Ethical Approval Policy

Agricultural and Biotechnological Reflections (ABR) is committed to upholding the highest ethical standards in scholarly publishing and research practices. All manuscripts submitted to the journal must comply with internationally accepted ethical guidelines relevant to agricultural, biotechnological, and interdisciplinary research.

Research Involving Human Participants

Studies involving human participants, human data, or human biological materials must obtain prior approval from an appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB), Ethics Committee, or equivalent authority. Authors must clearly mention the name of the approving body and the approval or reference number in the manuscript. All research must adhere to the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and applicable national or institutional guidelines. Informed consent must be obtained from all participants where applicable.

Research Involving Animals

Research involving animals must be reviewed and approved by a recognized institutional or national animal ethics committee. Authors must ensure that experiments are conducted in accordance with established animal welfare guidelines and regulations. Details of ethical approval and measures taken to minimize animal suffering must be clearly stated in the manuscript.

Clinical Trials

All clinical trials must be registered in a publicly accessible clinical trial registry prior to the enrollment of participants. The trial registration number and registry name must be included in the manuscript.

Genetic Modification and Biotechnology Research

Studies involving genetically modified organisms (GMOs), gene editing, or advanced biotechnological techniques must comply with institutional, national, and international biosafety and bioethics regulations. Authors are responsible for obtaining all necessary approvals and permissions.

Use of Hazardous Materials and Biosecurity

Research involving hazardous chemicals, pathogens, or biosecurity-sensitive materials must follow strict safety, containment, and regulatory standards. Authors must confirm compliance with relevant biosafety and biosecurity requirements.

Ethical Misconduct

Agricultural and Biotechnological Reflections (ABR) strictly prohibits plagiarism, data fabrication, data falsification, duplicate publication, and any form of unethical research or publication practices. The journal reserves the right to reject or retract manuscripts found to violate ethical standards at any stage of the publication process.

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses

Authors submitting systematic reviews and meta-analyses are strongly encouraged to register their review protocols in recognized registries such as PROSPERO. Submissions should adhere to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. Where applicable, a completed PRISMA checklist should be provided to ensure transparency and methodological rigor.