We recognize our responsibility to correct errors that we have previously published. Our policy is to consider refutations (readers' criticisms) of primary research papers, and to publish them (in concise form) if and only if the author provides compelling evidence that a major claim of the original paper was incorrect. Refutations are peer-reviewed, and where possible they are sent to the same referees who reviewed the original paper. A copy is usually also sent to the corresponding author of the original paper for signed comments. Refutations are typically published in the Communications Arising section of Biolife Publisher, sometimes with a brief response from the original authors. Some submitted refutations are eventually published as retractions by the paper's authors.
Complaints, disagreements over interpretation and other matters arising should be addressed to the Editor of EJND by contacting ejnd@biolife-publisher.it. Because debates over interpretation are often inconclusive, we do not automatically consider criticisms of review articles or other secondary material, and in the event that we decide to publish such a criticism we do not necessarily consult the original authors. Editorial decisions in such cases are based on considerations of reader interest, novelty of arguments, integrity of the publication record and fairness to the parties involved. Publication may take various forms at the discretion of the editor. Biolife Publisher considers correspondence relating to all review-type articles.
Version of Record and Biolife Publisher Corrections Policy
In an effort to better serve our researchers, librarians, and others in the academic community, Biolife Publisher believes clarity in the publishing record is a critical component of information distribution. Recognizing a published article as a finalized “Version of Record” establishes the expectation that it can be relied upon as accurate, complete, and citable. Biolife Publisher defines this Version of Record as the article paginated in a volume and issue.
Corrections prior to the Version of Record
Because articles can be read and cited as soon as they are published (including AOP publications), any changes thereafter could potentially impact those who read and cited the earlier version. Biolife Publisher provides authors with an opportunity to review article proofs prior to publication or AOP with the express goal of ensuring accuracy of the content. Publishing an erratum or corrigendum increases the likelihood readers will find out about the change and also explains the specifics of the change.
When an article is published AOP but not yet published in an issue, limited corrections may be made at the discretion of the journal and Biolife Publisher.
Version of Record
When an article is published in an issue, it is considered the Version of Record. Biolife Publisher is committed to preserving the integrity and transparency of the Version of Record. If a significant error is discovered, Biolife Publisher may publish an erratum or corrigendum notice to alert all readers.
Biolife Publisher takes issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism and other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. In the rare cases where a breach of publication ethics or copyright infringement are discovered, Biolife Publisher reserves the right to take appropriate action to correct the academic record, including but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum; publishing an expression of concern linked to the article; retracting the article and publishing an accompanying retraction notice; or removing an article for legal reasons and replacing the removed article with a notice.
Corrections are published for significant errors in non-peer-reviewed content of Biolife Publisher journals at the discretion of the editors. Readers who have identified such an error should send an email to the general email address of the journal, clearly stating the publication reference, title, author and section of the article, briefly explaining the error.
Biolife Publisher operates the following policy for making corrections to the online versions of their peer-reviewed content:
i. Amendments
Publishable amendments that affect the publication record and/or the scientific accuracy of published information are published online in the journal. Four categories of amendments are relevant for peer-reviewed material: Erratum or Publisher Correction, Corrigendum or Author Correction, Retraction or Addendum. All four correction types are bi-directionally linked to the original published paper. Detailed information on each amendment category follows below.
Erratum or Publisher Correction. Notification of an important error made by the journal that affects the publication record or the scientific integrity of the paper, or the reputation of the authors or of the journal.
Corrigendum or Author Correction. Notification of an important error made by the author(s) that affects the publication record or the scientific integrity of the paper, or the reputation of the authors or the journal.
Retraction. Notification of invalid results that affect the reliability of a previously published article. The original article is marked as retracted but remains available to readers, and the retraction statement notifying readers of the invalidity of the published paper is bi-directionally linked to the original published paper.
Addendum. Notification of additional information about a paper. Addenda are published when the editors decide that the addendum is crucial to the reader's understanding of a significant part of the published contribution. Addenda include Editorial Expression of Concern, which is an editorial statement alerting our readership to serious concerns with the published paper. Editorial Expression of Concern are typically updated with another amendment once further information is available.
ii. Editor's Note
An Editor's note is a statement from editors notifying readers of issues related to the published paper. It is an online update made only to the HTML version of record of the published article. Editor's notes's are typically updated with another amendment once further information is available.
