Get your Cellular and Molecular Immunology paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
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Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 3 August, 2026
Submitting to Cellular and Molecular Immunology goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the Cellular and Molecular Immunology guide for authors before peer review, so formatting, structure, and required statements should be right on the first draft rather than repaired during upload. This template sets that structure up for you.
It is a manuscript shell aligned to Cellular and Molecular Immunology. It covers front matter, the abstract the journal expects, a body organized to the journal's article types, and a reference list in the journal's required style. Confirm current scope and article types on the Cellular and Molecular Immunology journal page before you draft.
Prepare the title, authors, affiliations, and ORCID iDs. Write the abstract to the journal's rule and word limit, organize the body to the article type, and apply the required reference style from the first citation. Complete every declaration (ethics, competing interests, funding, data availability) the Cellular and Molecular Immunology guide for authors lists, and cite figures and tables in order.
The common failure modes are formatting or reference style that does not match the guide for authors, missing required statements, and an incomplete portal checklist. Clear all three against the Cellular and Molecular Immunology guide for authors before you submit.
The shell mirrors what editorial staff check first: article-type fit, the abstract rules, required declarations, and the journal's reference style. For more detail see the author resources. When your draft is ready, upload it through the journal's submission system.
| Element | Cell Mol Immunol requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Research Articles: Unstructured abstract, maximum 250 words. The species of animals or species of origin of cells used must be clearly stated in the Abstract. The final sentences (50 words or less) should provide a succinct summary of the main point. Review Articles (invited only): Unstructured abstract, maximum 250 words. Research Highlights (invited only): A brief stand-first of only one or two sentences. Editorials (invited only): No abstract required. Correspondence: No abstract required. Comment: No abstract required |
| Main text | Research Articles: 6,000-8,000 words excluding abstract, references, figures and tables. Maximum 8 tables/figures. Review Articles (invited only): 15,000 words maximum excluding abstract, references, figures and tables. Maximum 10 tables/figures. Research Highlights (invited only): 1,200 words maximum. Editorials (invited only): 1,200 words maximum. Correspondence: 1,500 words maximum including references, figures and tables. Maximum 1 table/figure. Comment: 1,200 words maximum including references, figures and tables. Maximum 1 table/figure |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | Research Articles: 3-5 keywords required. Review Articles: 3-5 keywords required. Research Highlights (invited only): No keywords required. Editorials (invited only): No keywords required. Correspondence: No keywords required. Comment: No keywords required |
| References | Vancouver system with modifications: References should be cited using superscript Arabic numerals in the order in which they appear in the text. The journal issue number should NOT be included (this is the exception to standard Vancouver). References to unpublished data and personal communications should not appear in the reference list but should be cited in the text only. Example format: 1 Ghislat G, Lawrence T. Autophagy in dendritic cells. Cell Mol Immunol. 2018;15:944–952. Limits: Research Articles - Maximum 100 references. Review Articles - Maximum 500 references |
| Peer review | The peer review process is confidential and conducted anonymously (single-blind). All details about submitted manuscripts are kept confidential. Reviewers are asked not to identify themselves to authors without the editor's knowledge. The journal states: "Unless otherwise declared as a part of open peer review, the peer review process is confidential and conducted anonymously." This indicates standard single-blind peer review |
| Submission | mts-cmi.nature.com/cgi-bin/main.plex |
Read the Cellular and Molecular Immunology guide for authors once before drafting and once before upload. Draft the abstract after results are stable. Set the reference style before adding citations. Keep a cover letter that states your contribution and fit to Cellular and Molecular Immunology in under a page.
Skim two or three recent Cell Mol Immunol papers to calibrate depth and figure style. Make the novelty clear in the first two pages. Deposit data and code when the policy on the Cellular and Molecular Immunology journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the Cellular and Molecular Immunology guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through the journal's submission system.