Objectives

JoVE is a scientific methods journal providing rapid and efficient publication of methodology in biological, medical, chemical and physical research. JoVE articles are video based (we call them video methods articles) which ensures a more effective transfer of information and experimental detail than with traditional text-based articles. JoVE publishes novel methods, innovative application of existing techniques, and gold standard protocols that enable a greater level of experimental transparency. A detailed text protocol and representative results accompany every video to further expand the impact of our video articles.

Criteria

JoVE accepts articles based on scientific validity and degree of usefulness to the scientific community, with particular emphasis placed on the ability to provide detailed information on how a given research procedure is performed. Other important criteria for publication include coherence and clarity of presentation, compliance with research standards, technical quality, and general impact. These qualities are assessed by JoVE’s editors and external peer reviewers.

To learn more about JoVE’s objectives and scope, please see our About page or e-mail submissions@jove.com with questions.

JoVE does publish methods and techniques that have been used to generate data previously published in results-driven journals. In all cases, JoVE requires original manuscript text that does not overlap with any other article, either previously published or at any stage in the publication process. If an author uses representative results or figures from a prior publication, the author must obtain permission from the original publisher and include appropriate citation. JoVE encourages authors to publish the most recent version of their method, especially if the method has been improved upon following original use.

JoVE editors work with authors, external peer reviewers and editorial board members to publish the best scientific practices in our journal. While we greatly value the input of our peer reviewers and editorial boards, final editorial decisions are made by JoVE’s in-house editorial and production staff.

Some authors are invited to submit an article; however, this does not guarantee publication. In addition, the journal reserves the right to retract a manuscript at any point in the submission process if there are any concerns with its content.

Animal Studies

Since JoVE articles contain both video and text components, authors must have explicit, written permission to show animals on film from the regulatory groups overseeing their studies. This permission may be in the form of an approved animal protocol, an addendum to a protocol, a letter from the animal use committee, or the equivalent. For protocols that use live animals (i.e. vertebrates and higher invertebrates), authors must state that all experiments were completed in accordance and compliance with all relevant regulatory and institutional guidelines. All manuscripts and videos must include a statement that the demonstrated protocol was approved by the authors’ animal use governing body. All articles involving laboratory animals are reviewed by JoVE’s independent Veterinary Advisory Board to ensure compliance with these guidelines.

Veterinary Review

For videos that involve the use of laboratory animals, the completed article is reviewed by our specialist veterinary board to ensure compliance with animal welfare standards. Please note that authors are solely responsible for ensuring compliance with their local animal research guidelines and obtaining permission to film, if required.

Human Subjects

All studies involving human subjects must explicitly state that informed consent is required and has been obtained for the subjects in the video demonstration. Authors also must state that their research has been performed in compliance with all institutional, national and international guidelines for human welfare. These statements must be made within both the manuscript and video. Human subjects appearing in a film must have a signed Talent Release Form on file. Authors should also ensure that they have the proper permission from their institutional review board or other regulatory groups overseeing their studies to film human subjects. Authors must make sure that subjects understand the format and distribution of the publication.

If questions or concerns arise regarding the use of animals or human subjects, reviewers may be contacted to provide advice in addition to JoVE’s independent Veterinary Advisory Board. See the Author License Agreement or the Author License Agreement UK for additional information.

JoVE relies on a strong editorial and peer review process to select manuscripts for publication. Only those articles that fit within the aim and scope of JoVE will be considered for publication. Each submitted manuscript initially undergoes a quality evaluation to ensure compliance with JoVE’s Manuscript Instructions for Authors. Submissions may be returned to authors with revision suggestions at this stage and will not be sent for further peer review until passing quality control. Following peer review, authors will be provided with comments and suggestions from reviewers and editors. Peer reviewers are instructed to focus on accuracy, rationale, limitation and comparisons to existing methods in their reviews.

Reviewer Selection

When submitting a manuscript, authors will be asked to suggest 3 peer reviewers and provide their contact information. Authors are encouraged to select reviewers who have expertise in the topic of study and are well-versed in the aspects of the methods presented. Authors should not recommend peer reviewers with whom they directly work, but recommendation of colleagues within their field is encouraged.

Authors also have the opportunity to request the exclusion of peer reviewers or editors from the peer review of their article. JoVE will respect these requests as long as they do not interfere with the rigorous and objective evaluation of the manuscript.

JoVE editorial staff will make the final decision regarding all peer review selections and exclusions. Please see our peer review guidelines and our policy on conflict of interest for more information.

JoVE requests that authorship is assigned to those who contributed to the content of the article. Contributions can be conceptual, developmental and physical. Authorship can be assigned based upon the conventions of specific fields. JoVE does not require that all authors appear in the video portion of the article, but please consider acknowledgement of all who do appear.

JoVE assumes that the corresponding author represents all authors during the publication process, but the published corresponding author may differ from that used for correspondence with the editorial office during the submission and publication process.

If any discrepancies in authorship arise, JoVE requires that all authors on the manuscript approve the authorship in writing. JoVE reserves the right to contact any individuals who the corresponding author asks to be added or removed from the list of authors.

The use of any large-language-model (LLM) or artificial intelligence (AI) tool must be disclosed by the authors when preparing or revising a manuscript in the Acknowledgements section. The tool itself cannot be credited as an author. The authors of a manuscript are ultimately responsible for the contents of the work.

Video Produced by JoVE

After submission, each manuscript will be editorially and peer reviewed, which is typically a 1-2 month process. Once a text article passes review, a script will be generated. Generally, a filming date will be scheduled within 4-8 weeks after acceptance. A videographer will be sent to the authors’ site to film a demonstration of the procedure. Authors will need to have everything prepared so filming can take place within one day. We ask that on the day of filming all parties involved arrive on time and prepared to film. Preparation includes, but is not limited to: the manufacturing and procurement of reagents, ensuring instrumentation is operational, cooperation during the scriptwriting process, having a clean/presentable lab and making sure experimental subjects are available. In the event of filming being delayed, aborted or requiring re-shooting due to a lack of organization from the client, JoVE reserves the right to charge the relevant days filming costs. A site re-visit to carry out further works may incur additional costs of up to $1,000.

Following filming, footage will be sent back to our video editing studio where it will be spliced together and professional voiceovers, text and graphics will be added. Once a rough cut is generated (typically 6-8 weeks post-filming) authors will have the opportunity to review the video to ensure it correctly represents their method. Any necessary scientific changes will be incorporated into the video. Following final author approval, the video and text article will be published on the JoVE website and indexed in PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, SciFinder, and Scopus. The time from submission to publication generally takes 5-8 months. Please note that any protocol with animal work requires an additional veterinary review; these articles may take longer to be published.

Video Produced by Author

After submission of the manuscript and a low resolution version of your video (<50 MB), the manuscript and video will be reviewed by both our editorial and production staff. This review can take several weeks. Authors should only select this publication option if they are located outside of our videographer network and they or their colleagues have the technical expertise to edit video and audio. Authors will only have two rounds of revisions to comply with our stringent Video Produced by Author Criteria. If the text and video comply with our guidelines, both the text and a full resolution version of the video will be sent out for peer review. If accepted, the video and text article will be published on the JoVE website and indexed in PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, SciFinder, and Scopus. Submission to publication generally takes 4-7 months. Please note that any protocol with animal work requires an additional veterinary review; these articles may take longer to be published.

JoVE depends, in part, on the payment of publication fees to support its operations. Articles are considered for publication solely on the basis of their scientific merit and peer review.

For manuscripts submitted after February 1, 2021, the publication fee is $1,400. If authors choose the open access option for their full-text article, an additional fee of $2,500 will apply.

The fee is the same whether the video is produced by the authors or by JoVE. If the open access option is selected, the full-text article and author-submitted video will be freely available on the JoVE website, without a subscription.

The videos produced by the JoVE production services are not a part of the author’s submission and are available on the JoVE website under subscription.

Authors own the copyright to their article, but grant JoVE the exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual use of the article regardless of access type. Full license information for articles is available in our Author License Agreement. UK authors funded by UKRI can use our UK Author License Agreement.

If the Author’s funding is a subject to the requirement of the NIH Public Access Policy, the Author retains the right to provide a copy of their final peer-reviewed manuscript to the NIH for archiving in PubMed Central 12 months after publication by JoVE.

If the Author’s funding is a subject to the requirement of the UKRI Policy, Authors retain the right to self-deposit their final Accepted Manuscript in any repository immediately after publication and without restriction on non-commercial reuse.

If the Author’s funding is a subject to the requirements of Plan S, JoVE acknowledges that the Author retains the right to provide a copy of the Author’s accepted manuscript for archiving in a Plan S approved repository under a Plan S approved license.

The videos produced by JoVE production services are governed by the Video Release Form.

The author may use the article and video for their non-commercial research and education work.

JoVE does allow publication of corporate sponsored articles with the inclusion of necessary disclosures. Each manuscript, regardless of sponsorship, undergoes the same rigorous review process. Disclosing of corporate sponsorships provides the reader with the information necessary to independently assess the work, but does not invalidate the author’s submission and work done by reviewers.

Under JoVE’s article and video license agreement, authors may only use their article and video for noncommercial purposes. Should the author wish to use the article or video for commercial purposes (i.e. using it for marketing a product or any other for-profit venture), the authors should contact our business development team at industry@jove.com.

JoVE does encourage its authors to use their JoVE publication for academic and educational purposes, as this fulfills our mission of increasing the dissemination of scientific knowledge. Authors can embed the video on their lab website and use the video at educational and scientific meetings. If you need help, then please contact your editor or support@jove.com.

We comply fully with the open access requirements of UKRI, Wellcome, and NIHR. Where required by their funder, authors retain the right to distribute their author-accepted manuscript (AAM), such as via an institutional and/or subject repository.

To help UK authors comply with their mandates on Open Access, JoVE provides the ‘Gold’ and ‘Green’ routes to Open Access for UK authors.

Gold route: JoVE provides immediate and unrestricted access to the final published version of the paper on JoVE’s website and it is made available using CC-BY License. Authors can immediately self-deposit the final published version of the paper in other repositories without restriction on reuse.

Green route: Authors can self-deposit the final accepted manuscript in any repository, without restriction on non-commercial reuse, immediately after publication if required by their funding mandate.

The UK Author License Agreement is available here. For further questions, please contact us at editorial-office@jove.com.

Find out if your location is within our videographer network:

https://www.jove.com/videographers-network