About the Journal

Published according to the decision of the Academic Council of Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University.

Periodicity is semi annual.

The scientific journal is included in the list of scientific specialized editions of Ukraine (category B) in the specialties 091 - Biology, 101 - Ecology, 161 - Biotechnology, in which the results of dissertational works can be published (orders MES No. 409 of 17.03.2020 and No. 1188 of 24.09.2020).

Certificate of state registration of printed mass media: series КВ No. 15752-4224Р  12  October 2009.

ISSN 2078-8673

The results of research on actual problems of biological science, in particular biochemistry, biotechnology, molecular biology and genetics, microbiology, ecology, botany and zoology, soil science, biota conservation, protection and reproduction of biological resources, are published in the journal "Scientific herald of Chernivtsi University. Biology (Biological Systems)". 

Review process

 The articles submitted to the editorial board are evaluated for compliance with the subject matter of the journal, and then checked for the plagiarism. In case of positive result the articles are subjected to a review procedure.

The articles are reviewed by two independent experts. By submitting an article, authors can nominate 5 independent reviewers for it, as well as the names of two scientists with a conflict of interests that, according to the authors, cannot objectively review their article. The final decision on the reviewers is taken by the editorial board. Following the review procedure, the author is sent a list of comments from the reviewers. In case when the materials are returned for refinement, the author gives profound answers to the questions and comments. The corrected article must be submitted within the period of two months.

The corrected version of the article is repeatedly reviewed by the same reviewers. It should be accompanied by a cover letter in which the author responds each question or comment of the reviewer and explains what exactly has been changed.

Only positively evaluated articles will be published. If the conclusions of the reviewers differ, the final decision concerning the publishing is made by the editorial board.

Approving the issue, the editorial board is guided by the date when the final version of the article was accepted.

In case of rejection of the article the author is sent a written message.

 The editorial board rejects the article in case:

  • The article does not correspond to the themes of the journal.
  • The authors are accused in plagiarism.
  • The work was previously published.
  • The article does not meet the journal requirements.
  • The authors have used inappropriate methods of research.
  • The truthfulness of the results, the accuracy of the calculations and the correctness of the conclusions is doubtful.
  • The authors do not provide profound responses to all the comments of the reviewers.
  • The article receives two negative reviews.

The editorial board has the right to edit the text of the articles, figure and table legends, agreeing the edited version with the author, and also reject the manuscripts if they do not meet the requirements of the journal "Scientific Herald of Chernivtsi University. Biology (Biological Systems)”.

The authors are responsible for the validity of the materials.

Publishing Ethics Policy and Preventing Conflict of Interests

 Editorial staff of the journal "Scientific Herald of Chernivtsi University. Biology (Biological Systems)" takes a high responsibility for each stage of the publication process.

Ethical obligations of the editorial board

The decision on the edition of the article is taken by the editorial board on the basis of the reviewers’ examination and plagiarism checking. The final decision is made upon the following principles:

Fairness - The editorial board evaluates the manuscripts for their intellectual content, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ethnic origin, citizenship or political affiliation of the authors.

Confidentiality - All members of the editorial board are not authorized to reveal the information about the submitted materials to anyone other than the author, reviewer, other editorial consultants and, if necessary, the publisher.

Divulgation of information and conflict of interests - the information contained in the submitted articles should not be used by the editor-in-chief and members of the editorial board without the written permission of the author. Confidential information or ideas received during a review process should be kept in secret and not used for personal advantage. Any member of the editorial board should refuse to participate in the reviewing process if there is a conflict of interests resulting from competition, cooperation or other relationships with any of the authors, companies or institutions relevant to the article. The editor-in-chief should require all journal authors to provide information about relevant competing interests and publish corrections if the sct of interest has been disclosed after publication. Other appropriate measures, such as publication of refutation or apology, should be taken if necessary.

Participation and cooperation in the investigation. When submitting an ethical complaint regarding certain manuscript or published article, the editor-in-chief must take objective and appropriate measures. Such measures typically include contact with the author of the manuscript or article and proper consideration of the relevant complaint or claim, but may also require applying to relevant institutions and research organizations. If the complaint is supported necessary corrections, refutations or apologies should be published. Any message about unethical behavior should be considered, even if it came in several years after publication.

Responsibilities of reviewers

The review helps the editorial board when deciding on the publication of the article, and due to the relationship of editorial board with the author, it can also help the latter to improve his work.

Efficiency. In case of reviewer’s uncertainty in his qualification relevance to the level and direction of the research presented in the article, he should immediately refuse to review.

Confidentiality. Each manuscript received for review should be considered as a confidential document. It should not be shown or discussed with anyone other than the person authorized by the editor.

Standards of objectivity. Reviews must be carried out objectively. Personal pressure and persecution of the author should be avoided. The reviewer should express his point of view clearly and reasonably.

Recognition of sources. If the author has not cited any published work, the reviewer should mention this fact. Any statement that any data, conclusion or substantiation has already been reported in the scientific press should be accompanied by a relevant reference. The reviewer should also draw the attention of the editor-in-chief in the event of any significant similarity or cross-check between the analyzed manuscript and any other known to him published work.

Divulgation of information and conflict of interests. The information contained in the submitted articles should not be used by the reviewer without the written permission of the author. Confidential information or ideas received during a review process should be kept in secret and not used for personal advantage. The reviewer should refuse to participate in the reviewing process if there is a conflict of interests resulting from competition, cooperation or other relationships with any of the authors, companies or institutions relevant to the article.

Responsibilities of authors

Originality and plagiarism. The authors of the article should ensure that they wrote the absolutely original article, and if the authors have used the works and / or the words of other authors, it should be indicated appropriately in the reference or in the text. Plagiarism has many forms, from presenting someone's work as one's own to copying or paraphrasing significant parts of someone's work (without reference to the source), as well as to claim one's rights to the results obtained in research performed by others. Plagiarism in all its forms is considered to be unethical behavior and therefore it is not admitted. It is unethical to submit the same manuscript to more than one journal at the same time. The author should not submit for consideration in another journal any published article. The work of other researchers must be duly recognized. Authors should provide references to publications that have influenced the content of the described work.

Authorship of work. Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the concept, planning, execution or interpretation of the described research. All the persons who have made a significant contribution must be mentioned as co-authors. If any person participated in any significant part of the project, then he should be expressed gratitude, or he should be included in the list of co-authors.

Confirmation of sources. One should always present correctly the works of other authors. The authors should refer to publications that have made a fundamental impact on the definition of the character and nature of the presented work. Privately received information obtained in conversation, correspondence or discussion with the third part should not be used without written permission from its source. Information obtained when providing / receiving confidential services, such as judicial acts or grant applications, should not be used without the written permission of the provider of these services.

Divulgation of information and conflict of interests. All authors should divulgate in their works the information on any financial and other significant conflicts of interests that may affect the results of the research or their interpretation. All sources of financial support for the project should be divulgated. Examples of possible conflicts of interests that must be divulgated include: information about the employer, information consultations, shareholding, fees, fees for experts, patent applications / registrations, as well as grants and other types of financing. All potential conflicts of interests should be divulgated at the earliest possible stage.

Mistakes in published works. If the author finds a significant error or inaccuracy in his published work, it is his responsibility to urgently notify the editor-in-chief of the journal about this and to work with the editor-in-chief to publish a refutation or correction of the article. If the editor-in-chief finds out from a third part that the published work contains a significant error, the author's responsibility is to refute or correct the article urgently, or to provide the editor-in-chief with the proofs of correctness of the published work.

Open Access Policy

The journal "Scientific Herald of Chernivtsi University. Biology (Biological Systems) "practices the policy of immediate open access to published content, supporting the principles of the free dissemination of scientific information and the global exchange of knowledge for the sake of universal social progress.