Frontiers in Immunology Formatting Requirements: Complete Author Guide

Frontiers in Immunology requires structured abstracts, which is different from many high-impact journals that use unstructured single-paragraph abstracts.

Structured abstract headings (Original Research):

• Background (or Introduction)
• Methods
• Results
• Conclusion (or Discussion)

Abstract specifications:

• Word limit: 350 words for Original Research and Reviews; 250 words for Mini Reviews, Brief Research Reports, Case Reports, and Perspectives
• Structure: Mandatory subheadings as listed above
• Citations: Not allowed in the abstract
• Abbreviations: Define at first use within the abstract

The 350-word structured abstract gives you substantially more room than most journals. Use the Methods section of the abstract to include key design details (sample size, main assays, statistical approach). Use the Results section to include actual numbers, not just qualitative statements.

Common mistake: Using "Objectives" instead of "Background" or "Findings" instead of "Results." Frontiers is specific about the heading terminology. Use the exact headings from their template.

Frontiers in Immunology's 15-figure limit is among the most generous in academic publishing. This is a real advantage for data-heavy immunology papers that typically involve flow cytometry panels, microscopy images, and multi-condition experiments.

Figure specifications:

Table requirements:

• Tables should be created in Word or LaTeX, not as images
• Every column must have a header
• Tables count separately from figures (they don't eat into the 15-figure limit)
• There's no strict table count limit, but keep it reasonable
• Large datasets should go in Supplementary Material

Frontiers-specific figure rules:

• Figures must be cited in the text in sequential order (Figure 1 before Figure 2)
• Multi-panel figures are standard and count as one figure
• Each figure needs both a brief title and a detailed legend
• Frontiers requires that figure legends be detailed enough for a reader to understand the figure without reading the main text

Image manipulation policy: Frontiers runs automated image integrity checks on all submitted figures. Adjustments to brightness and contrast are allowed if applied uniformly. Selective manipulation (cropping specific bands, adjusting individual lanes) will be flagged and may lead to rejection.

Frontiers uses an author-date citation system that's close to APA style but has Frontiers-specific formatting.

In-text citations:

• One author: (Smith, 2024)
• Two authors: (Smith and Jones, 2024)
• Three or more: (Smith et al., 2024)
• Multiple citations: (Smith et al., 2024; Jones et al., 2023), ordered chronologically

Reference list format:

Smith, A. B., Jones, C. D., and Williams, E. F. (2024). Title of article in sentence case. Front. Immunol. 15:1234567. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1234567

Key formatting details:

• Reference list is alphabetical by first author's last name
• Author names: Last name, initials with periods (e.g., "Smith, A. B.")
• Use "and" before the last author
• Year in parentheses after the author list
• Article title in sentence case
• Journal names abbreviated
• DOIs are required for all references that have them
• Include volume number and article number

Frontiers self-citation: When citing Frontiers in Immunology, use "Front. Immunol." as the abbreviation.

There's no hard reference cap for Original Research or Reviews. Mini Reviews are encouraged to stay around 60 references, and Brief Research Reports around 40.

Common formatting error: Using numbered citations instead of author-date format. If you're switching from a Nature-family or medical journal, remember that Frontiers uses parenthetical author-date citations.

Frontiers calls supplementary content "Supplementary Material" and publishes it alongside the article.

Supplementary Material types:

• Supplementary Figures (Supplementary Figure S1, etc.)
• Supplementary Tables (Supplementary Table S1, etc.)
• Supplementary Data Sheets (for large datasets)
• Supplementary Videos
• Supplementary Presentations (PowerPoint files)

Formatting rules:

• All supplementary figures and tables should be compiled into a single file when possible
• In the main text, cite supplementary items using the "S" prefix: "Supplementary Figure S1"
• Each item needs a title and legend
• Supplementary Material is peer-reviewed at Frontiers
• Maximum file size is 100 MB per file (generous compared to most journals)

Data deposition: Frontiers requires that all datasets be deposited in appropriate public repositories when applicable. Accession numbers must be cited in the manuscript. For genomics data, GEO or ArrayExpress is expected. For proteomics, PRIDE. For structural data, PDB.

Title page: Handled through the Frontiers submission system. You don't create a separate title page in the manuscript. Instead, the system collects:

• Full title
• Running title (maximum 5 words)
• Author names and affiliations
• Corresponding author email
• Keywords (5-8 required)

Keywords: Frontiers requires 5-8 keywords at submission. These are used for indexing and matching reviewers. Choose specific terms rather than broad categories. "CD8+ T cell exhaustion" is better than "immunology."

Cover letter: Optional at Frontiers. If you include one, keep it brief. Frontiers uses an impact-neutral review model (evaluating scientific soundness, not perceived significance), so arguing for novelty isn't necessary.

Running title is 5 words maximum. Not 5 words plus articles and prepositions. Five total words. This is one of the tightest running title limits in publishing and catches many authors off guard.

Keywords are mandatory. Unlike many journals where keywords are optional or handled by indexers, Frontiers requires 5-8 author-supplied keywords at submission. They appear on the published article.

Open peer review. Frontiers uses an interactive review model where reviewer names are published alongside the article (for accepted papers). Reviewers can choose to remain anonymous for rejected papers. This means the review process is more collaborative than adversarial. Your communication with reviewers during revision may become public.

Author approval at every stage. Frontiers requires all authors to register in the system and confirm their participation. This happens during submission, and all authors must approve the final version before publication. If a co-author doesn't respond, publication is delayed.

Conflict of interest statement. Mandatory. Each author must individually declare conflicts or the absence of conflicts through the submission system.

Ethics statements. Required for all studies involving human or animal subjects. Include IRB/IACUC details in the Methods section. Frontiers also requires ethics statements for studies using biological samples, even if those samples were commercially obtained.

Data Availability Statement. Mandatory. Must appear at the end of the manuscript before references.

Author contributions. Required, using the CRediT taxonomy or free text format.

ORCID iDs. Encouraged for all authors. Required for the corresponding author at many Frontiers journals.

Structured manuscript sections. Frontiers expects the following order for Original Research: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion. A combined Results and Discussion section is also acceptable.

Abbreviations section. Frontiers encourages (but doesn't always require) an abbreviations list at the end of the manuscript for papers that use many field-specific acronyms.

Frontiers in Immunology is fully open access under CC BY 4.0. All articles require an article processing charge.

The current APC for Frontiers in Immunology is approximately $2,950 for Original Research articles. This varies by article type. Brief Research Reports and Mini Reviews have lower APCs. Institutional agreements may provide discounts. Fee waivers are available for authors from low-income countries.

1. Running title is 5 words max. This trips up nearly everyone. Plan it early.

1. Structured abstract is mandatory. Unstructured abstracts will be returned.

1. 5-8 keywords required. Not optional. Choose specific, searchable terms.

1. Template adherence is enforced by automation. Don't use custom formatting. Stick to the Frontiers template exactly.

1. Author registration in the system. All co-authors must register in Frontiers' submission system and confirm their roles. Start this process early, especially with large author lists.

1. Figure legends must be self-contained. A reader should understand the figure from its legend alone, without reading the main text.

1. Sequential figure citation. Don't reference Figure 4 before Figure 3 in the text.

1. No footnotes. Frontiers doesn't allow footnotes in the main text.

1. Line numbers. Required for the review manuscript.

1. Double spacing. Required for the submitted manuscript.