GUIDE TO AUTHORS

(Revised 3 May 2012)

The Philippine Journal of Natural Sciences (formerly UPV Journal of Natural Sciences)
publishes original articles, short communications, and review papers on problems and
issues in broad fields of Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, and in Fisheries Science
including Aquaculture. Original articles should not exceed 25 pages, double spaced,
including Tables and Figures. Short communications should not exceed 5 pages; these
should include an abstract but may omit the usual major headings of full articles. Review
papers will be solicited by the editor and members of the Editorial Board; these should
not exceed 5 pages.

General

Refer to the current edition of the Council of Science Editors (formerly Council of Biology Editors) Style Manual for
specific items not covered in these guidelines.

Manuscript preparation

1. The paper should be organized following these headings: Title, Abstract, Introduction, Materials and
Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgment, Literature Cited, Captions for Tables, Captions for Figures,
Tables, and Figures. The Discussion should already include the Conclusions. The Literature Cited should
substantially consist of articles published in ISI or peer-reviewed journals. Citations of unpublished reports
and theses should be minimized.
2. Type the entire manuscript should be double-spaced on a A4-sized white bond paper about 21 x 30 cm
(8.27 x 11.69 in) on one side only with 2.5 cm margins all around using a 12 point normal-size type (Times
New Roman, size 12 font). Literature Cited, Acknowledgment, Table Titles and Figure Legends should
also be typed double-spaced. All pages including title page, figures and tables should be numbered
consecutively. Line number for each page should also be included.
3. The Title Page should include the author’s full names and affiliations, a running title of not more than 40
characters, the author’s postal address, email address, and telephone and fax numbers.
4. The Abstract should not exceed 250 words.
5. There should be three spaces before and after the major headings and two spaces before and after the
sub-headings. Footnotes should not be used, unless necessary for better comprehension.
6. Acronyms or unfamiliar abbreviations should be spelled out when these are mentioned for the first time in
the text.
7. The scientific name of the species should be given when it is first mentioned in the text and the common
name should be used in succeeding references. Underline or italicize scientific names.
8. Numbers should not be spelled out unless they are used to start a sentence.
9. The metric system only or the International System of Units should be used. Abbreviations of units only
beside numerals (e.g. 6 m) should be used; otherwise, the units (e.g. kilometers from here) should be
spelled out. Plural forms or periods for abbreviations of units should not be used. The bar for compound
units (e.g. 1kg/ha/yr) should be used. A zero should be used before the decimal in numbers less than 1
(e.g. 0.25).
10 When preparing Tables and Figures, the journal’s printed page of 8.27 x 11.69 in and the reduction that will
be necessary should be considered. Titles of Tables and captions of Figures should be as short as
possible and should be understandable without referring to the text. Captions of figures should be typed
double-spaced in a separate sheet.
Figures should consist only of simple line drawings, computer-generated graphics or good quality black
and white photographs. Figures should be identified by writing at the back the figure number as they
appear in the text and the author’s name. Labels of Figures should be of such a size so that these are still
legible even after reducing the size by as much as 50%. Use preferably Corel-Draw, Adobe Photoshop or
Excel for computergenerated graphics. Figures and photographs should be submitted in TIFF format with
resolution at 300 dpi.
Graphs should not have horizontal grid lines and should not be enclosed in a box.
Vertical lines should not be used in the tables. Horizontal lines in the table are allowed only for the top line,
table heading and bottom line. Each table should be labeled at the top with an Arabic numeral followed by
the table title. Footnotes and explanatory material should be inserted below the table.
11. References should be cited in the text as author (year). Citations for three or more authors should be cited
as (first author et al. year), references in press as (author, in press), and unpublished references as
(author, unpubl. data or author, pers. comm.). If two or more references are cited, these should be arranged
by year (e.g. Formacion 1987; Geduspan 1990; Torres 1992).
 12. In the Literature Cited, list down references as follows:

Journal Articles Formacion MJ, Hori R, Lam TJ. 1993. Overripening of ovulated eggs in goldfish. I. Morphological changes. Aquaculture
114(1): 155-168. (Note: Abbreviate Journal Titles following the List of Scientific Periodicals).
Conference Paper Alino PM, Banzon VV, Yap HT, Gomez ED, Morales JT. 1995. Recovery and colonization on damaged backreef areas
at Canguluyan Island (Northern Philippines). In: Fifth International Coral Reef Congress; 1995 May 27-June 1; Tahiti.
International Society for Reef Studies (ISRS).
Book Chapter Geduspan JS, Padanilam BJ, Solursh M. 1993. Mesonephros derived IGF-I in early limb development. In: Failon J,
Goetinck P.and Stocum D, editors. Limb development and regeneration. New York: Wiley-Liss, Inc. pp. 673-681.
Edited Book Reaka-Kudla ML, Wilson DE, Wilson EO, editors. 1997. Biodiversity II: Understanding and protecting our biological
resources. Washington (DC): Joseph Henry Press. 551 p.
Book Bardach JE, Ryther JH, McLarney WO. 1972. Aquaculture: the farming and husbandry of freshwater and marine
organisms. New York: Wiley Interscience. 1000 p.
Technical Report Ford PL, Fagerlund RA, Duszynski DW, Polechla PJ. 2004. Fleas and lice of mammals in New Mexico. Fort Collins
(CO): USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station. General Technical Report No. RMRS-GTR-123.
Electronic Book Rollin, BE. The unheeded cry: animal consciousness, animal pain, and science [Internet]. Ames (IA): The Iowa State
University Press; 1998 [cited 2007 August 27]. Available from: http://www.netlibrary.com
Electronic article Leng F, Amado L, McMacken R. 2004. Coupling DNA supercoiling to transcription in defined protein systems. Journal of
(From Journal Biological Chemistry [Internet]. [cited 2007 Jul 24];279(46):47564-47571. Available from: http://www.jbc.org/cgi/reprint/
Publisher’s Website) 279/46/47564
Electronic Article Hong P, Wong W. 2005. GeneNotes: a novel information management software for biologists. BMC Bioinformatics
(From Online-Only [Internet]. [cited 2007 July 24]; 6:20. Available from: http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2105/6/20
Journal

Submission of manuscripts
One original copy and two clear photocopies of the manuscripts should be submitted. These should include Tables
and Figures for review. Where the Figures include photographs, three original pictures should be submitted
together with electronic copy of the files. The electronic files should be in Windows compatible format preferably in
Microsoft Word for the Text, Microsoft Excel for the graphs, and photos or figures in TIFF format. After the manuscript
have been reviewed and accepted, two copies of the revised manuscript should be sent. All articles will be peer-
reviewed by at least three external referees.
Submission of manuscript shall include a cover letter. The letter should state that the manuscript submitted to the
Philippine Journal of Natural Sciences has never been published nor being considered for publication elsewhere
by the time of submission to the journal. Corresponding author shall also certify that all co-authors are informed that
the manuscript is being submitted to the journal. Failure to comply with these requirements shall result in the
automatic return of the manuscripts to the corresponding author.
Manuscripts should be sent to: The Editor, Philippine Journal of Natural Sciences, c/o Office of the Vice Chancellor
for Research and Extension, UP Visayas, Miagao, Iloilo, 5023 Philippines or to the following email address:
ovcre_upv@yahoo.com.

Reprints
Authors will be given 25 free reprints of their published articles. Additional reprints may be ordered at P20 to P30
per copy when the galley proofs are returned.