Human Biology publishes scientific articles, brief communications, letters to the editor, and review articles on the general topic of population biology and genetics. Manuscripts should be submitted to:
Sarah Williams-Blangero, Editor-in-Chief All submitted articles will be reviewed by researchers familiar with the particular subject area. After a paper is reviewed, it is returned to the author tor revisions (if necessary) or rejected. Once a paper has been accepted and an issue assigned, it will be copyedited according to the style ot the journal, which incorporates elements of style trom the CBE Style Manual (Bethesda, Md.: Council of Biology Editors, 1983, 5th ea.) and other style manuals. The copyedited manuscripts are then typeset. The journal reserves the right to charge authors for part ot the costs involved in publishing long articles or those containing much tabular material. Authors will receive page proof, which they are to proof: read carefully and return promptly.
Southwest Foundation for
Biomedical Research
PO Box 760549
San Antonio, TX 78245-0549
(210) 258-9434 (Editorial Assistant)
(210) 258-9724 (Fax)
Email:humbiol@darwin.sfbr.org
It is the style of Human Biology to use the Human Gene Mapping Workshop nomenclature for genetic systems. This nomenclature system and its terminology are explained by Shows et al. in their article: "Guidelines tor Human Gene Nomenclature: An International System for Human Gene Nomenclature (ISGN, 19X7)" [Cytogenet. Cell Genet.46:11-28 (1987)]. In addition, the abbreviations tor specific alleles, enzymes, markers, etc. are given by McAlpine et al.: ["Report of the Nomenclature Committee and the 1989 Catalog of Mapped Genes," Cytogenet. Cell Genet. 51 :13-66 (1989)].
It is also the style of the journal to use metric units. In addition, symbols, diacritical marks, and other unusual characters should be clearly marked on the manuscript. Also be sure to distinguish between the number "1," the letter "l," and the letter "I" if you are using a sans serif typeface.
Organization. The manuscript should be organized as follows. The first page should be a title page, including the title of the paper, authors' names, complete authors' affiliations, and key words. The second page should contain the abstract of the paper. The abstract should give a summary of the article and not be merely descriptive of it. For example, state the results and the conclusions; do not use such phrases as "The results are discussed in terms of epidemiology." On the third page of the manuscript you should start the actual text.
The text should contain the following sections: an introduction (untitled) outlining the background ot your topic and stating your purpose in writing the present article; the materials and methods (the study population, statistical methods, measurement methods, etc.); the results; and a discussion.
After the main text of your article, you should include a complete list of Literature Cited. In the text, you should cite the articles by author and date. In the Literature Cited section the articles should be in alphabetical order by author. The reference list should include all articles cited in the text, figure captions, and tables. Please do not pad your list with papers you do not cite. Following the Literature Cited section are the tables and the figure captions.
Tables. You should place the tables after the Literature Cited section. Each table should be typed on a separate sheet of paper, double-spaced, in Human Biology style. Do not use vertical or slant rules. Keep in mind that the table should not contain more columns of data than will fit on a printed page turned sideways. The tables should be numbered sequentially in the order they are to appear. Make sure that each table is cited in the text in sequential order. Each column should have a heading, and all units should be clearly marked (%, cm, etc.).
Other types of references (technical reports, dissertations, etc.) should always include as much information as possible: all authors' names (sometimes the author might be a corporation or an organization), date, title, publishing organization and location, number of report, name of university and location, series designation, etc. Articles appearing in conference proceedings should be treated as chapters in a book; that is, you will list all authors' names, date, title of article, title of conference proceedings book (not the name of the conference, where it was held, and on what date), editors of the proceedings, publisher (probably the organization that sponsored the conference) and location, and volume and page numbers.
Figures and Figure Captions. After the tables should be a list of figure captions. Because the figure captions are typeset, they should not be part of the actual illustrations. They should be typed on a separate sheet of paper as you would the text, that is, double-spaced. You do not have to use a separate page for each caption. All illustrations should be in black and white and numbered sequentially. On the back of each figure, clearly mark the authors' names and figure number. Keys and other internal matter should be lettered on the figure, or if possible, included in the figure caption.
Submit the originals of line drawings or glossy photographs made of them. Photocopies of figures are not acceptable. If you have computer-generated graphics, you should submit good laser printer copies. Photographs should be clear, sharp, and of high contrast. They should be printed on glossy paper. Please keep in mind that your figures will probably be reduced to fit the journal page. Thus make sure that all lettering and symbols will be able to withstand substantial reduction and still be legible.