We fully support the principles outlined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and strongly oppose any violations of ethical standards. Special attention is given to checking for originality and preventing plagiarism.

Multiple Submission of Manuscripts

Authors must submit only unique manuscripts that have not been submitted to any other journal, except in exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the reviewer. Multiple submission can take the form of literal or partial copying, even if the text has been rewritten. Violating this rule will result in immediate rejection of the manuscript and potential sanctions against the authors.

Citation Manipulation and Data Falsification

Manuscripts that contain citation manipulation (for example, artificially increasing the number of citations to the author’s work or a particular journal) or falsified data (such as fabricated experimental results or manipulated images) will be immediately rejected, and sanctions may be applied.

Investigation of Violations

In the case of suspected fraud or ethical violations, we will conduct an investigation in accordance with the COPE guidelines. If reasonable concerns are raised, we will contact the authors to resolve the issue. Depending on the situation, the manuscript may be rejected or retracted. If the article has already been published, the following procedures will apply:

• Corrections and Erratum: if minor errors, such as experimental or mathematical mistakes, are found, a “Correction” will be published. If the error occurred due to editorial oversight, an “Erratum” will be published.
• Retraction: the editorial board may decide to retract an article under the following circumstances: plagiarism, authorship fraud, data manipulation, or ethical violations. In the case of retraction, the article will be marked as “Retraction”.

Mass Manipulation and “Paper Mills”

If it is found that the article is part of fraudulent practices or paper mills, the editorial board may retract the article. The retraction notice will indicate that the article belongs to a group of works compromised by ethical violations.

Use of Artificial Intelligence

Undeclared use of artificial intelligence to generate parts of the text, images, or data in the manuscript will be considered a serious violation and may lead to retraction. Authors are required to disclose the use of such tools. Failure to disclose this information may be grounds for retraction of the article.

Authorship Falsification and Identity Theft

Manuscripts will be retracted if false authorship or the use of someone else’s personal details (such as name or ORCID) is confirmed, as well as in cases of concealed or forced authorship.

Expression of Concern

If there are serious concerns about the validity of the article but insufficient evidence for immediate retraction, the editorial board may publish an Expression of Concern. This statement will be linked to the original article and will remain available until the investigation is complete.

Procedural Timeliness

Decisions regarding the publication of corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions will be made as quickly as possible after violations are identified. If it is not possible to reconcile the text with the authors, the editorial board reserves the right to publish the statement without delay to ensure scientific integrity.

Availability of Retractions

Retracted articles will remain accessible in the journal’s archives marked as “Retraction”. They may only be removed in exceptional cases if required by applicable laws.