words in length, with up to 5 display items (figures, tables or boxes).
Authors wishing to submit an unsolicited Commentary should first contact the Reviews Editor.
Perspectives
Perspectives aim to offer a contemporary viewpoint on a topic of widespread interest to the JEB community that is not discipline specific. They can include personal thoughts and beliefs that are based on facts. Topics of interest may include (but are not limited to) diversity and inclusion in science, challenges facing ECRs, sustainability, science communication and outreach, and the impacts of these issues upon particular fields or experimental biology generally.
Perspectives are peer-reviewed and predominantly commissioned. They can be up to 2000 words in length, with up to 3 display items (figures, tables or boxes).
Authors wishing to submit an unsolicited Perspective should first contact the Reviews Editor.
Conversation
Conversation articles take the form of an interview conveying a personal story and our current theme is Extraordinary Creatures. All articles are edited with approval from the interviewee.
Interviewees are selected by the Editors but if you would like to nominate a researcher to be interviewed, please contact the News & Views Editor.
Correspondence
Should a reader have cogent criticisms of a paper published in JEB, the journal will consider publishing them in the form of a letter. The authors of the original paper(s) under discussion are given the final right to reply, and any such response may be published together with the correspondence.
Correspondence and Response articles are free to read. This ensures that there is no restriction to the publication of valid and important comment on published work in JEB.
Correspondence/Response articles should be a maximum of 1000 words, with no more than 10 references and one figure or table.
The journal reserves the right to edit items of Correspondence/Response and, where appropriate, to have them peer reviewed. As a courtesy, we usually share the contents of the response with the correspondence authors before publication, but it is intended that the correspondence authors focus on the original papers (and not on the response that results from their correspondence).
To submit a correspondence to the journal, please contact the Editorial Office with a brief description of the article.
Inside JEB
Inside JEB highlights the key developments in JEB. Written by science journalists, the short reports give the inside view of the science published in the journal. Inside JEB articles are not peer reviewed.
Outside JEB
Outside JEB is a monthly feature that reports the most exciting developments in experimental biology. These short articles are selected and written by a team of active research scientists. Outside JEB articles are not peer reviewed.
Centenary Articles
Centenary Articles are a series of commissioned Commentaries, Reviews and Perspective pieces to mark the Centenary of JEB in 2023. Their aim is to document the past, present and future of experimental biology and to highlight the discipline breadth and depth of JEB over the past 100 years.
Reviews are peer-reviewed, commissioned articles that can be up to 7000 words in length (with up to 8 display items). They recognise and concisely document the history of the discipline, field or subject matter, describing its beginnings and capturing its evolution and progress over the past 100 years through highlighting key advances and developments. See the above section on Reviews for further details.
Commentaries are peer-reviewed, commissioned articles that can be up to 4500 words in length (with up to 5 display items). Although they will have a historical aspect, their core content and focus is on the future of the field and subject matter. This may include detailing questions that remain unanswered, presenting a fresh viewpoint on existing problems, challenging current paradigms, introducing novel ideas and new hypotheses, and proposing how innovative approaches and methods will advance our understanding of comparative physiology and biomechanics, and experimental biology more broadly. See the above section on Commentaries for further details.
Perspectives can be up to 2000 words (with up to 3 display items) and offer a contemporary viewpoint on a topic of widespread interest to the JEB community that is not discipline specific. They can include personal thoughts and beliefs that are based on facts. Topics of interest may include (but are not limited to) diversity and inclusion in science, challenges facing ECRs, sustainability, acknowledgement of First Nations People, science communication and outreach, and achieving and demonstrating research impact in comparative physiology and biomechanics. See the above section on Perspectives for further details.
Authors wishing to submit an unsolicited Centenary Article should first contact the Editorial Office.
