In strict adherence to the COPE Position Statement on Authorship and AI Tools, generative artificial intelligence technologies (including Large Language Models, chatbots, and image generators) are unequivocally ineligible for authorship. Authorship necessitates legal, ethical, and intellectual accountability, which only natural persons can assume. Authors bear sole and absolute responsibility for the factual accuracy, academic integrity, and originality of the entire manuscript, explicitly encompassing any segments generated or refined via AI assistance.
Mandatory Disclosure Requirements
Transparency regarding the utilization of AI is an absolute prerequisite. Should AI technologies be employed in research conceptualization, data analysis, or manuscript drafting, a formal declarative statement must be integrated within the "Materials and Methods" or "Acknowledgments" section. This statutory disclosure must explicitly delineate:
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The precise nomenclature and version specifications of the deployed AI tool.
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The exact scope of the automated intervention (e.g., syntactical refinement, data visualization, or bibliographic curation).
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A formal attestation that the human authors have rigorously verified all AI-generated outputs for factual veracity and the absence of plagiarized content.
Reviewer Confidentiality and AI Prohibition
Peer reviewers are expressly forbidden from uploading any portion of a submitted manuscript into generative AI platforms. Such actions constitute a severe breach of the review confidentiality mandate and represent a direct infringement upon the authors' proprietary intellectual property rights.
Integrity of Empirical Data and Imagery
The deployment of generative AI to synthesize, alter, or manipulate primary research data or scientific imagery is strictly prohibited. Exceptions are granted exclusively in instances where AI manipulation constitutes the explicit subject of the research methodology, a condition which necessitates exhaustive methodological transparency and prior editorial approval.