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INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS

Mission Statement

Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (J DOHaD) is the official scientific journal of the International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD).

Aims and Scope 

JDOHaD publishes leading research in the field of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD). The Journal focuses on the environment during early pre-natal and post-natal animal and human development, interactions between environmental and genetic factors, including environmental toxicants, and their influence on health and disease risk throughout the lifespan. JDOHaD publishes work on developmental programming, fetal and neonatal biology and physiology, early life nutrition, especially during the first 1,000 days of life, human ecology and evolution and Gene-Environment Interactions.

JDOHaD also accepts manuscripts that address the social determinants or education of health and disease risk as they relate to the early life period, as well as the economic and health care costs of a poor start to life. Accordingly, JDOHaD is multi-disciplinary, with contributions from basic scientists working in the fields of physiology, biochemistry and nutrition, endocrinology and metabolism, developmental biology, molecular biology/ epigenetics, human biology/ anthropology, and evolutionary developmental biology. Moreover clinicians, nutritionists, epidemiologists, social scientists, economists, public health specialists and policy makers are very welcome to submit manuscripts.

The journal includes original research articles, short communications and reviews, and has regular themed issues, with guest editors; it is also a platform for conference/workshop reports, and for opinion, comment and interaction.

Categories of papers

Original research articles* - This category is intended for full-scale basic, clinical or epidemiological studies including large controlled trials. Articles may contain up to 5,000 words (not including references, figures and tables) and should include an abstract of up to 250 words and 3–5 key words. (Exceptions to the length limitation will be considered for unusually large or complex studies.)

Brief reports* - This category is for smaller, self-contained laboratory or clinical studies or analyses. Papers in this category may contain up to 2,500 words (not including references, figures and tables) and should include a maximum of 25 references, up to 2 illustrations (figures or tables), an abstract of up to 150 words and 3–5 key words.

Rapid communications* - This category is for 'fast-breaking' new work, which is of great potential interest and can be succinctly presented.

Authors who wish to submit a rapid communication must first send an abstract to the Editor-in-Chief, Michael Ross ([email protected]) for approval of submission in this category. Submissions that do not have prior approval will be reviewed on the regular track. 

Papers in this category may contain up to 2,500 words (not including references, figures and tables) and should include a maximum of 25 references, up to 2 illustrations (figures or tables), an abstract of up to 150 words and 3–5 key words. Rapid communications will be reviewed and published on a "fast track" basis.

Reviews* – J DOHaD will publish scholarly, comprehensive reviews that summarize and critically evaluate research in the field addressed and identify future implications. Reviews will be invited by the Editors but may also be submitted. Authors wishing to submit papers in this category are advised to contact either the Editor-in-Chief or appropriate Associate Editor before doing so. Reviews may contain up to 5,000 words (not including references, figures and tables) and should include an abstract of up to 250 words and 3–5 key words. (Exceptions to the length limitation will be considered if justified by the scope of the Review).

Focus Papers – These papers focus attention on a research paper published in the same issue in the journal. Focus Papers should highlight, discuss and amplify the issues addressed in the research paper adding perspectives derived the author’s own work and the literature and should consider the implications of the findings. Focus papers need not necessarily agree with the paper they address. Focus Papers may contain up to 1500 words (not including references, figures and tables) and 3–5 key words. No abstract is needed. Focus Papers are invited by the Editor-in-Chief.

Letters to the Editor - Letters are invited that discuss or comment on papers published in J DOHaD. They should not, however, be used as a means of publishing new work. Letters should have no more than 10 references and should not contain figures or tables. Acceptance will be at the discretion of the Editorial Board, and editorial changes may be required. Wherever possible, letters from responding authors will be included in the same issue.

Editorials shall have a maximum length of 2,000 words (the word count limit includes title, abstract, tables, figures, and references list).” 

Papers in all categories, whether invited or submitted, will be peer reviewed.

Clinical Trials

As a condition of consideration for publication, registration of clinical trials in a public trials registry is required. A clinical trial is defined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (in accordance with the definition of the World Health Organisation) as any research project that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes. Trials must be registered before the start of patient enrolment. The registry must be accessible to the public at no charge. It must be open to all prospective registrants and managed by a not-for-profit organization. There must be a mechanism to ensure the validity of the registration data, and the registry should be electronically searchable. An acceptable registry must include at minimum a unique trial number, trial registration date, secondary identification information if assigned by sponsors or others, funding source(s), primary and secondary sponsor(s), responsible contact person, research contact person, official scientific title of the study, research ethics review, the medical condition being studied, intervention(s), key inclusion and exclusion criteria, study type, anticipated trial start date, target sample size, recruitment status, primary outcome, and key secondary outcomes. Registration information must be provided at the time of submission. Trial registry name, registration identification number, and the URL for the registry should be included at the end of the abstract.