Academic integrity is a fundamental value for the development of science, scholarly publications, and the university community. Compliance by authors, reviewers, and editors with the principles of academic integrity ensures the high scholarly standard of the academic collection “Cherkasy University Bulletin: Biological Sciences Series”, contributes to the growth of its authority, citation index, and the expansion of its readership.

The editorial board is guided by the current legislation of Ukraine, in particular the Law of Ukraine “On Academic Integrity”, the provisions of the Laws of Ukraine “On Education” and “On Higher Education”, as well as the internal regulatory documents of the founder of the publication – the Code of Academic Integrity and Corporate Ethics of Bohdan Khmelnytsky National University of Cherkasy.

According to the legislation of Ukraine, academic integrity is a set of values, principles, and rules based on them that must guide participants in academic activity during the conduct of such activity.

During the editorial and publishing process, the following violations of academic integrity may be identified: misappropriation of authorship, academic plagiarism, attribution of authorship, self-plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, dishonest use of results generated by artificial intelligence, etc.

Good-faith mistakes, technical inaccuracies, or scholarly disagreements in the interpretation of results are not considered violations of academic integrity.

All statements regarding possible violations of academic integrity are submitted to the editor-in-chief of the collection.

If suspicion arises, the editorial board:

1. Suspends the editorial review of the manuscript (if necessary).
2. Requests the authors to provide written explanations.
3. Conducts a review in accordance with the legislation of Ukraine and the internal regulatory documents of the University.

If the authors’ explanations confirm the presence of an unintentional error, the situation may be resolved by introducing corrections. If a violation is confirmed, the manuscript is rejected or withdrawn. The editorial board reserves the right to temporarily restrict the submission of materials by authors who have committed violations.

If a violation is discovered after the publication of the material, the editorial board publishes a corresponding notice explaining the situation.

If the accusations concern reviewers or editors, they are suspended from participation in the editorial process for the duration of the investigation.

Sanctions for established violations are applied in accordance with Article 19 of the Law of Ukraine “On Academic Integrity”.

Consideration of violations committed by University employees is carried out in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On Academic Integrity” and the Code of Academic Integrity and Corporate Ethics of Bohdan Khmelnytsky National University of Cherkasy with the involvement of the head of the relevant structural unit.

A person whose actions are being reviewed for a possible violation of academic integrity has the right to:

• familiarize themselves with the materials of the review and provide comments;
• provide written or oral explanations personally or through a representative;
• be informed about the date, time, and place of the review of the issue;
• appeal the decision in accordance with the procedure established by law.

                                                          COMPLAINTS HANDLING PROCEDURE

General Provisions
This Procedure defines the mechanism for submitting, reviewing, and resolving complaints related to the activities of the Journal, with the aim of ensuring transparency, impartiality, and compliance with the principles of academic integrity.
The Journal guarantees objective, timely, and confidential consideration of all complaints.

Persons Entitled to Submit a Complaint
A complaint may be submittеd by:
- authors of manuscripts;
- reviewers;
- members of the editorial board;
- readers or other interested parties.

Grounds for Submitting a Complaint
A complaint may concern, in particular:
- violations of the peer review procedure;
- unjustified editorial decisions;
- breaches of academic integrity;
- conflicts of interest;
- violations of publication ethics;
- unlawful use of personal data;
- other actions or omissions by the editorial office or participants in the editorial process.

Submission Procedure

A complaint shall be submitted in writing (by email to the official address of the Journal) and must include:
- the full name of the complainant;
- contact details;
- a description of the complaint;
- justification and, where available, supporting materials.

Anonymous complaints may be considered only in cases where the provided information indicates potential serious breaches of academic integrity.

Review Procedure

The Editorial Office acknowledges receipt of the complaint within 5 working days.

The complaint is reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or an authorized member of the Editorial Board.

If necessary, independent experts may be involved or an ad hoc committee may be established.

The parties concerned may be invited to provide written explanations.

As a rule, the review period shall not exceed 30 calendar days.

Decision-Making

Following the review, one of the following decisions may be made:
- to dismiss the complaint;
- to recommend revision or reconsideration of the editorial decision;
- to initiate additional peer review;
- to introduce corrections to a published article;
- to publish a clarification or correction notice;
- to retract the article (in the case of confirmed serious violations);
- to take other measures in accordance with the Journal’s editorial policy and international standards (e.g., COPE).
The complainant shall receive written notification of the outcome.

Confidentiality and Impartiality

Complaints shall be reviewed in accordance with the principles of confidentiality, impartiality, and avoidance of conflicts of interest. Individuals who are the subject of a complaint shall not participate in the decision-making process.

Final Provisions

This Procedure is binding on all participants in the editorial and publishing process. The Journal reserves the right to improve the complaints handling procedure in accordance with international standards of publication ethics.