130301 edanz de la salle

Jeff Robens, PhD

Senior Editor

Author Academy:

Steps to Publication Success

De La Salle University

1 March 2013

About Jeff

Researcher

Teacher

Mentor

Author

Senior Editor

Peer reviewer

Reading strategies

Abstracts

Manuscript structure

Increasing readability

Todays presentation

Reading Strategies

Section 1

Reading Strategies Reading improves manuscript writing

Read often!Read often!

Learn how native

English speakers write

Learn how native

English speakers write

Learn proper

argument structure

Learn proper

argument structure

Learn manuscript

structure and style

Learn manuscript

structure and style

Get new ideas,

identify knowledge gaps

Get new ideas,

identify knowledge gaps

Article and journal

quality

Article and journal

quality

Discuss with

colleagues

Discuss with

colleagues

Reading Strategies

Make time to read

Most researchers read 6090 min per dayMost researchers read 6090 min per day

Spend 2030 min every day reading abstractsSpend 2030 min every day reading abstracts

Spend 60 min 2 or 3 days a week reading papersSpend 60 min 2 or 3 days a week reading papers

Join a journal clubJoin a journal club

Reading StrategiesHow to read an article

From

start to

finish?

From

start to

finish?

Section

by

section?

Section

by

section?

Not efficient!

What do you

want to know?

What do you

want to know?

Where can you

find it?

Where can you

find it?

Reading Strategies

Read Figures and then Results

Read Discussion for interpretation

Self-assess knowledge of topic

Read Title and Abstract first

Refer to Introduction and

Methods if necessary

Strategies for reading

Read last paragraph of introduction

for hypothesis/objectives

Abstracts

Section 2

AbstractsImportant points

First impression

of your paper

First impression

of your paper

Importance of

your results

Importance of

your results

Validity of your

conclusions

Validity of your

conclusions

Relevance of

your aims

Relevance of

your aims

Judge your

writing style

Judge your

writing style

Probably only part

that will be read

Probably only part

that will be read

Abstracts General Guide

Aims

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Why the study was done (20%)

Your hypothesis (10%)

Techniques (10%)

Most important findings (40%)

Conclusion & implications (20%)

AbstractsStructured abstract medical and clinical

Sun et al. (2012). BMC Medicine 10:172.

Immunotherapy using slow-cycling tumor cells prolonged overall survival of tumor-bearing mice

Background

Despite considerable progress in the development of anticancer therapies, there is still a high mortality rate caused by cancer

relapse and metastasis. Dormant or slow-cycling residual tumor cells are thought to be a source of tumor relapse and metastasis,

and are therefore an obstacle to therapy. In this study, we assessed the drug resistance of tumor cells in mice, and investigated

whether vaccination could promote survival.

Methods

The mouse colon carcinoma cell line CT-26 was treated with 5-fluorouracil to assess its sensitivity to drug treatment. Mice with

colon tumors were immunized with inactivated slow-cycling CT-26 cells to estimate the efficacy of this vaccine.

Results

We identified a small population of slow-cycling tumor cells in the mouse colon carcinoma CT-26 cell line, which was resistant to

conventional chemotherapy. To inhibit tumor recurrence and metastasis more effectively, treatments that selectively target the

slow-cycling tumor cells should be developed to complement conventional therapies. We found that drug-treated, slow-cycling

tumor cells induced a more intense immune response in vitro. Moreover, vaccination with inactivated slow-cycling tumor cells

caused a reduction in tumor volume and prolonged the overall survival of tumor-bearing mice.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that targeting of slow-cycling tumor cells application using immunotherapy is a possible treatment to

complement traditional antitumor therapy.

Abstracts Unstructured abstract

Zhu et al. (2012) Cell Biochem Biophys 63:115.

Differential DNA Methylation Status Between Human

Preadipocytes and Mature Adipocytes

Obesity is a multifactorial disease resulting from interactions between susceptibility genes,

psychosocial, and environmental factors. However, it is becoming evident that

interindividual differences in obesity susceptibility depend also on epigenetic factors,

although the mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. We have undertaken a genome-

wide analysis of DNA methylation of human preadipocytes and mature adipocytes to

examine the differences in methylation between them. We found hypomethylation

occurring in 2,701 genes and hypermethylation in 1,070 genes after differentiation.

Meanwhile, Gene Ontology analysis and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis showed many

significant gene functions and pathways with altered methylation status after adipocyte

differentiation. In addition, Signal-Net analysis showed that tumor necrosis factor-,

mitogen-activated protein kinase, and interleukin-8 were important to the formation of this

network. Our results suggest that DNA methylation mechanisms may be involved in

regulating the differentiation process of human preadipocytes.

Abstracts Unstructured abstract


Obesity is a multifactorial disease resulting from interactions between susceptibility genes,

psychosocial, and environmental factors. However, it is becoming evident that


although the mechanisms have not been fully elucidated.

BackgroundBackground

We have undertaken a genome-wide analysis of DNA methylation of human preadipocytes

and mature adipocytes to examine the differences in methylation between them.MethodsMethods

We found hypomethylation occurring in 2,701 genes and hypermethylation in 1,070 genes

after differentiation. Meanwhile, Gene Ontology analysis and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis

showed many significant gene functions and pathways with altered methylation status after

adipocyte differentiation. In addition, Signal-Net analysis showed that tumor necrosis

factor-, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and interleukin-8 were important to the

formation of this network.

ResultsResults

Our results suggest that DNA methylation mechanisms may be involved in regulating the

differentiation process of human preadipocytes.ConclusionConclusion

Abstracts Writing your abstract


Obesity is a multifactorial disease resulting from interactions between susceptibility

genes, psychosocial, and environmental factors. However, it is becoming evident that


although the mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. We have undertaken a

genome-wide analysis of DNA methylation of human preadipocytes and mature

adipocytes to examine the differences in methylation between them. We found

hypomethylation occurring in 2,701 genes and hypermethylation in 1,070 genes after

differentiation. Meanwhile, Gene Ontology analysis and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis

showed many significant gene functions and pathways with altered methylation status

after adipocyte differentiation. In addition, Signal-Net analysis showed that tumor

necrosis factor-, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and interleukin-8 were important to

the formation of this network. Our results suggest that DNA methylation mechanisms

may be involved in regulating the differentiation process of human preadipocytes.

Abstracts

Dont

include

Dont

include

ReferencesReferences AbbreviationsAbbreviations

JargonJargonNon-essential

numbers & statistics

Non-essential

numbers & statistics

AbstractsDo not include a lot of numbers and statistics

The effect of high vacuum on the mechanical properties and bioactivity of collagen fibril matrices

Anderton et al. (2013) Biointerfaces 8:2.

Results

The cell area histogram and mean cell areas for the HV-treated fibril matrices (2030 m2 137 m2) are comparable

to the cell areas of untreated fibril matrices measured here (2165 m2 206 m2) and elsewhere... Cells on LV-

treated fibril matrices have larger average surface areas (3450 m2 175 m2) than the control untreated matrices,

and their spread areas are more similar to that of cells plated on dehydrated fibrils (average cell area of 4348 m2

287 m2).

The modulus results for the first analysis reveal that HV treatment of the fibrils leads to a small, but statically

significant (p < 0.0001), increase in mechanical rigidity of the fibril matrices. Untreated matrices had a modulus of 8.1

kPa 2.2 kPa and HV-treated matrices had a modulus of 13.1 kPa 3.8 kPa. However, the HV-treated matrices are

approximately a factor of three more compliant than the dehydrated fibril matrices (35.4 kPa 4.9 kPa). The modulus

results for the second analysis (Table 2) indicate that LV-treated fibril matrices (34.7 kPa 3.7 kPa) are nearly as

mechanically stiff (p= 0.20) as the dehydrated matrices (36.4 kPa 4.2 kPa), and are considerably less compliant than

the untreated matrices (11.2 kPa 3.7 kPa) in this experiment.

We find that HV exposure has an unappreciable affect on the cell spreading response and mechanical

properties of these collagen fibril matrices. Conversely, low vacuum environments cause fibrils to

become mechanically rigid as indicated by force microscopy, resulting in greater cell spreading.

Abstract

Summarize and simplify your resultsSummarize and simplify your results

We find that HV exposure has an unappreciable affect on the cell spreading response and mechanical

properties of these collagen fibril matrices. Conversely, low vacuum environments cause fibrils to

become mechanically rigid as indicated by force microscopy, resulting in greater cell spreading.

Abstracts Graphical Abstracts

Composite of RhyCr2yO3/(Ga1xZnx) (N1xOx) photocatalysts with hydrophobic

polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes for the fabrication of novel

reaction sites for water vapor splitting under visible light

Isogai et al. (2013) Catalysis Letters 143:150153.

Rh y Cr2y O3/(Ga1x Zn x )(N1x O x ) photocatalysts immobilized in polytetrafluoroethylene

(PTFE) membranes has been investigated for the design of novel reaction sites. In the case

of hydrophobic PTFE membranes, the Rh y Cr2y O3/(Ga1x Zn x )(N1x O x ) photocatalyst

simultaneously evolved both H2 and O2, even from an aqueous AgNO3 solution as sacrificial

reagent. This indicates that water vapor was split into H2 and O2 by the Rh y Cr2y O3/(Ga1xZn x )(N1x O x ) photocatalyst particles in the hydrophobic pores of PTFE.

Abstracts Graphical Abstracts

Composite of RhyCr2yO3/(Ga1xZnx) (N1xOx) photocatalysts with hydrophobic

polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes for the fabrication of novel

reaction sites for water vapor splitting under visible light

Isogai et al. (2013) Catalysis Letters 143:150153.

Manuscript Structure

Section 3

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Telling a story

Beginning

tell them what you did and why

Middle

tell them how you did it and what you found

End

tell them what you did and what it means.

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure IMRaD

Abstract

Introduction

Methods

Results

and

Discussion

The beginning

The end

The middle

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure

Title

Abstract

Introduction

Discussion

References

Methods

Results

Figures

The write order

After selecting target journal

During your research

Write last

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Introduction

Sufficient background information

Current state of the field

Identify knowledge gaps/problems

Puts your work into context

General

SpecificAims

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure

New biocompatible material for osteoporosis

OsteoporosisOsteoporosis

DiagnosisDiagnosis

BioengineeringBioengineering

Drug treatmentsDrug treatments

MaterialMaterial

DesignDesign TechniqueTechnique

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Methods

What you

did

What you

did

Multiple methods =

separate subheadings

New methods

described in detail

Established methods

can be referenced

Method orderMethod order

Materials

General techniques

Specific techniques

Statistics

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Results

What you

found

What you

found

Order of results is

logical, tells a story

Factually describe

your results

Avoid data duplication Avoid data duplication

among figures, tables,

and text

Each subsection

corresponds to one

figure

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Display items

Present large amount

of data quickly and

efficiently

Keep it simple: use

separate panels if

necessary

stand Must be able to stand

alone: clear labels

and figure legends

Usually the first thing

readers will look at

Figures, graphs

& tables

Figures, graphs

& tables

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure

Whats wrong with this figure?

Figure 1 AHLE demonstrating distorted brachial artery and classical vessel proliferation.

Kukreja et al. BMJ Case Rep. 2011;doi:10.1136/bcr.02.2011.3836.

Unclear labelsUnclear labels

Poorly drawn

indicators

Poorly drawn

indicators

Unclear figure

legend

Unclear figure

legend

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Figures

Clear indicators

Clear figure legend

Scale bars

Kindlin-2 knockdown and focal adhesion localization.

A. Confocal immunofluorescent microscopy with anti-

1 integrin (green) and anti-paxillin (red) on C2C12

cells transfected with RNAi and then changed to

differentiation media for 2 days. Control cells (scr RNAi)

show linear staining consistent with localization to

costameres (arrows), as well as punctate focal contact

staining (arrowheads). Conversely, focal contact

proteins in the kindlin-2 RNAi cells fail to form linear

structures and instead are concentrated in unusual

appearing puncta (*). (Scale bar = 20 M).

Dowling et al. (2008) BMC Cell Biol 9:36.

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure

Data aligned and

formatted

Tables

Muoz et al. New Engl J Med. 2003;348:518527.

Clear and concise

table caption

Abbreviations

defined

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure Discussion

BeginningBeginning

MiddleMiddle

EndEnd

Summarize key findings

State major conclusion

Summarize key findings

State major conclusion

Restate major conclusion

Applications/implications

Suggest future work

Restate major conclusion

Applications/implications

Suggest future work

Interpret results in context

of other studies

Describe limitations

Interpret results in context

of other studies

Describe limitations

Increasing Readability

Section 4

Correct EnglishReadable English

Readability Readability

Your reader shouldYour reader should

Understand your logic immediatelyUnderstand your logic immediately

Not have to read slowlyNot have to read slowly

Only have to read onceOnly have to read once

Readability Language requirements

Journals are clear regarding their English

requirements

Brain Structure & Function

Language: Manuscripts will be checked by our

copyeditors for spelling and formal style. Clear

and concise language will help editors and

reviewers concentrate on the scientific content

of your paper and thus smooth the peer review

process.

Readability

The largest company, a Japanese corporation founded in

1916 outside of Osaka by Takahiro Tanaka, was

considered to be a model in the development of modern

employee conditions by economists.

Readability

Subject

Verb

1. Verb placement

Readers expect verbs to closely follow subjects

SentenceSubject

Verb

Readability Verb placement

Readers become confused when subject and

verb are separated by too much content

The smallest ORF, a 105-nucleotide reading frame found

in the third intron of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor

2 subunit gene, was found to be expressed in response

to long-term treatment with 1 M cytochalasin D.

Readability

The smallest ORF, a 105-nucleotide reading frame found in the third intron of the nicotinicacetylcholine receptor 2 subunit gene, was found to be expressed in response to long-termtreatment with 1 M cytochalasin D.

The smallest ORF was found to be expressed in response to long-term treatment with 1 M cytochalasin D. This ORF is a 105-nucleotide reading frame found in the third intron of the nicotinicacetylcholine receptor 2 subunit gene.

We found the smallest ORF was expressed in response to long-term treatment with 1 M cytochalasin D. This ORF

Avoid reader confusion

Readability 2. Active voice

Sentences written in the active voice are:

simple

direct

clear

easy to read

Subject

Verb

Active

Readability

Readers focus on information at the end of a

sentence.

take-home information

SubjectVerb

3. Stress position

Readability Stress position

Cell attachment increased on UV-O3-treated silicone.

Cell attachment increased on silicone after UV-O3 treatment.

UV-O3 treatment of silicone increased cell attachment.

Readers, without thinking, concentrate on the end

of a sentence.

Readability

Topic position

Stress position

SubjectVerb

Readers expect a sentence/phrase to be a story

about whoever shows up first

4. Topic position

Readability Topic position

Linkage and context

Cell death increased after injection into the chamber.

Therefore, the flow rate was decreased to help minimize

sheer stress. Cell viability significantly improved at a flow

rate of o.1 l/min.

idea ideaideaidea

Topic link

sentence

Readability Increasing readability:5. Short sentences

Reading once

4% of readers can understand a 27-word sentence


Pinner and Pinner (1998) Communication Skills

Reading once



Pinner and Pinner (1998) Communication Skills

Goals to aim for:

One idea per sentence

1520 words per sentence

Goals to aim for:

One idea per sentence

1520 words per sentence

Academic Publishing

Section 5

Customer ServiceAcademic Publishing Why publish?Exchange ideas globally

Your research is not

complete until it is

published

Your research is not

complete until it is

published

Communicate on a

global stage

Communicate on a

global stage

One publication

per year

One publication

per year

Customer ServiceAcademic Publishing

Why

English?

Why

English?

International language

of academics

People want to hear

researchers

People want to hear

from Asian

researchers

International

reputationFunding

Career

advancement

Customer ServiceAcademic PublishingThe submission process

Accepted

publication!

EditorAuthor

Peer review

Reject

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

Revision

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information


Usually 312 monthsUsually 312 months

Publication timeline

Will depend on:Will depend on:

Manuscript type

Peer reviewer availability

Fast tracking

Number of revisions

Manuscript type

Peer reviewer availability

Fast tracking

Number of revisions


Publication

ethics

Publication

ethics

Multiple

submissionsPlagiarism

Author list:

Who can be an author?

First author?

Corresponding author?

Author list:

Who can be an author?

First author?

Corresponding author?

Data fabrication

and falsification

Conflicts of interest:

Financial

Personal

Intellectual

Conflicts of interest:

Financial

Personal

Intellectual

Journal selection

Section 6

Journal Selection Factors to consider

Aims and scope

Readership

Open access

Publishing frequency

Impact factor

Which factor is most important to you?

IF varies by field

Journal Selection Choosing a target journal

Journal selection must be based on an

honest evaluation of your manuscript

Significance Aims and Scope

Impact

Journal Selection

New findings

Evaluating significance: Novelty

Medium to high

impact

How new are my results compared

with those already published?

Low to medium

impact

Incremental

advances

Conceptual

advances

Journal SelectionEvaluating significance:

Relevance

How broadly relevant is my work?

Population specific? Restricted to geographical

location? How common is the disease?

Population specific? Restricted to geographical

location? How common is the disease?MedicalMedical

Specific to cell-type or organism?

Relevant to human disease?

Specific to cell-type or organism?

Relevant to human disease? BiologyBiology

How broadly applicable is the design?

Is it cost-effective?

How broadly applicable is the design?

Is it cost-effective?EngineeringEngineering

Journal SelectionEvaluating significance:

Appeal

Area of popular

appeal

Stem cells, tissue engineering,

global warming, artificial intelligence

Important real

world applications

Important real

world applications

Rice resistant to high salt conditions,

shrimp resistant to infection

Journal Selection Journal selector

Insert your

proposed

abstract


Recommended

journals

Filter by:

Impact factor

Publishing frequency

Open access


Refined

recommended

journals


Semantic

matching terms

Journals IF, Aims

& Scope, and

Frequency

Similar

published

articles

Journal Selection Visit journal websites

Cover Letters

Section 7

Coverage and

Staffing PlanCover Letters Make it easy

Is there a Cover Letter?

Is it easy to read?

Are there reviewer

recommendations?

Inbox

Coverage and

Staffing PlanCover Letters

Abstract:

First impression for readers

Abstract:

First impression for readers

Cover letter:

First impression for journal editors

Cover letter:

First impression for journal editors

Significance

Relevance

Significance

Relevance

Level of EnglishLevel of EnglishRecommend

reviewers?

Recommend

reviewers?

Why your work

is important!

Why your work

is important!

Coverage and


What do

journal editors want?

What do

journal editors want?

High quality research

Good design

Well executed

High quality research

Good design

Well executed

Original and novelOriginal and novel

Interesting to

journals readership

Interesting to

journals readership

Clear and concise

English

Clear and concise

English

Coverage and


Dear Editor-in-Chief,

I am sending you our manuscript entitled Techniques to detect

entanglement in cats by Schrodinger et al. We would like to have the

manuscript considered for publication in Quantum Theory Frontiers.

Please let me know of your decision at your earliest convenience.

Sincerely yours,

Albert Einstein, PhD

Bad example

Not personalNot personal

Too shortToo short

No information about

the manuscript

No information about

the manuscript

Coverage and

Staffing Plan

Manuscript

structure

Dear Dr Graeber,

Please find enclosed our manuscript entitled Amyloid-like inclusions in the brains of Huntingtons disease patients, by

McGowan et al., which we would like to submit for publication as a Research Paper in Neurogenetics.

Recent immunohistochemical studies have revealed the presence of neuronal inclusions containing an N-terminal portion of

the mutant huntingtin protein and ubiquitin in the brain tissues of Huntingtons disease (HD) patients; however, the role of

these inclusions in the disease process has remained unclear. One suspected disease-causing mechanism in Huntingtons

disease and other polyglutamine disorders is the potential for the mutant protein to undergo a conformational change to a

more stable anti-parallel -sheet structure

To confirm if the immunohistochemically observed huntingtin- and ubiquitin-containing inclusions display amyloid features, we

performed Congo red staining and both polarizing and confocal microscopy on post-mortem human brain tissues obtained

from five HD patients, two AD patients, and two normal controls. Congo red staining revealed a small number of amyloid-like

inclusions showing green birefringence by polarized microscopy, in a variety of cortical regions.... .detected inclusions

observed in parallel sections, suggesting that only a relatively small proportion of inclusions in HD adopt an amyloid-like

structure.

We believe our findings will be of particular interest to the readership of Neurogenetics, which includes researchers and

clinicians studying the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, we feel that your

journal provides the most suitable platform for the dissemination of our work to the research community.

Give the

background to

the research

What was

done and what

was found

Interest to

journals readers

A good cover letter

We would also like to suggest the following reviewers for our manuscript

Coverage and


General rulesGeneral rules

Manuscript title/

Publication type

Manuscript title/

Publication type

Corresponding

author details

Corresponding

author details

Background,

rationale, results

Background,

rationale, results

Address editor

personally

Address editor

personally

Why are your

findings important?

Why are your

findings important?

Reviewer

recommendations

Reviewer

recommendations

Must-have statements

Coverage and

Staffing PlanCover Letters General rules

Must-have

statements

Must-have

statements

Not submitted

to other journals

Not submitted

to other journals

Source of

funding

Source of

funding

Authors agree on

paper/journal

Authors agree on

paper/journal

Original and

unpublished

Original and

unpublished

No conflicts of

interest

No conflicts of

interest

Authorship

contributions

Authorship

contributions

Coverage and

Staffing PlanCover Letters Recommending

reviewers

When submitting your paper, you must provide the

names, affiliations, and valid e-mail addresses of five (5)

reviewers. If you do not do so, your paper will be

returned, unreviewed.

Authors are requested to provide the names and full

addresses (including e-mail address) of up to four potential

referees

Coverage and

Staffing PlanCover Letters Recommending

reviewers

Where to find

them?

Where to find

them?

From your reading/references,

networking at conferences

From your reading/references,

networking at conferences

How senior?How senior? Aim for mid-level researchersAim for mid-level researchers

Who to avoid?Who to avoid?Collaborators (past 5 years),

researchers from same institution

Collaborators (past 5 years),

researchers from same institution

Peer Review

Section 8

Peer ReviewImproves your manuscript

Peer review is a positive process

Improves science

Get involved in the peer review process

http://www.springer.com/authors/

journal+authors/peer-review-academy

Peer ReviewThe submission process

Accepted

publication!

EditorAuthor

Peer review

Peer ReviewDecision letter

24-July-2012

Dear Dr. XXXXX

Manuscript ID WJS-07-5739: Long-term outcomes following right-lobe living donor liver

transplantation."

Your manuscript has been reviewed, and we cannot accept the manuscript as submitted. The

reviewer concerns are included at the bottom of this letter.

You can submit a revised manuscript that takes into consideration these comments. You will also

need to include a detailed commentary of the changes made. Please note that resubmitting

your manuscript does not guarantee eventual acceptance, and that your resubmission may be

subject to re-review by the reviewers before a decision is made.

To revise your manuscript, log into http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/wjs and enter your Author

Center, where you will find your manuscript title listed under "Manuscripts with

Decisions." Under "Actions," click on "Create a Revision." Your manuscript number has been

appended to denote a revision.

Manuscript ID numberManuscript ID number

Reason for revisionReason for revision

How to submit a revisionHow to submit a revision

Peer ReviewDecision letter

You will be unable to make your revisions on the originally submitted version of the manuscript. Instead,

revise your manuscript using a word processing program and save it on your computer. Please also highlight

the changes to your manuscript within the document by using the track changes mode in MS Word or by using

bold or colored text. Once the revised manuscript is prepared, you can upload it and submit it through your

Author Center.

When submitting your revised manuscript, you will be able to respond to the comments made by the

reviewer(s) in the space provided. You can use this space to document any changes you make to the original

manuscript. In order to expedite the processing of the revised manuscript, please be as specific as possible in

your response to the reviewer(s).

IMPORTANT: Your original files are available to you when you upload your revised manuscript. Please delete

any redundant files before completing the submission.

Because we are trying to facilitate timely publication of manuscripts submitted to the Surgical Endoscopy, your

revised manuscript should be uploaded within 8 weeks. If it is not possible for you to submit your revision in a

reasonable amount of time, we may have to consider your paper as a new submission.

Once again, thank you for submitting your manuscript to Surgical Endoscopy and I look forward to receiving

your revision.

Procedure for respondingProcedure for responding

Due date for resubmissionDue date for resubmission

Peer ReviewPoint-by-point

RevisionRevision

Be politeBe politeRespond to

every comment

Respond to

every comment

Easy to see

changes

Easy to see

changes

Refer to line and page numbers

Use a different color font

Highlight the text

Peer ReviewWriting a response letter

Address editor personally

Manuscript ID number

Thank reviewers

Highlight major changes

John G. Hunter

Editor-in-Chief

World Journal of Surgery

16 August 2012

Dear Dr. Hunter,

Re: Resubmission of manuscript reference No. WJS-07-5739

Please find attached a revised version of our manuscript originally entitled Long-term outcomes following right-

lobe living donor liver transplantation, which we would like to resubmit for consideration for publication in World

Journal of Surgery.

The reviewers comments were highly insightful and enabled us to greatly improve the quality of our manuscript. In

the following pages are our point-by-point responses to each of the comments.

Revisions in the manuscript are shown as underlined text. In accordance with the first comment, the title has been

revised and the entire manuscript has undergone substantial English editing.

We hope that the revisions in the manuscript and our accompanying responses will be sufficient to make our

manuscript suitable for publication in World Journal of Surgery.

Peer Review

Reviewer Comment: In your analysis of the data you have chosen

to use a somewhat obscure fitting function (regression). In my

opinion, a simple Gaussian function would have sufficed.

Moreover, the results would be more instructive and easier to

compare to previous results.

Response: We agree with the reviewers assessment of the

analysis. Our tailored function makes it impossible to fully interpret

the data in terms of the prevailing theories. In addition, in its

current form it would be difficult to tell that this measurement

constitutes a significant improvement over previously reported

values. We have redone the analysis using a Gaussian fitting

function.

Agreement

Peer Review

Reviewer Comment: In your analysis of the data you have chosen

to use a somewhat obscure fitting function (regression). In my

opinion, a simple Gaussian function would have sufficed.

Moreover, the results would be more instructive and easier to

compare to previous results.

Response: We agree with the reviewer that a simple Gaussian fit

would facilitate comparison with the results of other studies.

However, our tailored function allows for the analysis of the data

in terms of the Smith model [Smith et al, 1998]. We have added

two sentences to the paper (page 3 paragraph 2) to explain the

use of this function and Smiths model.

Disagreement

Peer Review

Reviewer comment: The authors hypothesized to look for the

pharmacokinetics of the insulin using this 4 mm needle; however

they didn't do bioequivalence analyses for glucose

pharmacodynamics. That is one of my concerns about this

methodology.

Hidden questions

Response: Although we wanted to do the bioequivalence

analyses for glucose pharmacodynamics in our study, we are

unable to because

Avoiding Rejection

Section 9

Avoiding Rejection

The research

Relevant hypothesis

Appropriate

methodology

Good data analysis

Complete data

Valid conclusions

Current state of the field

Identified knowledge gap

Up-to-date and valid methods

New methods validated

Appropriate statistical analysis

Consult a statistician

All data are included or discussed

Based on your data

Avoiding Rejection

Rationale and aims

Citations

Appropriate data

presentation

Grammar

and style

Journal requirements

The manuscript

Avoiding Rejection

The manuscript

Why did you do it?

Why is it important?

What are the implications?

Clearly state your aims

Avoiding Rejection

Research is appropriate for the

aims/scope of the journal

Follow the author guidelines

for formatting

Meet journal

requirements

The manuscript

Avoiding Rejection Reasons for rejection: the manuscript

Journal currently publishing

similar papers

Appropriate journal

selected


Citations

Broadly from different research groups

A couple of older seminal papers

A couple of review articles

Mostly recent original articles

Field-dependent

Generally within the last 2-3 years

Cite properly


Check spelling and grammar

Microsoft Word spell check

Customize Microsofts dictionary

High readability

Write clearly


Logical representation

Do not duplicate results

Only relevant data

Appropriate data

presentation

Avoiding Rejection

Rejection letter from NeuroRehabilitation

judged to be unsuitable for publication in NeuroRehabilitation...

The following factors contributed to the final decision:

judged to be unsuitable for publication in NeuroRehabilitation...

The following factors contributed to the final decision:

The literature review was incomplete

The hypothesis is not mentioned or unclear

The subjects details are not included

The manuscript does not follow journal format

The authors draw conclusions that are inappropriate or unsubstantiated

The statistical methodology is inappropriate, incorrect, or incomplete

The manuscript is poorly written

The literature review was incomplete

The hypothesis is not mentioned or unclear

The subjects details are not included

The manuscript does not follow journal format

The authors draw conclusions that are inappropriate or unsubstantiated

The statistical methodology is inappropriate, incorrect, or incomplete

The manuscript is poorly written

Thank you!

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