Integrity and submission checks
Preserve observations, raw data, numerical results, uncertainty, and analysis provenance. Keep each claim connected to the figure, method, or reference that supports it. Missing details remain missing until an author/source supplies them; never fill them with plausible approvals, replicate counts, test names, or DOIs.
AI tools and figures
Human authors remain accountable. Check the target journal's current AI policy for the specific activity, including writing, copy editing, code generation, analysis, translation, and image generation. Record tool use sufficiently to make the required disclosure accurate. Do not assume a blanket copy-editing exemption from an old policy snapshot or claim to have checked inaccessible policy text.
Do not fabricate or alter scientific observations with generative imagery. A computational plot made from traceable data is different from a generated image purporting to show an experiment; assess the actual workflow and current journal rules. Preserve original files and transformations. Disclosure never makes false evidence acceptable, and an automated style score is not a test of integrity.
Reproducibility and end matter
Verify methods, sample units and independent replication, exclusions, statistics, uncertainty definitions, software/configuration versions, and figure legends against actual records. Explain what error bars and sample counts represent. Resolve data/code repositories, versions/accessions, restrictions, and access conditions; do not invent links or claim data are public before checking.
Review the applicable reporting summary, ethics/consent, funding, author contributions, competing interests, correspondence, and availability sections. An absent heading may be a formatting issue or an inapplicable requirement; an existing heading does not establish that its declaration is true.
Editorial communication
Answer reviewer points directly and state the precise completed change/location. For work not done, describe the proposal or reason for declining; do not promise experiments, deposits, or analyses on an author's behalf. Keep a cover letter's claims consistent with the manuscript and disclosed limitations.
The local opening-length checker does not validate any of these scientific or policy obligations. Maintain an evidence-based outstanding-item list rather than turning a small static check into a submission-ready verdict.