Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica is a scientific journal publishing monthly research papers, rapid communications and reviews in biochemistry, molecular biology and biophysics. Research papers and rapid communications should report original work not published or considered for publication elsewhere. Reviews should provide a concise introduction to the subject matter to inform the readers of the latest developments in a certain area.

Editorial review and acceptance

The acceptance criteria for a manuscript are the quality and originality of the research and its significance to our readership. Except where otherwise stated, manuscripts are single-blind peer reviewed by at least two anonymous reviewers and the editor. Final acceptance or rejection rests with the Editorial Board, who reserves the right to refuse any material for publication.

Submission of manuscripts

Manuscripts should be written in English and submitted online through our Manuscript Central System. A registration fee of 150 RMB payable to Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica is required in the initial submission (authors outside China are waived of this fee). 

Initial submission should include a cover letter (filling in the cover letter section) stating that: (i) the content has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere; (ii) all authors have contributed significantly and are in agreement with the content of the manuscript. Authors must declare any financial support or relationships that may pose conflict of interest. If tables or figures have been reproduced from other sources, a letter from the copyright holder (usually the Publisher) stating authorization to reproduce the material must be attached to the covering letter.

Submission of revised manuscript should include: (i) the revised manuscript with revisions marked, (ii) a letter answering all reviewers’ questions.

Submission of the final manuscript should include: (i) the revised manuscript with revisions marked. (ii) an agreement on transferring the copyright to the Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology with corresponding author's signature. Authors can download the form from http://www.abbs.info/instr/Copyright.pdf.

If you have difficulties in using the online submission system, please feel free to contact the Editorial Office at the following address:

Editorial Office of Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica

The Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, SIBS, CAS
320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
Tel: 86-21-54920956/54920955/52920954/54922862; Fax: 86-21-54921011/54921091
E-mail: abbs@sibs.ac.cn

Copyright

The copyright of papers accepted for publication belong to Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica. In signing the transfer of copyright it is assumed that authors have obtained permission to use any copyrighted or previously published material. All authors must read and agree to the contents outlined in the Copyright License Form, and must sign the Form or agree that the corresponding author can sign on their behalf. Articles cannot be published until a signed Copyright License Form has been received.

Style of the manuscript

Manuscripts should follow the style of the Vancouver agreement detailed in the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors' revised "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals: Writing and Editing for Biomedical Publication", as presented at http://www.ICMJE.org/.
Spelling The Journal uses US spelling and authors should therefore follow the latest edition of the Merriam-Websters Collegiate Dictionary.
Units All measurements must be given in SI or SI-derived units. Please go to the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) website at http://www.bipm.fr for more information about SI units.

Abbreviations

Abbreviations should be used sparingly-only where they ease the reader's task by reducing repetition of long, technical terms. Initially use the word in full, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses. Thereafter use the abbreviation only.
Genetic nomenclature Standard genetic nomenclature should be used. For further information, including relevant websites, authors should refer to the genetic nomenclature guide in Trends in Genetics (Elsevier Science, 1998).
Nucleotide sequence data can be submitted in electronic form to any of the three major collaborative databases: DDBJ, EMBL or GenBank. It is only necessary to submit to one database as data are exchanged between DDBJ, EMBL and GenBank on a daily basis. The suggested wording for referring to accession-number information is: "These sequence data have been submitted to the DDBJ/EMBL/GenBank databases under accession number U12345." Addresses are as follows:
DNA Data Bank of Japan (DDBJ) http://www.ddbj.nig.ac.jp
EMBL Nucleotide Sequence Submissions http://www.ebi.ac.uk
GenBank http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Format of manuscript (illustration; example article)

An example of the correct format for submitted papers is available on our website. Research papers should be arranged in the following order: (i) title, author(s) and affiliation(s); (ii) running title; (iii) abstract and keywords; (iv) introduction; (v) materials and ethods; (vi) results; (vii) discussion; (viii) references; (ix) footnote; (x) figure legends; (xi) tables; (xii) figures. Rapid communications should be arranged in the following order: (i) title, author(s) and affiliation (s); (ii) running title; (iii) abstract and keywords; (iv) introduction; (v) experimental procedures; (vi) results and discussion; (vii) references; (viii) footnote; (ix) figure legends; (x) tables; (xi) figures. The locations of figures and tables in the text should be indicated. Footnotes to the text are not allowed and any such material should be incorporated into the text as parenthetical matter.

Title The title should be short and informative, less than 20 words, and should not include non-standard acronyms or abbreviations.
Title page The title page should contain (i) the title of the paper, (ii) the full names of the authors and (iii) the addresses of the institutions at which the work was carried out together with (iv) the full postal and email address, plus facsimile and telephone numbers, of the author to whom correspondence about the manuscript should be sent. The present address of any author, if different from that where the work was carried out, should be supplied in a footnote.
Running title A running title should be provided and should be less than 60 characters.
Abstract The abstract should describe clearly the aim, major findings and conclusions of the research. It must not exceed 250 words.
Key words Five or fewer key words should be listed below the abstract. Keywords should be taken from those recommended by the Index Medicus Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) browser list at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/meshhome.html
Introduction The basic principles of research, background, earlier related work and the purpose of the present studies should be described in the introduction.
Experimental procedures Experimental procedures should be brief but complete enough to be repeated; procedures published previously should be cited in references.
Results It is recommended that results be presented in figures and tables along with a suitable description in the text.
Discussion The discussion should be concise (no more than three pages) and focus on the interpretation of the results.
References The Vancouver system of referencing should be used (examples are given below). In the text, references should be marked using superscript Arabic numerals in the order in which they appear.
In the reference list, if a reference has many authors, list only the first seven authors, followed by "et al." Reference to unpublished data and personal communications should not appear in the list but should be cited in the text only (e.g. Smith A, 2000, unpublished data). All citations mentioned in the text, tables or figures must be listed in the reference list.
Names of journals should be abbreviated according to the style used in Index Medicus. Authors are responsible for the accuracy of the references.
1 Neufeld EB, Remaley AT, Demosky SJ, Stonik JA, Cooney AM, Comly M, Dwyer NK et al. Cellular localization and trafficking of the human ABCA1 transporter. J Biol Chem 2001, 276: 27584-7590
2 Hanahan D, Jessee J, Bloom FR. Techniques for transformation of E. coli. In: Glover DM, Hames BD eds. DNA Cloning: A Practical Approach. 2nd ed. England: Oxford University Press 1998, 122-123
Footnotes A footnote below the key words can include (1) source of grants, (2) present address of any author(s) if required, and (3) abbreviations used in the text.
Tables Tables should be self-contained and complement, but not duplicate, information contained in the text. Tables should be consecutively numbered in the text in Arabic numerals. Type tables on a separate sheet with the legend on the top. Legends should be concise but comprehensive--the table, legend and footnotes must be understandable without reference to the text. Vertical grid lines should not be used to separate columns. Each column in a table must have a heading, with units of measurement in parentheses; all abbreviations must be defined in footnotes.
Figures Figures should be cited in consecutive order in the text, if possible. Graphs should be drawn professionally or with a computer graphics package. Pictures should be supplied electronically or as sharp, glossy, black and white photographic prints and should not be mounted onto the manuscript. Individual photographs forming a composite figure should be of equal contrast. Magnifications should be indicated using a scale bar on the illustration.
Each figure should be labeled indicating name of author(s), figure number and orientation. Hard-copy photographs should be labeled on the back.
Figure legends Type figure legends on a separate page. Legends should be concise but comprehensive--the figure and its legend must be understandable without reference to the text. Include definitions of any symbols used and define/explain all abbreviations and units of measurement.

Proofs

It is essential that corresponding authors supply an email address to which proofs can be emailed. Full instructions on how to correct and return the file will be attached to the email. If the proof is not returned by the appointed date, it may be signed off on by the Editor or held over to the next issue.

Page limits

Reviews should be less than 6 printed pages. Rapid communications are limited to 5 printing pages. A surcharge of publication fee may be required for the over-limit printing pages.

Offprints

A maximum of 30 offprints will be provided free of charge upon request and additional offprints are available at 10 RMB ($ 1) per copy. An Offprint Order Form will be sent to the corresponding author with the PDF proof.

Publication fees

A publication fee of 200 RMB ($ 30) per printed page is required. No additional charge is required for black-white figures. A surcharged of 800 RMB($ 100) is required for each color page reproduced in the journal. 
Publication fees should be paid to Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica by Telegragh Transfer or Money Order.

(1) Telegragh transfer
ITEM TITLE: Publication fee paid to Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica  

INTERMEDIARY BANK: First Union National Bank, New York International Branch.

SWIFT CODE: PNBPUS3NNYC  

RECEIVING BANK: Agricultural Bank of China, Shanghai Branch, Xuhui Sub-Branch

SWIFT CODE: ABOCCNBJ090.
A/C Title: Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (for Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica)
A/C No:  033924-00801048006

ADDRESS: 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China

(2) Money Order
Pay to: Acta Biochimica et Biophysica Sinica
Mailing Address: Building 31B, 319 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China

Authors unable to pay publication fee may apply at the time of submission for a waiver. Applications must be endorsed by a senior institutional official.