About the Journal
Brain Imaging and Stimulation (BIS) is an online publication with the mission to publish research on brain function and stimulation. BIS is a Diamond Open Access journal, fully compliant with the DOAJ definition of open access, and licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0). The journal accepts original articles on empirical research; reviews; technological and methodological perspectives (new devices, and methods etc.); infographics; videos.
Peer review process
BIS adopts a rigorous double-anonymized peer review process. In this system, both authors and reviewers remain anonymous to ensure unbiased evaluation. Each manuscript is assessed by at least two ad hoc peer reviewers, carefully selected by the editorial board for their recognized expertise in the relevant field. Review outcomes may include: a) approval for publication as presented in the submitted version, b) approval for publication after improvements required by the reviewers have been implemented; or c) rejection. Authors are promptly notified of the decision and receive comprehensive feedback from reviewers and editors.
Revised manuscripts are re-evaluated by the original reviewers and/or the scientific editors to determine final suitability for publication.
Submissions from editorial board members are handled by independent editors with no conflicts of interest and undergo the same rigorous double-blind peer review process as all other submissions. Editorial decisions on these manuscripts are made by an independent editor with no conflict of interest. All authors, responsible editors and reviewers must declare any potential conflicts of interest related to the submitted work.
This peer review policy is publicly available to ensure transparency and accountability in the editorial process.
Open peer review policy
To foster critical and in-depth peer review and transparency in the brain research field, outstanding peer reviews may be considered for publication after consulting with the referee who authored it and assessment by our editorial board. The open peer review model is optional and applied only with the explicit consent of both authors and reviewers.
To be eligible for publication, the review must be around two pages in length, it must encompass critical discussion of the reviewed text and appraisal of its evidence (or lack thereof), remarking the quality of the study, its strength and limitations and its relevance to the state of the art on that topic.
Thus, adding value to the reviewed work and constituting an independent text, the review will be deemed eligible for publication as a work in itself.
Publication frequency
Submissions accepted for publication are made available online as soon as they are copyedited and layout-edited by our editorial team and proofread by their authors. This process, for each accepted article, takes up to 4 weeks.
Manuscripts approved for publication receive an acceptance letter within an average of 12 weeks from the date of submission. This timeframe includes the desk review, the peer review phase, author revisions, and final approval by the editors-in-chief.
Every volume is closed yearly by mid-December when the publishing cycle restarts for the next year's volume.
Research integrity
To enhance the quality of research reports, BIS follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the Office of Research Integrity (ORI) recommendations.
Open access policy
BIS is a fully open access journal that provides immediate, free access to its content, supporting a greater global exchange of knowledge and fostering the advancement of science without financial barriers or article processing charges (APCs).
Authors retain full copyright of their work and, by submitting to BIS, grant the journal the right of first publication. All published content is made freely available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), allowing users to read, download, copy, distribute, print, remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, including commercial use, provided proper credit is given to the original authors.
BIS encourages authors to deposit the final published version of their articles in institutional repositories, with a link to the official version on the journal’s website. Manuscripts previously shared in preprint repositories are welcome and considered original submissions.
Textual similarity screening
In order to enforce the best practices in scientific communications and to prevent copyright infringement, submitted manuscripts are screened with the Similarity Check (iThenticate) before publication.
Screened manuscripts displaying high rates of similarity in the wording of the introduction, discussion and results sections with previously published original content in scientific communication venues with ISBN or ISSN without properly referencing or paraphrasing them will be rejected.
Studies deposited in institutional repositories and preprint servers are welcome and do not constitute plagiarism or self-plagiarism. Research reports developed in academic institutions (such as theses, dissertations and monographs) may and should be submitted as scientific papers to journals or considered for publication as chapters in scientific books.
Authorship policy
This journal adopts the ICMJE recommendations for the definition of authorship roles.
An author of an intellectual production takes public responsibility for its content. An author of a scientific report is someone who participated in the conception and planning of the research project, who created conditions for its development, who agrees with its final wording of the manuscript and who is able to defend its essence before the scientific community.
Authorship is not guaranteed by participation in data collection, research groups and laboratories, loan of materials and equipment, translation nor statistical analyses. The essence of a scientific article lies in the interpretation of the results, in the argumentation and in the conclusions that contribute to the scientific advancement.
Each author must declare their contributions to the research and report, and potential competing interests.
It is prohibited to add or remove authors after the scientific evaluation of the submission has begun.
Those institutions with which the author maintains employment ties for teaching, research activities and/or clinical practice will be considered affiliations.
For those authors who do not have an employment relationship with educational and/or research institutions, the current student relationship at the time of submission can be considered affiliation.
Authors who do not have a student or employment relationship at the time of submission must declare themselves as independent researchers.
Laboratories, research groups and institutions in which the author is a postdoctoral fellow, visiting professor, and/or consultant will not be considered affiliations for the purposes of publication in this journal.
Authorship disputes will be resolved by the journal's editorial committee in accordance with COPE recommendations.
Policy for Submissions by Editorial Board Members: Editorial board members are welcome to submit research reports to be considered for publication after review by unbiased independent peers. However, the journal may limit the number of submissions accepted per editor per year, prioritizing (i) methodologically robust and (ii) socially useful empirical reports and (iii) maintaining low editorial endogeneity.
Manuscripts submitted by editors or members of the editorial board undergo the same rigorous double-blind peer review process as all other submissions. Editorial decisions on these manuscripts are made by an independent editor with no conflict of interest. All authors, responsible editors and reviewers must declare any potential conflicts of interest related to the submitted work.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Usage Policy
BIS acknowledges the growing impact of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, including natural language models, on scientific research and manuscript writing. However, in order to ensure scientific integrity, editorial transparency, and ethical responsibility, we have adopted the following guidelines based on the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE):
1. Authorship
AI tools (such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, among others) must not be listed as authors of manuscripts. Scientific authorship requires legal accountability, ethical responsibility, and the ability to respond for all stages of the work – attributes that cannot be assigned to automated systems.
2. Transparent and Responsible Use
Authors who employ generative AI tools must explicitly disclose their use in the manuscript through an AI usage statement that must:
- Specify which tool was used in the development of the study;
- Describe the specific purpose of AI usage (e.g., language enhancement, technical translation, assistance in text structuring or data analysis);
- Ensure that all AI-generated content is reviewed, validated, and fully assumed by the authors;
- Avoid using AI to generate unverifiable data, statistical analyses, results, or scientific conclusions.
3. Scientific Integrity
The use of AI must not compromise the originality, data accuracy, or scientific reliability of the manuscript. Fabricated, plagiarized, distorted content or content inadequately attributed to automated tools will be considered scientific misconduct. If such a violation is identified, the manuscript will be subject to retraction through an erratum.
4. Peer Review and AI
This journal does not employ generative AI systems to replace human reviewers in the peer review process. The evaluation of scientific merit remains the responsibility of subject matter experts, preserving critical and contextual assessment.
5. Reviewers and Editors
Reviewers and editors should also refrain from using generative AI tools to draft reviews or make editorial decisions, unless such use is clearly and publicly disclosed by the journal and all AI-generated content is thoroughly reviewed and validated by humans.
6. Policy Updates
This policy will be periodically reviewed in light of technical, ethical, and legal developments regarding the use of artificial intelligence in science.
Final Note
By submitting their manuscripts to BIS, authors agree to this policy on the responsible use of AI, commit to disclosing any AI application during the development of their work, and declare full responsibility for all content in their manuscript.
Versions and retraction policy
Suspected scientific misconduct will be assessed by the editorial board immediately. BIS will follow the COPE procedures to further investigate any misconduct allegations that may arise.
In case of retraction, the journal shall abide by the ICMJE recommendations.
Corrections of accidental errors - statistical, methodological or otherwise - whenever reported by the authors themselves will be published immediately. Corrections of accidental errors are encouraged and expected.
In any of the aforementioned situations, all versions will be maintained online, properly identified as recommended by the ICMJE and linked in both directions for further assessment by the readers.
Archiving Policy
This journal is digitally preserved in the PKP Preservation Network (PKP PN) for long-term access. You may learn more about the PKP PN here.
Interability Protocol
BIS ensures the interoperability of its published content through the OAI-PMH protocol (Open Archives Initiative – Protocol for Metadata Harvesting, version 2.0). This feature allows repositories, directories, and indexing systems to automatically collect and distribute metadata, enhancing the integration and circulation of scientific production available on our website.
All articles are described with metadata tags structured in the Dublin Core standard (oai_dc), ensuring standardization and international compatibility. The electronic address for metadata harvesting is:
https://journals.bahiana.edu.br/index.php/brain/oai
By adopting this protocol, BIS reinforces its commitment to the visibility, accessibility, and global dissemination of scientific knowledge, in line with established interoperability practices adopted by national and international reference journals.
Last updated September 9th, 2025
