Writing Materials and Methods

Prof. Bünyamin ŞAHİNOndokuz Mayis University, Faculty of Medicine

Department of Anatomy, TURKİYEbsahin@omu.edu.tr

Objectives

• General information• Writing style• Materials– Animal groups, Patients-volunteers, Imaging,

Gadgets, Solutions, Drugs• Methods• Statistics• Final comments

The Sections of the Scientific Paper Content Section of PaperSummary in a nutshell AbstractDescription of the problem IntroductionSolution way of the problem Materials and MethodsFindings to solve the problem ResultsInterpretation of the findings DiscussionMentioning the contributors Acknowledgments (optional)Used references Literature CitedExtra Information Appendices (optional)

General Information

• The method has already mentioned• The reasons has already mentioned• It’s time for detail • All the details are given like receipts• They must be sufficient to repeat the

experiment

Style

• Report methods in past tense (we measured)• But use present tense to describe how data

are presented in the paper• Don’t say I, say we• Passive form

Style

• Appropriate terminology-Jargons!• Short and clear sentences• Punctuation marks, abbreviations and units

must be correct• Subheadings• Parallel to the results

• A square grid test system with d= 0.5 cm between teste points was used to estimate the sectioned surface area of the slices( Fig. 1A) .

• To estimate liver volume , the modified formula used for volume estimations of radiological images was applied.

Style

• Be clear and concise avoid from unnecessary words or phrases.

• Write briefly. • Follow the general rules.• Do NOT use colloquial speech or slang.• Do NOT use contractions; spell everything out.

Materials and Methods

Explain clearly how you carried out your study in the following general structure and organization: • permissions• time and duration• the organism(s) studied• a description of the study site• the experimental or sampling design• the protocol for collecting data• how the data were analyzed

Permissions

• Studies on patients or volunteers need approval from an ethics committee and informed consent from participants

• Appropriate written consents, permissions, and releases

• Ethical approval of the animal studies• should be documented in your paper.

Materials and Methods

Materials

• Animal groups• Patients-volunteers• Imaging• Gadgets• Solutions• Drugs

Animal Groups

• Describing the groups– Grup1, 2 or a, b ?– Pure control, sham control, short term or long term

exposure groups• Number, weight, age, sex and species of

animals• Sampling protocol• Taxonomic writing (Felis domesticus)• Source

Patients-Volunteers

• Groups• Ethical permissions and informed consents• Selecting the groups, subjects and matching• Numbers of the participants• Weight, age, length, BMI and gender• Socio-demographic structure

Imaging

• Source of the images• Imaging center• The name, produces, brand name, model and

producing country's name• Inclusion or exclusion criteria• Institutional permissions

Gadgets

• Names• The name, produces, brand name, model and

producing country's name, if it is required• Technical details• Processing details

Solutions and Drugs

• Ingredients• Brand name, if it is necessary• Source• Preparation method• Administration, dose and periods• Instead of 1st solution• 0.9% NaCl solution

Method

• Experiment, observation, measurement, application and design

• Chronological presentation• Receipts in cookbook• Exact, clear and easy to follow• In case of new methods detailed description

• If any of your methods is fully described in a previous publication, you can cite that instead of describing the procedure again.

Example: The chromosomes were counted at meiosis in the anthers with the standard acetocarmine technique of Snow (1955).• Notice the format of mathematical

expressions. Equations are spaced apart from the text.

Method

• Explain the reason for the method• What variables were measured• Pictures and flowcharts• Tables related to the method• Do not mention any of your result

Method

• Methodological limitations should be given• Reviewers will notice if you hide• Explaining basic data must be mentioned in

the discussion• Assistance of a collogue for intelligibility

Statistics

• In the last paragraph• Significance level should be mentioned

(p≤0.05)• Quantitative data (mean± standard error)• Two digits decimals (1540.39 cm3)

Statistics

• Type of data and used statistic• Standard statistics-without explaining• Details-inexperienced author?• Reference may be given for advanced or rare

statistics• Software

Statistics

• A Paired t-test was used to compare mean flight duration before and after applying stablizers to the glider's wings.

• One way ANOVA was used to compare mean weight gain in weight-matched calves fed the three different rations.

• Comparisons among the three pH treatment groups for each variable were done using one way ANOVA (with Tukey's post hoc test) or a Kruskal-Wallis Test (with Dunn's post hoc test).

Problem: The Methods section is prone to being wordy or overly detailed.

• The petri dish was placed on the turntable. The lid was then raised slightly. An inoculating loop was used to transfer culture to the agar surface. The turntable was rotated 90 degrees by hand. The loop was moved lightly back and forth over the agar to spread the culture. The bacteria were then incubated at 37 C for 24 hr.

Improved Examples

• Each plate was placed on a turntable and

streaked at opposing angles with fresh

overnight E. coli culture using an

inoculating loop. The bacteria were then

incubated at 37 C for 24 hr.

• Each plate was streaked with fresh

overnight E. coli culture and incubated at

37 C for 24 hr.

Final comment

• Write the paper as clear as possible• Avoid redundancy• Do not lose the main axis of the study• Follow the standard rules• Carefully follow the instructions for authors• Prepare a good arrangement for paper

Final comment cont..

• Take professional assistance of a statistician• Keep yourself away from the manuscript for a

few weeks before submitting it• Request a revision from your colleague

Summary of M and M

• Materials and techniques• Group features• Details of the techniques• Statistics• Clear writing• Reproducible• Showing the experience

References

• Babor TF, Stenius K, Savva S, O'reilly J. A Eds. Guide for the Perplexed, Second edition. Phil Lange Chapter 5: How to Write a Scientific Paper for a Peer-Reviewed Journal, 2008, 70-81.

• Day RA, How to Write and Publish A Scientific Paper, 1994.• Fathalla MF. A practical guide for health researchers. WHO

Regional Publications Eastern Mediterranean Series, 2004.• Guidelines for writing scientific papers, honors organismal

biology laboratory. Bates College writings, 2012.• Woodford FP. Scientific writing for graduate students.

Council of Biology Editors, 1989.

PROF. BÜNYAMIN ŞAHINONDOKUZ MAYIS UNIVERSITY, FACULTY OF MEDICINEDEPARTMENT OF ANATOMY, TURKİYEBSAHIN@OMU.EDU.TR

THANK YOU VERY MUCH….