Image Integrity & Standards

At Global Journals®, we believe that publishing is only the first step. To create real impact, research must be visible, discoverable, and accessible, so that it reaches the right audiences and informs future work. We invest in multiple strategies to enhance the visibility of articles, authors, and journals.

Why Image Integrity Matters

  • Images provide visual evidence supporting your scientific claims. If they are misleading, it can distort interpretation and conclusions.
  • Advances in digital editing make manipulation easier, and harder to detect, heightening the need for clear rules and checks.
  • Journals, editors, and the scientific community have increasingly adopted automated and editorial screening for image anomalies.
  • Upholding strong image standards helps preserve the credibility of your research and the scholarly record.

General Principles & Responsibilities

  • As an author, you must
  • Represent the data faithfully - images should reflect what was actually observed, without distortion.
  • Use minimal, nonmisleading processing - any adjustments must not misrepresent or exaggerate features.
  • Apply changes equally across the full image (not selectively to parts) unless explicitly justified and declared.
  • Disclose in captions or legends any manipulation or composition (e.g. splicing, composite panels).
  • Retain original, unprocessed image data and supply it upon editorial request.
  • Annotate or label composite or rearranged images (e.g. using dividing lines) and explain them clearly.
  • Ensure that image reuse or duplication is properly cited, contextualized, and justified.

What Is & Isn’t Acceptable

  • Acceptable Practices
  • Linear adjustments of brightness, contrast, or color balance applied uniformly to the entire image.
  • Cropping to emphasize regions of interest (provided that essential data are not hidden or misrepresented).
  • Combining multiple images (from the same experiment) into a composite figure, with clear demarcation (e.g. thin lines) and explanation in legend.
  • When creating rearranged images (e.g. merging lanes from a blot), clearly marking the joins and explaining them in the legend.
  • Maintaining consistent scaling, aspect ratio, and resolution so images remain scientifically interpretable.
  • Low DPI images.
  • Prohibited or Problematic Practices​
  • Selectively altering parts of an image (e.g. brightening only a region, erasing features, adding or removing objects).
  • Duplication or cloning of pixels within the same or between different panels (unless legitimate and declared).
  • Misaligned splicing without indication or explanation.
  • Applying nonlinear enhancements (e.g. gamma correction) to portions only, distorting data.
  • Manipulating contrast/brightness to hide features or exaggerate signals.
  • Presenting different experiments or gels as if from the same source without disclosure.
  • Failing to mention that an image is a composite or that lanes/blots have been rearranged.

Screening & Editorial Checks

  • All submitted manuscripts may be screened for image anomalies (duplication, splicing, irregular patterns) at any stage (submission, pre-publication, or post-publication).
  • Editors may request original image files or raw data to verify integrity.
  • If discrepancies are found, authors may be asked to explain, correct, or resubmit parts of their work.
  • Unresolved or severe manipulations may lead to manuscript rejection, corrigendum, or even retraction.

Figure Legends & Documentation

  • Your legends should include
  • A description of any adjustments made (e.g. “brightness and contrast modified uniformly”).
  • Clear indication of composite images and how panels were assembled or rearranged.
  • Statement of how many replicates were imaged and used, and how the representative image was selected.
  • Disclosure of reused images (with citation and context).
  • Any scale bars, magnification, or relevant metadata.
  • Additionally, you should
  • Keep a clear record of original image files, metadata, and processing steps.
  • Be ready to submit these original files to editors on request.
  • Document processing steps to maintain transparency and reproducibility.

Special Cases & Examples

  • gels / blots / lane splicing machine
  • If splicing or rearrangement is done, include dividing lines and clearly explain in the legend. Avoid comparing lanes from different gels unless explicitly justified and processed under identical conditions.
  • Microscopy & Insets
  • When inserting magnified insets, mark region boundaries and ensure consistent processing. Provide scale bars and full-field images when possible.
  • Replicate Control Panels
  • If you show a representative control, ensure it comes from the same experiment and include supporting controls or metadata.
  • Quantitative Comparisons
  • Only perform quantitative comparisons if images were captured and processed under comparable conditions and remain within their linear signal ranges. Otherwise, such comparisons may mislead.

Consequences of Violations

  • Authors may be asked to revise or replace problematic figures, provide original data, or explain discrepancies.
  • In serious or unresolvable cases, the manuscript may be rejected or withdrawn.
  • After publication, discovered manipulations may lead to corrections, notices, or retraction of figures or papers.