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■ Submission Guidelines

Revised 2023.02.11.


Journal Publication

The Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science (KJCLS) is the official journal of the Korean Society for Clinical Laboratory Science. The ISO abbreviated title is “Korean J Clin Lab Sci”. The initial title was “Korean Journal of the Korean Medical Technologists Association; Korean Journal of Medical Technologists” (Volume 1, 1967∼ Volume 26, 1994). The title was later changed to “Korean Journal of the Clinical Laboratory Science” (Volume 27, 1995∼ Volume 35, 2003, ISSN 1229-2850) and then to the current title “Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science” (KoreanJ Clin Lab Sci, Volume 36, 2004∼Present, pISSN 1738-3544, eISSN 2288-1662). KJCLS (http://www.kjcls.org/) is published by the Korean Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (https://www.kscls.or.kr/). In 2021, KJCLS (https://www.kjcls.org/) was registered by the International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI 0000 0004 6406 3334).

  • 1. Issue Date
    KJCLS is published on March 31, June 30, September 30, and December 31 every year. Supplement issues can be published if necessary.
  • 2. Aims and Scope
    Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science (Korean J Clin Lab Sci; KJCLS) KJCLS aims to establish high-quality standard testing methods in various medical environments, promote and support the advancement of outstanding laboratories, activa t e t he e xpertise o f la boratory scientists in the field of life sciences, and share various educational activities. The journal aims to pursue the professional values and ethical principles of science and to promote the exchange of ideas within the medical environment. It seeks to elevate the contributions and recognition of life sciences in improving global health. KJCLS focuses on scientific and original research in the field of clinical laboratory science, encompassing areas such as hematology, transfusion science, chemistry, immunology, microbiology, genetics, histology, cytology, cardiopulmonary physiology, neurophysiology, management, education, life sciences, and health sciences. These fields of research relate to the causation of diseases, their diagnosis, and disease management. Moreover, the journal emphasizes applying various analytical methodologies in clinical laboratory science, its development, evaluation, and management. Types of papers include original articles, case reports, reviews, and technical briefs.
  • 3. Bibliographical Indexes and Databases
    The Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science is indexed in t he K orea Cita tion I ndex (KCI) of the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) and in the DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journal) database.
  • 4. Open Access and Accessibility
    The Korean Society of Clinical Laboratory Science operates an online website (http://www.kscls.or.kr/) and an online paper submission system (http://www.kjcls.org/submission/Login.html). The Journal of the Korean Society of Clinical Labora tory Science decla res that it i s an Open Access journal, and papers can be searched for or printed for free. The journal provides JATS XML & CrossRef (DOI) for its papers online.
  • 5. Copyright Usage Agreement
    • 1) When submitting a paper, the author must submit the Research Ethics Pledge and Copyright Transfer Agreement, indicating compliance with research publication ethics and the transfer of copyright.
    • 2) All rights, benefits, copyrights, and digital copyrights pertaining to papers confirmed for publication in this journal, including the exercise of all authorities (including copying and transmission rights), belong to the Korean Society of Clinical Laboratory Science.
  • 6. Article Processing Charge and Subscription Fee
    • 1) Members who have paid the annual fee (65,000 won) to t he K orea n Clinical Laboratory Technologist Association will have their publication fee covered by the association.
    • 2) If the contributor is a non-member, The publication fee (250,000 KRW) set separately by the society must be paid.
    • 3) If the submitting authors include non-members, the publication fee is waived if the primary author (either the first author or corresponding author) is a regular member or if the author is a foreigner.
    • 4) The cost for offprints or color prints is covered by the author based on the actual expenses.
    • 5) The subscription fee for the academic journal is 65,000 won annually.
Research Publication Ethics and Guidelin

Research publication ethics adhere to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) “Guidelines on Good Publication” (http://publicationethics.org/resources/guidelines) and t he “ Good Publication Practice Guidelines for Medical Journals” by the Korean Council of Science Editors (2013, ).

  • 1. Research Involving Humans (Human and Humanderived Materials)
    Research involving humans (human and human-derived materials) should comply with the “Declaration of Helsinki: Medical Research Involving Human Subjects” (revised in 2013,     https://www.wma.net/what-we-do/medical-ethics/declaration-of-helsinki/) and the Korean law “Act on Bioethics and Safety” (https://www.law.go.kr/법령/생명윤리및안전에관한법률, 2021). Patient-related information such as names, hospital patient registration numbers, birthda tes, e tc., should be protected. As a principle, the ethical nature of human experimentation should be reviewed by an independent Institutional Review Board (IRB). If necessary, researchers should thoroughly explain to the patient or their guardian about the purpose, background, and methods of the research, as well as any potential mental or physical harm that may occur during the study. Obtaining a signed informed consent (written informed consent) is mandatory.
  • 2. Research Involving Animals
    Research involving animals must adhere to the basic guidelines for the management and use of experimental animals (Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals) established by the nation or institution. Additionally, it should comply with the Animal Protection Act (Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, 2022) and the Law on Experimental Animals (Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, 2023).
    Any research involving animals should indicate whether there was approval from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) and provide details about informed consent. If necessary, for research other than original articles, the approva l sta tus from the IRB or IACUC can be requested.
  • 3. Research Misconduct
    Research misconduct refers to inappropriate actions taken during the design, execution, reporting, and presentation of research. This includes forgery, falsification, plagiarism, deletion, self-deception, duplicate submission, redundant publication, paper partitioning, inappropriate listing of authors, and others. Each of these is detailed below:
    • 1) Forgery (Fabrication): Creating, recording, or reporting data or results that do not exist.
    • 2) Falsification: Manipulating research materials, equipment, or methods, or changing or omitting data or results, i n such a w a y tha t the resea rch is n ot accurately represented.
    • 3) Plagiarism: Using someone else’s ideas, research process, results, or words without giving appropriate credit.
    • 4) Deletion: Intentionally removing data that could hinder the desired results.
    • 5) Self-deception: Researchers unconsciously introducing bias into the collection of experimental data due to biased thinking or assumptions without sufficient verification.
    • 6) Duplica te Submission: Submitting a paper to this journal that has been published in or submitted to another journal or vice versa.
    • 7) Redundant Publication: Publishing a paper that has already been published in printed or electronic format.
    • 8) Paper Partitioning: Submitting substantial portions of a previously published paper as a new paper.
    • 9) Inappropriate Listing of Authors: Not giving authorship to someone who has made a significant contribution to the research or results, or giving authorship to someone who hasn’t contributed based on gratitude or courtesy.
    • 10) Actions that involve recommending, forcing, or threatening others to engage in the above misconducts.
    • 11) Deliberate interference in mediation, or harming or threatening to harm an informant, either directly or on behalf of someone else.
  • 4. Clinical Trial Research Registration
    Clinical trial research should be registered in the Clinical Research Information Service (CRiS; https://cris.nih.go.kr) within the Disease Control Agency, or in the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform approved by the World Health Organization (https://www.who.int/clinicaltrialsregistry-platform), or on the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s ClinicalTrial.gov (https://clinicaltrials.gov).
  • 5. Data Sharing
    The Journal of the Korean Clinical Laboratory Science Society adheres to the data-sharing policy recommendations of ICMJE (https://icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf). All manuscripts reporting clinical trial results must submit a data-sharing s ta tement in accordance with ICMJE guidelines, and when necessary, provide a link for data sharing.
  • 6. Authorship
    The corresponding author should be the one directly communicating with the editorial board during manuscript submission, expert review, and publication process. This author should cooperate in providing author information, obtaining ethical committee approval, registering clinical trials, and gathering conflict of interest declarations, as required by the editorial board. After publication, they should also respond to comments on the paper and cooperate when the editorial board requests additional data or information related to the paper. All co-authors share responsibility for the content of the paper. Every researcher listed as an author must meet a ll four of the following criteria, as defined by ICMJE (http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html):
    • 1) Significant contributions to the conception and design of the research, data collection, analysis, and interpretation.
    • 2) Drafting the paper or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
    • 3) Approval of the version to be published.
    • 4) Agreeing to be accountable for inquiries related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the research.
    Only those who meet all the above conditions can be considered authors. The affiliation and author information (position) should be accurately specified in the published paper to enhance research credibility. Researchers who do not meet the four criteria can be listed in the Acknowledgments section as contributors. Any changes in authorship (additions, deletions, order changes, etc.) after manuscript submission must be explained in writing or by email to the editor. All authors must sign this and must also complete the copyright transfer.
  • 7. Declaration of Interests
    A conflict of interest a rises when a uthors (or their institutions), reviewers, or editors have financial or personal relationships that might influence their actions during the manuscript writing, reviewing, and publication process. All authors must declare 1) financial relationships (employment, consultancy, stock ownership), 2) personal relationships, 3) academic competition, and 4) intellectual interests.
  • 8. Original Experimental Data and Ethical Documents
    • 1) For research involving humans or animals, approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is required. In such cases, a written consent form from the participants and approval from the IRB of the author’s affiliated institution must be obtained. This approval should be mentioned in the manuscript. Additionally, for research outside of the original study, the approval status from the IRB or IACUC may be requested.
    • 2) The editorial committee may request authors to provide the approval document from the affiliated institution’s IRB or written consent forms from the participants.
    • 3) Authors must retain the original experimental data and ethical documents used for writing the manuscript for at least one year from the publication date. If requested by the editorial committee, authors must present these documents.
  • 9. Measures for Violations of Research Publication Ethics
    • 1) The academic society is required to establish and operate an ethics committee that can recognize, receive reports, and investigate research misconduct. The procedure for managing misconduct in research and publication refers to the International Standard Publication Ethics Guideline (COPE Flowchart; http://publicationethics.org/resources/flowcharts). Suspected cases are discussed and decided upon by the ethics committee, which includes editorial members.
    • 2) It is assumed that the authors are aware of and agree to the standards of research publication ethics.
    • 3) The corresponding author bears the final responsibility for the content of the published paper. Therefore, caution should be exercised regarding this matter.
  • 10. Responsibilities of the Editorial Board
    The editorial board does its utmost to uphold publication ethics and integrity by maintaining the truthfulness of content, excluding commercial demands, editing or retracting publications, and screening for plagiarism and fabricated data. Submitted papers a re checked through Copykiller, KCI similarity, and Turnitin. If the value is high, they meticulously examine the possibility of duplica ted publication or plagiarism. The editor is involved in deciding on the publication of the submitted paper, scrutinizes any conflicts of interest, requests corrections for errors, recommends retraction in case of serious violations, and ensures the anonymity of reviewers, among other responsibilities.
General Guidelines for Papers
  • 1. Language
    The paper should be written in Korean or English.
  • 2. Type
    Types of papers include Original articles, Case reports, Review articles, and Technical notes.
  • 3. Qualification for Submission
    • 1) The submitter must be a regular member (including lifetime members, honorary members, and special members) of the Korean Clinical Laboratory Technologist Association and the Korean Society for Clinical Laboratory Science.
      • (1) A regular member is someone who possesses a license as a clinical laboratory technologist in the Republic of Korea, has joined the association, and pays the annual membership fee (KRW 65,000) every year, while complying with the association’s obligations.
      • (2) Lifetime members, honorary members, and special members become members through the recommendation of the president of the Korean Clinical Laboratory Technologist Association and by getting approval from the board of directors. They must pay their annual dues and any other fees before the second quarter of each year and must abide by the association’s obligations.
    • 2) Regular members (including lifetime members, honorary members, and special members) are exempt from publication fees.
    • 3) If the submission includes non-members, the primary author (either the first author or the corresponding author) must be a regular member to be exempt from the publication fee.
    • 4) If the submitter is a non-member, they must pay the publication fee set by the society, which is KRW 250,000.
  • 4. Manuscript Submission
    • 1) You must register as a member on the Korean Society for Clinical Laboratory Science website (http://www.kscls.or.kr/).
    • 2) Authors must also register on the Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science online manuscript submission system (http://www.kjcls.org/submission/Login.html).
    • 3) Manuscripts can be submitted throughout the year by accessing the online manuscript submission system.
    • 4) The submission process should be conducted by the first author or the corresponding author and will follow the subsequent steps:
      • Step 1: Complete the Checklist and agree to the Ethics Policy & Copyright Transfer Form.
      • Step 2: Define the Type of paper, enter the Title & Abstract. Attach required documents like the paper similarity result and certificate of research ethics training.
      • Step 3: Provide details of Authors & Institutions, including the Open Researcher and Contributor Identifier (ORCID) information.
      • Step 4: Uploa d files, ma king sure to s epa ra te the Cover, Manuscript, and Figure files as per the examples provided on the website.
      • Step 5: Review, convert to PDF, and submit on the online system. For the review process to commence, all co-authors should check the “Agreement” box in the email they receive regarding the research pledge and copyright transfer.
      If necessary, you should also upload the English manuscript revision verification (which can be a certificate from an English translation company, a review by an expert, or a document signed by the main author), and the review notification from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) to the online manuscript submission system.
    • 5) For a thesis, it must be clearly specified that it is a degree thesis, a nd t he f irst author should b e the degree recipient.
    • 6) For inquiries related to journal subscriptions, manuscript submissions, and other related matters, contact the Editorial Board of the Korean Society for Clinical Laboratory Science at the following address: [02810] 3rd Floor, Korean Clinical Laboratory Technician Association, 63 Jongam-ro, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul.
      Tel: 02-3291-5435, Fax: 02-3291-5621,
      E-mail: office@kjcls.org, kamt@hanmail.net.
Detailed Guidelines for Manuscript

Manuscripts should be written in accordance with the “Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals (https://www.icmje.org/recommendations/, International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, 2023).”

  • 1. Composition
    • 1) The manuscript length should be as follows, excluding tables and figures: Original articles - 12 pages on A4 paper, Case reports - 8 pages, Review articles - 16 pages, and Technical notes - 8 pages. Exceptions can be made in cases where it’s inevitably exceeding these limits.
    • 2) Manuscripts should be written using Hangul Word or MS Word.
      • (1) For manuscripts in Korean, use the default font in Hangul Word (e.g., Hancom Chorom Batang) and for MS Word (e.g., Malgun Gothic).
      • (2) For manuscripts in English, write in Times New Roman.
      • (3) Use a font size of 10, line spacing of 160%, justify text, and set to single column layout.
      • (4) Keep the default margin settings.
      • (5) Page numbers should be centered at the bottom of the page.
    • 3) Divide the manuscript into cover, main content, and figure files.
      • (1) The “Cover file” should contain manuscript type, research field, title in English, abbreviated title, authors in English, affiliations in English, title in Korean, authors in Korean, affiliations in Korean, corresponding author’s contact details, acknowledgments, conflicts of interest, and author information (position).
      • (2) The “Manuscript file” should include everything except author personal information, such as whether it’s a thesis, similarity score, abstract word count, titles in both languages, abstract, keywords, introduction, materials & methods, results, discussion, summary, references, tables, and figure legends.
      • (3) The “Figure file” should contain images or photos in ppt, jpg, gif, or tiff formats.
      • (4) Abbreviated title, abstract, keywords, corresponding author’s contact and address, tables, figures, references, acknowledgments, conflicts of interest, and author information (position) should be in English.
      • (5) Foreign authors can omit the title, authors, and affiliations in Korean, as well as the summary.
      • (6) For submission of a Master’s or Ph.D. thesis, mark “Y” in the original file indicating it’s a thesis. The degree holder should be the first author. When submitting a thesis, one of the following should be acknowledged in English:
        (e.g.) This article is a condensed form of the first author’s master’s (or doctoral) thesis (if all tables/figures in the submitted article are the same as those in the thesis)
        (e.g.) This article is based on a part of the first author’s master’s (or doctoral) thesis (if some tables/figures in the article are part of those in the thesis).
        (e.g.) This article is an addition based on the first author’s master’s (or doctoral) thesis.
        (e.g.) This article is a revision of the first author’s master’s (or doctoral) thesis.
  • 2. Spelling, Academic Terminology, Uppercase, Lowercase, Brackets, Full Words, Abbreviations
    • 1) For spelling, adhere to the “Korean Language Standard (http://www.korean.go.kr/, National Institute of the Korean Language)”.
    • 2) For academic terminology, use the “Medical Terminology 6th Edition (http://term.kma.org/search/list.asp, Published by Korean Medical Association) and the Science and Technology Terminology” published by the Ministry of Education or the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information.
    • 3) In English, except for proper nouns, names, abbreviations, etc., that require capitalization, everything should be in lowercase. However, if a sentence begins with an English word, only the first letter should be capitalized.
    • 4) Medical terms without appropriate Korean translations should be directly written in English. Medical terms difficult to convey in Korean alone should have their English term written in brackets when first used.
    • 5) When an English word or number precedes brackets or square brackets, there should be a space in between. However, when followed by Korean, it should be written consecutively without space. (e.g.) alkaline phosphatase (AP)
      (e.g.) 대장균군 (coli-form bacteria)
      (e.g.) 전혈구계산 or 혈구산정검사 (complete blood cell count, CBC)
    • 6) When using an English abbreviation for the first time, it should be spelled out with the abbreviation given in brackets. From then on, the abbreviation can be used. Periods between the letters of an abbreviation should be omitted.
      (e.g.) Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI)
      (e.g.) body mass index (BMI)
      (e.g.) USA (Correct), U.S.A. (Incorrect)
    • 7) Abbreviations should not be used in titles. However, if not using an abbreviation results in an overly long title or if the abbreviation is familiar to the readers, it can be used.
      (e.g.) DNA, AIDS, NIH
    • 8) The explanation of abbreviations should be separated by commas, and between abbreviations, semicolons should be used.
      (e.g.) PPV, positive predictive value; NPV, negative predictive value.
    • 9) After commas, periods, question marks, exclamation marks, semicolons, colons, double quotes, and single quotes, there should be a space.
      (Exception) 2012;34:63-68 (for referencing papers)
  • 3. Scientific Names, Gene Names, Chemical Names, Equipment Names, Reagent Names
    • 1) Scientific Names of Organisms follow the “International Code of Zoological Nomenclature”. The scientific names (species, genus) are written in italics. When first mentioned, the full name should be used (e.g., Escherichia coli), and thereafter the genus name can be abbreviated (e.g., E. coli ). If there’s potential confusion with another microorganism, avoid abbreviation.
      (e.g.) Written in italics: Curcuma longa, Hepadnavirus
      (e.g.) No written in italics: Coagulase-negative staphylococci, Hepatitis B virus, Epstein-Barr virus, Herpes simplex virus
      (e.g.) Mixing italics and regular font: Salmonella Typhi, Chlamydia spp., Achromobacter xylosoxidans subsp., Leptospira interrogans serovar icterohaemorrhagiae, Neorickettsia sennetusu Nakazaki strain
    • 2) Gene Names follow the guidelines from the “Gene Naming Convention” of the U.S. National Center for Biotechnology Information. While the convention might differ among species, generally, gene names are written in italics, whereas protein names are written in regular font.
    • 3) Chemical names should be stated using their chemical or common names (ingredient names) rather than their brand names.
      (e.g.) 10% neutral buffered formaldehyde
    • 4) Only the manufacturer’s name should be indicated for product names. Marks signifying product names like TM, ®, etc. should only be used when absolutely necessary. Company designations in English such as Corporation (Corp.), Company (Co.), Incorporated (Inc.) can be omitted.
      (e.g.) Cell-Chex (Streck) control material
  • 4. Numbers, Units, Statistical Symbols, and Signs
    • 1) Numbers are w ritten i n Ara bic numera ls, and a comma (,) is used for every thousand.
      (e.g.) 1,234
      (e.g.) 2017 (year)
    • 2) It is recommended to use the “International System of Units (https://www.kriss.re.kr/menu.es?mid=a10302020000)”. The unit for liter is denoted as a capital ‘L’. In English units, there should be a space between the number and the unit.
      (e.g.) 9 mL (O), 9mL (×), 9 ml (×), 9ml (×), 9 ㎖ (×), 9㎖ (×)
      (e.g.) 9 L (O), 9 mcL (O), 9 microliter (O)
      (e.g.) 9 cell×103/mL (O), 9 cell×103/mcL (O),
      9 cell×103/mm3 (O), 9 cell×10^3/mm^3 (×)
      (e.g.) pH 7.0 (O), PH 7.0 (×)
      (e.g.) 0.01 N (O), 0.01N (×), 0.7 U (O), 0.7U (×)
      (e.g.) Na+ (O), Mg2+ (O), Mg++ (×)
      (e.g.) Centrifuge for 10 minutes (3,000 rpm, 1,500 RCF) (O), Centrifuge for 10 minutes (4,000 xg) (O), Centrifuge for 10 minutes (4,000 G) (O), Centrifuge for 10 minutes (4,000 g) (×), Centrifuge for 10 minutes (4,000g) (×)
      (Exception) 90% (percentage), 37°C (temperature), 45° (angle)
    • 3) In Korea n units, t here i s no space between the number and the unit.
      (e.g.) 1례, 2명, 3개, 4회, 10배
    • 4) Arithmetic symbols (+, ‒, ×, ÷, ±, ＜, ≤, =, / etc.), ranges, ratios, and magnifications in microscopy are written without spaces next to numbers.
      (e.g.) +3, 70‒110 mg/dL, 1:9, ×200
      (Exception) (2 × [Na + K]) + (BUN / 2.8) + (glucose / 18) (formula)
    • 5) The statistical symbol representing the P-value, P, is capitalized, written in italics, and rounded to three decimal places.
      (e.g.) P＜0.05, P=0.002
    • 6) Other statistical symbols such as r, R2, t, F, χ2, mean±SD are written in regular font and rounded to two decimal places. Exceptions can be made when necessary.
      (e.g.) r=0.97, R2=0.61, t=0.26, F=0.92, χ2=0.28, 45.24±23.35
    • 7) Percentages, average age, weight, and height are rounded to one decimal place.
      (e.g.) 85.9%
    • 8) Quantity is indicated as N or No.
      (e.g.) (N=50), No. of samples
    • 9) Ordinal numbers are not represented as superscripts.
      (e.g.) 3rd (O), 3rd (×)
    • 10) Colons (:) are used for further explanations.
      (e.g.) Visual quality: 1=poor, 2=good, 3=excellent
    • 11) Semi-colons (;) are used to differentiate items.
      (e.g.) (M=3.87, SD=0.92; B=6.25, SE=0.98)
      (e.g.) (OR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.57∼0.73; P＜0.05)
  • 5. Title
    • 1) Titles are written in both English and Korean. English titles should be written in 2 lines or less (exceptions can be made if it’s inevitably longer than 2 lines). The Korean title should match the English title.
    • 2) A shortened title (Running title) to be displayed on each page upon publication should be written in English with no more than 10 words.
    • 3) For English titles, only the first letter of the first word and proper nouns should be capitalized.
    • 4) If there’s a subtitle, it should be separated from the main title with a colon (:).
  • 6. Authors
    • 1) The number of authors should be limited to 10 for original articles, 8 for case reports, 4 for reviews, and 8 for technical notes.
    • 2) If the number of authors exceeds the specified limit, an explanation of the role distribution among authors should be provided to the editorial board for approval.
    • 3) Authors should be written in both English and Korean. In English, both first and last names are used, with the last name fully capitalized, and the term “and” should not be used between authors. In Korean, the family name followed by the given name is used.
      • (1) For a single author: [Name]
      • (2) For two authors: [Name], [Name]
      • (3) For three or more authors: [Name], [Name], [Name]
    • 4) If there are joint f irst authors, up to two can be recognized, and the roles of each author must be explained to the editorial board for approval. An asterisk or dagger symbol † should be attached after the author’s name to indicate this.
      (e.g.) †The first two authors contributed equally to this work. or †These authors contributed equally to this study.
    • 5) When submitting the paper, the unique researcher identification number (ORCID) for all authors should be provided.
  • 7. Affiliation
    • 1) The affiliation should be written in both English and Korean. In English, it should be ordered as department, institution, city (or county), and country. In Korean, the institution followed by the department (or operational department) should be listed. The name of the operational department should be specified according to the example provided.
    • 2) If co-authors have different affiliations, use superscript numbers after the author’s name and before the affiliation name to indicate the respective affiliations.
      (e.g.) Gil Dong GO1, Gil-Dong GU2, Gildong RYEO3
      1Clinical Pathology Laboratory, Nohsong University Hospital, Suwon, Korea
      2Department of Laboratory Medicine, Nohsong University College of Medicine, Suwon, Korea
      3Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, Kyeonghwa University, Suwon, Korea
  • 8. Contact of the Corresponding Author
    • 1) The contact details of the corresponding author should be written in English. Details should include the author’s name, department, institution, address (including city and postal code), country, E-mail, and the ORCID in that order.
      (e.g.) Corresponding author: Guryo KO
      Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, Kyeonghwa University, Taepyeong-ro 11, Jung-gu, Suwon 01234, Korea
      E-mail: koguryo@khuiv.org
      ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-000X-XXXX-XXXX
    • 2) Phone numbers, fax numbers, or mobile numbers should not be listed.
  • 9. Abstract and Summary
    • 1) The abstract should be written in English. Depending on the type of article, there are specific word limits: 200 words for original articles (180∼200 range), 150 words for case reports (140∼150 range), 200 words for reviews, and 150 words for technical notes. The abstract should be structured as one complete paragraph without subsections.
    • 2) The summary should match the abstract and be written in Korean.
  • 10. Key Words
    • 1) It is recommended to use terms from the “Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) of Index Medicus” (accessible at https://meshb.nlm.nih.gov/search, National Library of Medicine). If an appropriate term does not exist, general biomedical terms can be used.
    • 2) Keywords should be written in English, consisting of 3∼5 terms. They should be listed alphabetically at the end of the a bstract, with the first letter of each keyword capitalized.
  • 11. Main Text
    • 1) The introduction should concisely state the background of the research purpose or topic. For articles in English, label it as “INTRODUCTION.”
    • 2) The “MATERIALS AND METHODS” section should provide detailed information on the research design, subject selection, equipment, reagents, data collection, and statistical analysis to ensure reproducibility. In English papers, this section should be labeled as “MATERIALS AND METHODS.”
      • (1) Research involving humans, materials derived from humans, medical records, and big data provided by public institutions must include a statement indicating they have received “approval” or have been “exempted” from recognized ethical standards.
      • (2) Research involving animals must include a statement indicating that they have received “approval” for animal experimentation ethics from a recognized institution.
        • ① Animal Experiments:
          i. Specify the animal’s origin, certification, and biological characteristics.
          ii. Include both genders equally in the study and detail results based on gender differences.
        • ② Clinical Research:
          i. Accurately distinguish between biological sex and socio-cultural gender.
          ii. If possible, research should include both male and female subjects, comparing and analyzing the results for publication.
      • (3) Consideration of Sex/Gender: In articles on animal experiments or clinical research (all research involving humans), the potential influencing factors of biological sex or socio-cultural gender should be recognized and included in the content.
    • 3) The results section should clearly and objectively state f indings or f a cts ba sed on t he r esearch. Describe the content of tables and figures, focusing on essential trends and points. In English papers, label this section as “RESULTS.”
    • 4) In the discussion section, concisely outline key or emphasized conclusions from the research results. Compare and interpret with related articles, addressing application, limitations, and suggestions. In English papers, label this section as “DISCUSSION.”
    • 5) Case reports should be organized in the order of “INTRODUCTION, CASE, DISCUSSION.”
    • 6) Reviews should follow the structure: “INTRODUCTION, MAIN ISSUE, CONCLUSION.”
    • 7) Technical reports should be structured as “INTRODUCTION, MAIN ISSUE, CONCLUSION.”
    • 8) When labeling subsections, you can use the format 1., 1) in sequence.
  • 12. Research Funding, Acknowledgements, Conflicts of Interest, Author Information (Position), Author Contribution, and Ethical Approval
    • 1) Information about research funding, acknowledgements, conflicts of interest, author information (position), author contribution, and ethical approval should be written in English.
    • 2) For research funding, provide details about the supported research project’s title or project number, and the supporting institution. If not applicable, indicate with “None.”
      (e.g.) Funding: This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (grant number).
      (e.g.) Funding: This research was supported by Korean Association of Medical Technologist in 2021.
      (e.g.) Funding: This paper was supported by 000 University in 2021.
      (e.g.) Funding: None
    • 3) Acknowledgements should indicate appreciation for patents, authorship, contributors, etc. If not applicable, indicate with “None.”
      (e.g.) Acknowledgements: None
    • 4) Conflicts of interest rela ted to the resea rch topic should be clearly written. If not applicable, indicate with “None.”
      (e.g.) Conflict of interest: None
    • 5) Author information (position) should adhere to the “Korean Standard Occupation Classification.” Do not include the final degree. The surname comes first, followed b y the first na me (with t he f irst letter capitalized), then the position.
      (e.g.) Author’s information (Position): Koo QA1, Clinical laboratory technologist; Park QC2, Researcher; Seong QI3, Graduate student; Lee QM4, Professor.
    • 6) Author contribution should be accurately reflected and published alongside the final paper. All authors have the responsibility to describe their contributions and all must individually review, discuss, and agree on the contributions. To qualify as an author, at least one of CRediT’s seven core contributions (conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, methodology, software, validation, investigation) must be met.
      (e.g.) Author Contributions
      - Conceptualization: Hong SH.
      - Data curation: Kim JH, Kang M, Jung JH.
      - Formal analysis: Kim JH, Lee SJ.
      - Methodology: Kim JH, Kang M.
      - Software: Kim JH, Lee SJ.
      - Validation: Kim JH, Jung JH.
      - Investigation: Hong SH.
      - Writing - original draft: Kim JH, Kang M.
      - Writing - review & editing: Kim JH, Kang M, Jung JH, Lee SJ.
    • 7) Ethical approval should state whether the study received Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval or if the human experiments f ollowed equivalent guidelines per the 1975 Helsinki Declaration. If not, an explanation is required. Similarly, the status of IRB (approval, exemption, or others) should be included in the methods section of the manuscript. For research involving animals, it must include details about the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) approval. Manuscripts submitted without IRB or IACUC approval will not be reviewed and will be returned to the authors.
      (e.g.) Ethical approval: This article does not require IRB/IACUC approval because there are no human and animal participants.
      (e.g.) Ethical approval: All procedures were performed in accordance with protocols approved by the 000 University Animal Care and Use committee (Approval numbers: IACUC-2023-00).
  • 13. Citation in the Main Text
    For citing references in the main text, the “National Library of Medicine Recommended Formats 2nd Edition (Recommended Format 2nd Edition [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK7256/, National Library of Medicine, 2007])” should be used.
    • 1) When citing references in the main text, indicate the citation order by placing the number inside square brackets [ ].
      - If a Korean word precedes the square brackets [ ], it should be written without a space.
      - If English or a number precedes the square brackets [ ], there should be a space.
    • 2) When mentioning references: for a single reference, use [1]; for two references, use [1, 2]; for three or more consecutive references, use [2-5]; and for three or more non-consecutive references, use [1, 3, 5]. A space should be left after a comma (,).
      (e.g.) 하였다[1], 보고되고 있다[1], 알려져 있다[1], 밝혀졌다[1], 검출되었다고 한다[1]
      (e.g.) 와 같이[2, 3], 보고된 바 있어[2, 3]
      (e.g.) 선행연구[4-6]에서 밝혀진 바와 같이
      (e.g.) 면역표현형분석, 핵형분석, 유전형분석을 병용하여 수행한 다른 연구[7-9, 11, 13]에서
    • 3) When mentioning authors: if there’s only one or two authors, all names should be indicated. However, if there are three or more authors, “등” or “et al” should be written after the name of the first author.
      (e.g.) Hong [1]의 연구에서, Hong과 Lee [2]의 연구에 따르면, Hong 등[3]의 연구에 의하면 (For Korean papers)
      (e.g.) Hong [1], Hong and Lee [2], Hong et al [3] (For English papers) (No comma before “et al” and no period after “al”)
  • 14. References
    For the format of references, adhere to the “National Library of Medicine Recommended Formats 2nd Edition (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK7256/, National Library of Medicine, 2007)”.
    • 1) Rega rdless of whether the paper is in Korean or English, the references section should be labeled as “REFERENCES”.
    • 2) The number of references should be in the range of 20∼30 for original articles, 10∼20 for case reports, 40∼60 for reviews, and 10∼20 for technical notes.
    • 3) All references should be written in English.
    • 4) If a reference is in a language other than English, it should be translated into English. Place the title within square brackets ([ ]). At the end of the citation, indicate the original language (e.g., Spanish, French, Deutsch, Japanese).
    • 5) References should be listed in the order they are cited in the text.
    • 6) For authors’ names, the surname should be listed first, followed by the initial(s) of the given name(s).
      (e.g.) Henry JB (O), JB Henry (×), John B. Henry (×), John Bernard Henry (×)
    • 7) If t he a uthor is a n orga nization or committee, capitalize the first letter of each word. Full names or abbreviations can be used. Different entities are separated with a semicolon (;).
      (e.g.) Moeschler JB, Shevell M; Committee on Genetics.
      (e.g.) Lobstein T, Baur L, Uauy R; IASO International Obesity Task Force.
    • 8) If there are six or fewer authors, list all of them. If there are seven or more authors, list the first six followed by “, et al.”. Do not include the word “and”.
    • 9) For titles, use lowercase letters except for the first word, proper nouns, abbreviations, or any word that typically starts with a capital letter.
    • 10) Do not cite dissertations, master’s theses, or conference abstracts as references.
    • 11) Citation Examples:
      • (1) Journal
        ○ Author(s). Title. Journal Name. Year;Volume:Page Numbers. DOI
        (e.g. - without DOI) 1. Jekal SJ, Oh HS, Choi YJ, Jo HJ, Park CS. Significance of thin layer chromatography of pyronin Y obtained from various commercial sources: the relevance of histologic staining quality. Korean J Med Technol. 1994;26:23-34.
        (e.g. - with DOI) 1. Koo BK, Sung HJ, Rhee KJ, Yang BS, Joo SI, Choi SG, et a l. Fifty years of the Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science: About name and KCI registration. Korean J Clin Lab Sci. 2017;49: 187-202. https://doi.org/10.15324/kjcls.2017.49.3.187
        ○ The journals should be abbreviated according to the style used in the list of journals indexed in the ‘NLM Ca ta log: Journa ls referenced in the NCBI Databases’ (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/journals)”, “ISO (https://www.issn.org/services/online-services/access-to-the-ltwa/)”, “KCI (https://www.kci. go.kr/kciportal/po/search/poSereSear.kci)”.
      • (2) Reports (Research, Policy, Technical):
        ○ Author(s). Title. Type of Report. Institution: Month Year. p.Page Numbers. Report Number (if available).
        (e.g.) Lee HK. Fact analysis and integration plans on North Korea’s health care personnel for unification. Research report. Ministry of Unification: March 2015. p439-546.
      • (3) Book
        ○ Author(s). Title. (Edition). Publisher; Year. Pagination.
        ○ Author(s), editor(s). Title. (Edition). Publisher; Year. Pagination.
        ○ Author(s). Title of part. In: Author, editor(s). Title. (Edition). Publisher; Year. Pagination.
        ○ Author(s). Title. (Edition). Name of translator(s), translator(s). Publisher; Year. Pagination.
        (e.g.) 1. Sunheimer RL, Graves L. Clinical laboratory chemistry. 1st ed. Pearson; 2011.
        (e.g.) 1. Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. Molecular methods for clinical genetics and oncology testing; approved guideline-3rd ed, MM01-A3. Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; 2012. p47-63.
        (e.g.) 1. De Leiis RA, Hoda RS. Immunochemistry and molecular biology in cytological diagnosis. In: Koss LG, Melamed MR, editors. Koss’ Diagnostic cytology a nd i ts h istopathologic b a ses. 5 th e d. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2006. p1635-1680.
        (e.g.) Latimer KS, Mahaffey EA, et al. Duncan and Prasse’s Veterinary laboratory medicine: Clinical pathology. 4th ed. Park NY, Kang MI, et al, translators. Wiley-Blackwell; 2003.
      • (4) Online Source:
        ○ Author(s). Title [Internet]. Institution [cited Year Month Day]. Available from: URL
        (e.g.) 1. Statistics Korea. 2010 life tables for Korea [Internet]. Statistics Korea [cited 2012 January 16]. Available from: http://kostat.go.kr/portal/korea/kor_nw/3/index.board?bmode=read&aSeq=52533
      • (5) Patent
        ○ Patent Holder(s). Patent Title. Institution; Year. Patent Number.
        (e.g.) Rabiner RA, Hare BA. Apparatus for removing plaque from blood vessels using ultrasonic energy. United States Patent and Trademark Office; 2005. US Patent 6866670.
  • 15. Tables and Figures
    • • Titles and contents of tables should be written in English. Exceptions can be made when the content of the table is unavoidably in Korean.
    • • The combined total of tables and figures should not exceed 10. Exceptions can be made in unavoidable circumstances.
    • • Titles o f ta bles a nd figures s hould be w ritten in sentence or section format. Except for the first letter, proper nouns, abbreviations, or other necessary capitalizations, all should be in lowercase. Table titles should be placed at the top without a period, while figure titles should be placed at the bottom with a period.
    • • When referencing tables or figures in the text, they should follow the order they’re cited, e.g., Table 1, Figure 2, Figure 3A, Figure 3B.
      (e.g.) (Table 1), (Tables 1, 2), (Tables 1–3), (Figure 1), (Figure 1A, 1B), (Figures 1–3), (Table 1, Figure 2)
    • 1) How to Create Tables
      • (1) The table entries should start with an uppercase letter.
        (e.g.) Mean±SD, No.
      • (2) Horizontal columns should be centered.
      • (3) Vertical columns should be left-aligned.
      • (4) Data within the table should be centered.
      • (5) All lines in the table should be single, with unnecessary vertical lines omitted. Horizontal lines should be minimized, but 3∼4 lines are permissible when necessary.
      • (6) Explanations of the table should be placed at the bottom, in the o rder o f sta tistics, s uperscript symbols, and abbreviations, with each element on a new line.
        (e.g.) n (%) or mean±SD.
        *P＜0.05, **P＜0.01, ***P＜0.001; †P-values were calculated by one-way ANOVA.
        Abbrevia tions: NA, not a vailable; FBS, fasting blood sugar.
      • (7) For statistical analysis results, significance levels P＜0.05, P＜0.01, P＜0.001 can be denoted as *, **, and ***, respectively. In multiple range tests, symbols like *, † can be used.
      • (8) Superscripts are placed to the r ight of a word, using alphabetical superscripts like a), b), c), etc.
      • (9) Abbreviation explanations should follow the format: “Abbreviations: abbreviation, explanation; abbreviation, explanation.”
    • 2) How to Create Figures
      • (1) Figure descriptions should be written in detailed sentences, with symbols and statistical notation kept concise.
      • (2) Titles or explanations of figures should be placed at the bottom, with a period at the end.
      • (3) When a f igure consists of multiple parts, label them as A, B, etc. (e.g., Figure 1A, Figure 1B). Either describe each part separately or provide a combined description.
      • (4) The minimum resolution required for figure images is 300 dpi for a figure of 80 mm in height and width. Allowed file formats are BMP, JPG, PSD, TIF, AI, EMF, EPS, WMF, DOC, XLC, PPT, and PDF. The author will be charged for the production costs of color photos. It’s the author’s responsibility to submit high-quality images ensuring accurate reproduction and to approve the final color proof.
      • (5) For microscopic photos, include a scale bar or indicate the magnification. Staining methods used in tissue findings should also be indicated.
        (e.g.) Figure 1. Interaction of sleep disorder and obesity in activating inflammatory processes leading to increased risk of CVD.
        (e.g.) Figure 1. Diversity of VRE color on clDVA. (A) is E. faecalis and (B) is E. faecium. (C) and (D) are E. avium and E. gallinarum.
        (e.g.) Figure 1. Results of papanicolaou’s staining for liquid-based cytology (A, ×200) and conventional smear (B, ×200) in same adenocarcinoma cases. (A) A large number of macrophages were observed (arrows). (B) Macrophages cloud was observed.
        (e.g.) Figure 1. Comparison of SYBR Green and TaqMan real-time PCR assays. The graph showed the results of linear regression analysis using Ct values of SYBR Green and TaqMan real-time PCR using serially diluted pDNA, respectively. Blue circles represent the Ct values of the SYBR Green real-time PCR assay, and the blue line is the trend line for those values. Red crosses show the Ct values of the TaqMan real-time PCR assay, and the red line is the trend line for those values.
Paper Review Rules
  • Article 1 (Purpose)
    This aims to contribute to the qualitative improvement of the Journal of the Korean Clinical Laboratory Science by establishing matters related to the review of papers submitted.
  • Article 2 (Composition)
    • 1) The chairperson of the review committee can also hold the position of the journal’s editor-in-chief.
    • 2) The reviewers a re c omposed of experts in the relevant field, including the editorial board members.
      • (1) The editor-in-chief, when necessary, can delegate the acceptance of submitted papers and the selection of reviewers to the editorial secretary and the editorial board.
      • (2) If the editorial committee determines that the content of a submitted paper is unique or requires specialized review, they can appoint a special review committee. In unavoidable circumstances, they might also request a review from the review or editorial board.
      • (3) The editorial committee, as a principle, does not appoint reviewers from the same institution as that of the author of the submitted paper. Exceptions can be made in unavoidable circumstances.
      • (4) When an executive (e.g., editorial board member) submits a paper, the review by the editorial board is typically excluded, and the review is requested from a reviewer without conflicts of interest.
      • (5) Reviewers should communicate their acceptance or refusa l of the review request within 3 days of receiving it.
      • (6) If the reviewer does not submit their review within 14 days, the request can be canceled.
      • (7) If a reviewer refuses the review request more than twice without a specific reason or if the paper review is insincere, the reviewer can be dismissed.
  • Article 3 (Review Procedure)
    Submitted papers are evaluated by both the editorial and review committees. The editorial committee pre-assesses the content and quality of submitted papers before sending them for review. If the content of a paper does not align with the journal’s objectives and scope or is not written according to the submission guidelines, it can be rejected without review.
    • 1) The time taken for review, including the first review (within 14 days) and the re-review (within 10 days), should ideally be within 8 weeks.
    • 2) Considering the research area of the submitted paper, the editor-in-chief designates three reviewers for each paper. The criteria for selecting reviewers are based on “Article 2 (Composition of Reviewers).”
    • 3) The review process uses a double-blind system. The editorial committee ensures that the reviewers are provided with guidelines without revealing the personal information of the authors. The names of the reviewers are not disclosed, and the content of the review is not shared with anyone other than the author.
  • Article 4 (Assessment Criteria)
    Reviewers assess the research based on its originality, the logical progression of its content, the validity of the analysis method, the appropriateness of the paper format, and the adequacy of research ethics, according to the evaluation form (mentioned in Article 4). However, for papers written at the request of the society, some of the review process can be omitted based on the editorial committee’s opinion. The evaluation form is like Table 1 and Table 2, and the results of the paper review are specified as the total score for each item. For papers written at the society’s request, parts of the review process can be omitted based on the editorial committee’s opinion.
  • Article 5 (Review Results)
    • 1) The classification of the paper review results, necessary actions, and specified judgments are as follows:
      • (1) Suitable for Publication: Judged as publishable without revisions.
      • (2) Publish a fter R evision: After the author makes revisions based on the reviewer’s opinions, the editorialmember verifies and decides on its acceptance.
      • (3) Re-evaluate after Revision: After the author makes revisions based on the reviewer’s opinions, the paper is re-reviewed by the reviewer to decide on its acceptance. A re-review is allowed only up to two times.
      • (4) Not Suitable for Publication: If there’s research misconduct, lack of research result reliability or validity, if it’s deemed uneditable, if two out of three reviewers judge it as unpublishable, or if after 8 weeks without a clear reason the revised or final version isn’t submitted, considering the prompt process and timeliness of the paper, it’s judged as unpublishable after an editorial committee review. A detailed review of the research (Table 1), items checked (Table 2), and overall review opinions should be provided.
    • 2) When the revised paper is submitted, the editor appointed by the chief editor will review whether the revisions have been properly made. If the revisions based on the reviewer’s opinions are insufficient, if further edits are needed, or if the paper does not comply with the submission guidelines, publication can be withheld, and the author can be asked to revise again.
    • 3) Once the appointed editor completes the review of the paper, the chief editor refers to the third-party paper review comprehensive judgment form to make the final decision on whether to publish the paper. The third-party paper review comprehensive judgment form is as follows.
    • 4) If the author does not submit the revised manuscript within 4 weeks from the editorial board’s revision request date, it is considered a withdrawal by the author. However, if there is a request for an extension, an additional 4 weeks can be granted.
    • 5) The reviewer’s opinions are automatically notified to the author through the online paper submission and review system, and they are not disclosed to anyone other than the author.
  • Article 6 (Publication Decision)
    The editorial committee decides on publication based on the review results. Once the appointed editor completes the review of the paper, the chief editor refers to the third-party paper review comprehensive judgment form to make the final decision on whether to publish the paper. The third-party paper review comprehensive judgment form is as follows.
  • Article 7 (Post-Publication Decision Procedures):
    • 1) Upon the decision of publication, the editorial board holds the authority and duty to request edits to ensure the paper is in a printable state.
    • 2) If a revised or final version is not submitted within 8 weeks after the notice of possible publication or revision, without a clear reason, considering the expedient progression and timeliness of the paper, the editorial board, after deliberation, will deem it unpublishable. The editorial board should comprehensively present the detailed evaluation of the research (Table 1), inspection items (Table 2), and the deliberation opinions.
    • 3) If the editorial board identifies an error in an already published paper, it will be published as an erratum. If an author or reader identifies an error or content that needs to be corrected, they can request a modification post-publication. Depending on the matter, the editorial board may consider publishing an erratum or corrigendum and may even consider retraction. If a reader has comments about a paper, it will be conveyed to the author in the form of a letter. The author can reply to the reader’s letter. Both the letter to the editor and the author’s response can be published.
  • Article 8 (Raising Objections)
    • 1) The submitter has the right to object to the review and decision results within 5 days of receiving them and can request a review by attaching a reason and submitting it to the editor-in-chief.
    • 2) Upon receiving an objection regarding the paper review and decision results, the editor-in-chief should immediately convene the editorial board to review the raised objection, notify the submitter of the results, and take follow-up measures according to the review decision.
      • (1) If the reviewer accepts the objection: The editorial board will forward the submitter’s objection to the concerned reviewer to provide a review opinion on the objection a nd modify the review result accordingly.
      • (2) If the reviewer doesn’t accept the objection: The editorial board will comprehensively review the reasons for the submitter’s objection and the reviewer’s opinion. If the objection is deemed reasonable, a re-review will be requested a fter replacing the reviewer.
Supplementary Provisions

This regulation will be implemented from the day it is approved by the board of directors of the association.