Policy on Competing Interests (Conflicts of Interest)
1- Statement of Principle
In accordance with the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), Regeneration, Reconstruction & Restoration (Triple R) Journal is committed to maintaining the highest standards of transparency, integrity, and objectivity. We believe that identifying and declaring potential competing interests (also referred to as conflicts of interest - COI) is essential to ensure that professional judgment regarding research validity and clinical outcomes remains unbiased. The existence of a competing interest is not inherently unethical, but failure to disclose it is.
2- Definition of Competing Interests
A competing interest exists when an individual’s personal, professional, or financial relationships could reasonably be perceived as interfering with the full and objective presentation, peer review, editorial decision-making, or publication of research.
-Financial Interests: Include, but are not limited to, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, patent holdings (or applications), paid expert testimony, or receiving funding/salary from an organization that may gain or lose financially from the publication of the manuscript.
-Non-Financial Interests: Include personal relationships, political, ideological, academic, or intellectual competing interests, and professional rivalries.
Organizational Interests: Affiliations with commercial organizations, including pharmaceutical companies, contract research organizations, or communications companies that may have a stake in the publication.
3- Declaration Requirements
All participants in the publication process are required to disclose any potential conflicts:
-Authors: Must declare all competing interests upon submission in the covering letter and within a dedicated “Competing Interests” section of the manuscript.
If no conflicts exist, the following statement must be included: "The author(s) declare(s) that they have no competing interests with regard to the authorship and/or publication of this article."
Failure to declare conflicts may result in the immediate rejection of the manuscript.
-Reviewers: Must assess their own potential conflicts—such as recent collaborations or personal relationships with authors—before accepting an assignment. If a conflict exists, the reviewer must decline the invitation.
-Editors: Must declare any financial or personal relationship with authors or institutions involved in a manuscript. If a conflict exists, the editor must recuse themselves from the entire review and decision-making process.
Note: In line with TUOMS PRESS policy, journal editors should hold no financial relationship with any biomedical company.
4- Management Protocol
The journal employs rigorous procedures to handle identified conflicts:
Pre-Publication: The editorial team reviews all declarations. If a conflict is identified, the journal may assign an alternative editor, seek additional independent reviewers, or publish a formal COI statement alongside the article to ensure transparency.
Post-Publication: If an undisclosed competing interest is discovered after publication, the journal will investigate the matter. Depending on the severity and impact on the study’s integrity, the journal will take action in accordance with COPE guidelines, which may include publishing a correction, an expression of concern, or a formal retraction.
5- Industry-Sponsored Research
Authors from commercial organizations or those conducting industry-sponsored trials must strictly adhere to the *Good Publication Practice (GPP)* guidelines. The journal maintains a firm policy against the publication of advertorial content.
6- Transparency and Education
Regeneration, Reconstruction & Restoration (Triple R) Journal is dedicated to fostering a culture of integrity:
-Public Disclosure: Relevant conflict statements are published alongside articles.
-Education: We provide ongoing resources to authors, reviewers, and editors to ensure a clear understanding of what constitutes a conflict and the necessity of disclosure.
-Policy Review: This policy is subject to regular review to align with the latest COPE recommendations and evolving best practices in scholarly publishing.
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Inquiries and Disclosures:
For any questions regarding this policy or to report a potential conflict of interest, please contact the Editorial Office at: tripler@sbmu.ac.ir.