All participants in the peer review and publication process must disclose all relationships that could be viewed as presenting a potential conflict of interest, i.e. financial relationships (such as employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony), personal relationships, academic competition, and intellectual passion.

1. Authors

Authors are required to disclose and indicate any conflicts of interest when submitting a manuscript. The corresponding author is to provide a statement on behalf of all co-authors using one of the following statements provided:

• "The authors declare the following conflicts of interest..."
• "The authors declare no competing interests".
• "The authors declare that they are bound by confidentiality agreements that prevent them from disclosing their competing interests in this article."

Authors are required to disclose all sources of research support (funding), including sponsors. The role of sponsors, if any, should be declared in relation to the study design, collection, analysis, and interpretation of data, writing a manuscript, and decision to submit the article for publication. If funding sources had no such involvement this should be stated in your submission.

2. Reviewers

Reviewers should not evaluate manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the submission.

If a reviewer is unsure whether there is a conflict of interest, they are required to notify the editorial board, which will make a decision.

Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of the manuscript's contents and not use the information for personal gain.

3. Journal's editors and staff

Journal's editors and staff are required to refrain from making decisions on articles in which they have conflicts of interest, including personal, academic, or institutional ties with the authors.

Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript must not be used in an editor's own research without the express written consent of the authors.

Information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage.