The journal accepts the following types of manuscripts:
• Original Articles: Full-length research papers reporting original findings, including randomized controlled trials, intervention studies, diagnostic test studies, outcome studies, and cost-effectiveness analyses.
• Systematic Reviews: Comprehensive reviews that systematically search, appraise, and synthesize evidence on a specific research question.
• Non-systematic (Narrative) Reviews: Authoritative overviews of a topic based on the authors’ expertise and selected literature.
• Short Communications: Brief reports of research containing new findings. Maximum 3000 words (including abstract, main text, references, tables, and figures).
• Case Reports: Reports of exceptional clinical interest. Maximum 2500 words and 15 references.
• Letters to the Editor: Comments on recently published articles (maximum 500 words, submitted within 6 months of publication) or reports of cases, outbreaks, or urgent community needs (maximum 1000 words, up to 10 references and 2 figures/tables).
Adherence to the following guidelines substantially reduces editorial processing time and facilitates rapid decision-making.
• An ethics approval statement is mandatory for all research involving human participants or animals.
• Since 2018, a free ORCID iD has been mandatory for all authors.
• The journal adheres to the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) regarding publication ethics, authorship criteria, disclosure of conflicts of interest, and manuscript preparation. For further information, please visit the official ICMJE website: https://www.icmje.org/
Manuscripts must be submitted electronically via the journal website (https://aptjournal.ssu.ac.ir) in the following format:
• A single Microsoft Word file embedding all figures and tables (PDF submissions are not accepted). High-resolution figure files must also be uploaded separately (see Section 7.2).
• Completely double-spaced text.
• Pages numbered consecutively in the upper right-hand corner, beginning with the title page.
• Font: Times New Roman; size 14 for the title, 12 for subtitles, and 11 for the main text; justified alignment. Page margins: Top and bottom 2.5 cm; Left and right 2 cm.
Manuscripts should generally be arranged in the following order:
1. Title page
2. Abstract (references must not be included in the abstract)
3. Main text under appropriate headings and subheadings
4. Tables and Figures (placed in the main text where first cited; cited in numerical order)
5. Required statements (in the order specified in Section 6)
6. Reference list
The title page must contain the following information:
• Title of the article
• Full name and affiliation of all co-authors
• Full name, 16-digit ORCID iD, affiliation, postal address, e-mail, and telephone number of the corresponding author
• A running title of 50 or fewer characters (including spaces)
A properly constructed and informative abstract facilitates the initial editorial assessment of the submitted manuscript.
Original articles and systematic reviews must include a structured abstract of no more than 250 words using the following headings:
• Aim: State the precise objective or the specific hypothesis to be tested.
• Method: Describe the study design and specific methods and procedures.
• Results: Report the most important findings, including key data and results of statistical analyses.
• Conclusion: Summarize the primary outcomes of the study and their potential importance.
• Keywords: Provide 3 to 6 keywords or phrases.
Non-systematic reviews must include an unstructured abstract of no more than 150 words.
The main text should consist of the following sections:
• Introduction: Provide a brief introduction to the research while reviewing the latest related studies. Clearly state the significance and objectives of the research.
• Methods: This section should be sufficiently detailed to allow interested researchers to replicate the experiments. For common methods, citation is sufficient; any modification to established methods must be clearly described.
• Results: Describe the important findings. Data should be analyzed statistically.
• Discussion: Discuss the observations in light of the published literature. Variations from published reports should be discussed logically, with all possible reasons considered, before drawing conclusions.
• Conclusion: Provide a brief review of the results and state the outcomes or decisions reached.
Short communications are brief reports of research containing new findings. The manuscript should include: Abstract, main body (Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusion), Acknowledgments, References, tables, and figures. The entire manuscript should not exceed 3000 words.
Case reports are accepted provided they are of exceptional interest to readers. The structure should consist of: Unstructured Abstract, Introduction, Case Report, Discussion, Acknowledgments, and References. Case reports must not exceed 15 references and a reasonable number of tables and/or figures. The entire manuscript should not exceed 2500 words.
Letters may be of two types: (1) comments on recently published articles (must be received within 6 months of publication of the article to which they refer and should be no longer than 500 words); or (2) reports of cases, outbreaks, or urgent community needs (should contain no more than 1000 words in total, including up to 10 references and 2 figures and/or tables). Letters should not be divided into sections.
The following statements must appear after the main text (after the Conclusion) and before the References, in the order listed below.
Authors may acknowledge individuals who provided technical assistance, administrative support, or other non-author contributions, as well as institutions or organizations that provided general support. Financial support should be reported separately under the Funding section.
Authors must specify the contribution of each author to the work (e.g., conception and design of the study, data acquisition, data analysis and interpretation, drafting of the manuscript, critical revision, and final approval). All authors must meet the ICMJE criteria for authorship:
All authors must disclose any financial and non-financial relationships and activities that could be perceived as potential conflicts of interest and may influence (or be seen to influence) the objectivity, integrity, or interpretation of the submitted work.
Financial relationships include, but are not limited to: employment, consultancies, stock ownership or options, honoraria, patents, paid expert testimony, and research funding. Non-financial interests may include personal relationships, academic competition, or intellectual beliefs.
Authors must avoid any agreements with study sponsors that restrict their access to the full study data or limit their ability to independently analyze, interpret, and publish the results.
A statement regarding conflicts of interest must be included in the manuscript under the heading “Conflict of Interest”. If no conflicts exist, authors should state: “The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.”
For detailed guidance, please refer to the ICMJE Recommendations: https://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/author-responsibilities--conflicts-of-interest.html
Authors must disclose all sources of financial support for the research, including grants, institutional funding, and any other form of support. The role of the funder(s) in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, and manuscript preparation (if any) should be clearly stated. If no external funding was received, authors should state: “This research received no specific funding.”
Authors must provide a clear statement regarding ethical approval of the study.
Studies involving human participants or clinical trials: The manuscript must include the name of the ethics committee or institutional review board that approved the study, the approval number/code, and a statement confirming that the study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.
Randomized controlled trials must be reported according to the CONSORT 2025 statement. Authors are strongly encouraged to complete the CONSORT 2025 checklist and submit it as a supplementary file.
CONSORT 2025: https://www.consort-spirit.org/
Lancet version: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00672-5/fulltext
Studies involving animals: The manuscript must include the name of the ethics committee that approved the study and the approval number/code. Animal research must be reported in accordance with the ARRIVE guidelines 2.0. Authors are encouraged to complete the ARRIVE Essential 10 checklist and submit it as a supplementary file.
ARRIVE guidelines: https://arriveguidelines.org/
If the study did not require ethical approval, authors must clearly state the reason.
Authors must provide a Data Availability statement indicating whether the data supporting the findings of the study are available. If data are available, the statement should specify how and where they can be accessed (e.g., in a public repository with a DOI or accession number, or upon reasonable request from the corresponding author).
Data Availability Policy: Authors commit to providing the raw data underlying the results upon request from the reviewers or editors during the peer-review process, when required for verification of the findings.
Authors must disclose any use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the preparation of the manuscript. AI tools may be used only for language editing and improving the clarity of the text. The scientific content, data analysis, interpretation, and conclusions must be generated entirely by the authors.
AI tools cannot be listed as authors. The authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of the entire manuscript, including any text refined with the assistance of AI.
A statement regarding AI use must appear in the manuscript under a dedicated heading. If no AI tools were used, authors should state:
“The authors declare that no generative AI tools were used in the writing of this manuscript.”
If AI was used solely for language editing, authors should state:
“[Name of tool] was used solely for language editing and improving the clarity of the text. The authors take full responsibility for the content of the manuscript.”
Tables should be consecutively numbered in accordance with their appearance in the text. Tables should be used sparingly, and the data presented in them should not be described elsewhere in the manuscript. Tables must be prepared in Word format and placed in the main text where they are first cited. Each table must be cited in the main text in numerical order.
Each illustration should have a caption comprising a brief title (not placed on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text within the illustration to a minimum, but explain all symbols and abbreviations used. Figures must be cited in the main text in numerical order.
In addition to embedding figures in the Word manuscript, authors must upload high-resolution figure files separately through the online submission system.
Technical requirements for figure files:
• Minimum resolution: 300 dpi (dots per inch)
• Preferred formats: TIFF, EPS, or high-quality JPEG/PNG
• File names should clearly indicate the figure number (e.g., Figure1.tif)
References should be the most recent and pertinent literature available. It is essential that they are complete and thoroughly checked. Citations within the text are identified by Arabic numbers in round brackets (Vancouver style). The entries in the reference list should be numbered consecutively.
Journal article: Newburger JW, Takahashi M, Burns JC, et al. The treatment of Kawasaki syndrome with intravenous gamma-globulin. N Engl J Med. 1986;315:341-347. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM198608073150701
Chapter in a book: Toma H. Takayasu’s arteritis. In: Novick A, Scoble J, Hamilton G, eds. Renal Vascular Disease. Philadelphia: WB Saunders; 1995:47-62.
Book: Stryer L. Biochemistry. 2nd ed. San Francisco: WH Freeman; 1981:559-596.
Online article: Rosenthal S, Chen R, Hadler S. The safety of acellular pertussis vaccine vs whole-cell pertussis vaccine [abstract]. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1996;150:457-460. Available from: [URL]. Accessed [date].
Authors must submit a cover letter confirming that the manuscript is original, is solely submitted to this journal, and is not currently under consideration or previously published elsewhere. The corresponding author should also confirm that all individuals who meet the authorship criteria have been included in the authors’ list.
Authors transfer publication rights of their article to Advances in Pharmacology and Therapeutics Journal. The journal provides open access to its articles under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license.
A signed copyright agreement form must be uploaded as a supplementary file. The manuscript cannot be processed for publication until the signed form has been received.
Articles published in the journal are archived electronically through the Eprints repository and Google Scholar.
Website: https://aptjournal.ssu.ac.ir
Email: apt.journal.2020@gmail.com
Phone: +98-35-36732218
APTJ is under the scientific and moral support of the Iranian Association of Clinical Pharmacists.