AUO anticipates that any conflicts of interest, including potential ones, must be identified and addressed. If authors question the existence of a conflict, they should err on the side of disclosure. Most conflicts of interest can be managed well by following the appropriate procedures. However, in some cases, conflicts of interest are too significant to be published.

This list does not cover the full range of potential conflicts, but highlights some common examples:

A. Potential Author COIs Authors are required to consider all aspects of conflicts of interest, including those mentioned in the instructions given to authors, and to state them in writing on the designated form.

B. Potential Reviewer COIs The journal uses a single-blind review process; however, the editors exclude individuals with potential COIs. Editors also aim to accommodate authors’ request to exclude potential reviewers when genuine conflicts exist, ensuring a rigorous and comprehensive review. When invited to review, each individual must disclose any COI that might bias their opinion and, in some cases, may need to decline the review. If a COI is identified during the review process, the reviewer must contact the journal office and, if necessary, request recusal. The following situations are considered conflicts of interest and should be avoided:

a) Co-authoring at least one paper with the authors in the last 3 years;

b) Being colleagues in the same group/department or similar organizational unit within the last 3 years;

c) Supervising/supervised the author's doctoral work;

d) Gaining professional or personal benefit from the review;

e) Maintaining a personal relationship with the author (e.g. family, close friends);

f) Having a direct or indirect financial interest in the papers being reviewed.

A conflict of interest is not considered to exist if the reviewer and the author collaborate on a broader project (e.g. EU), or if they jointly organize an event.

Articles submitted by editorial board members will be treated as such and will undergo the same peer review process. In this case, another editor will be assigned to manage the peer review process. If no editor can be identified who does not have a conflict of interest, then a guest editor may be invited to oversee the manuscript. Any guest editor must have a strong knowledge of the subject.

Editors do not act as decision makers, especially in cases where they perceive a conflict of interest with the author, such as collaborating with the author or conducting competitive research. Editors work with authors for a maximum of six months, and if they are within that period, they may still be eligible to edit an article. However, some conflicts, such as personal friendships, cannot be resolved over time. Being familiar with the author does not in itself mean that the editor is therefore unable to manage the article. Editors should strive to avoid handling articles where a conflict of interest exists and should discuss any concerns with the editor-in-chief to determine the most appropriate editor for the manuscript.

Manuscripts submitted by co-editors are handled by the managing editor, who will assign a processing editor relevant to the topic and ultimately decide on acceptance. Manuscripts submitted by the Executive Editor will be processed by a co-Managing Editor, who will appoint relevant processing editors and make the final decision on acceptance.

The Journal requires all authors to follow the correct standards for reporting biomedical research. See EQUATOR for guidelines on health research and MIBBI for guidelines and tools on bioscience reporting. Authors are strongly advised to use these guidelines as a checklist when writing a manuscript.

Other checklists available include CONSORT for randomized controlled trials, PRISMA for systematic reviews, STROBE for observational studies, MOOSE for meta-analyses of observational studies, STARD for diagnostic accuracy studies, RATS for qualitative studies, and CHEERS for economic assessments.

The authors of the systematic review must provide a link in the methods section detailing the search strategy. See the Cochrane for examples of search strategies.

Authors must use standardized gene nomenclature. The HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee provide details on the human gene symbols and names. Information on can be found at https://www.genenames.org/help/faq/; The Human Genome Variation Society provides guidelines on mutation nomenclature.

Where applicable, authors should follow the CARE guidelines for case reports, the STREGA guidelines for genetic association studies and the SRQR guidelines for qualitative studies.

The author shall comply with the relevant data preparation and record the current specific areas of the standard, while maintaining strict patient confidentiality. In addition, when using unpublished data, authors must contact the data owner before beginning their research.

All human or animal research must be approved or exempted by an appropriate institutional human and/or animal subject Review committee. If there is no formal ethics committee, the research must comply with the Helsinki Declaration. Such approval or exemption should be stated in the methods section of the article.

When reporting animal experiments, authors should confirm whether institutional and national standards for the care and use of laboratory animals have been followed. Further guidance on animal research ethics is available in the ARRIVE guide.

All authors must declare that, where applicable, consent has been obtained from the patient (or, in the case of children under 16, from their parents or guardians). Additionally, all reasonable steps should be taken to maintain patient confidentiality, including making illustrations as anonymous as possible.

The journal follows ICMJE's Clinical Trials Registration Statement. All clinical trials published in the journal must be registered in a public trial registry at or before the start of participant enrollment. Manuscripts should include an accurate URL and a unique trial registration identifier. This information will be published in the article, and we request that the URL and identification code be included on the title page of the manuscript.

Clinical trials initiated before 2008 will be subjected to retrospective registration. A list of recommended registries can be found on the ICMJE website. Results published in the same clinical trial registry where the primary registry is located will not be considered prior publication if presented in the form of a short abstract (500 words or less) or table.

Clinical trials must be reported in accordance with relevant reporting guidelines, namely the CONSORT for randomized controlled Trials, the TREND for non-randomized trials, and other appropriate specialized guidelines. Interventions should be described according to the requirements of the checklist and guide. Submissions must also include the research proposal as supporting information and, if accepted, will be published with the manuscript.

Authors of manuscripts describing clinical trial results must follow CONSORT reporting guidelines, which apply to their trial design and are available on the CONSORT Statement web site. Any deviation from the test protocol must be explained in the manuscript. Authors must explicitly discuss informed consent in the paper, and the journal reserves the right to request a copy of the patient's consent.

Prospective registrations of systematic reviews are encouraged, and we recommend all authors to register their systematic reviews with an appropriate registry such as PROSPERO. Please indicate the registration number on the last line of the abstract.