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Citing a Science Journal Article

The Council of Biology Editors (CBE) Manual outlines two citation styles for writers in the sciences. One is name-year based, similar to the APA Manual. The other is a citation-sequence style.  Another commonly used scientific style is outlined in the ACS (American Chemical Society) Style Guide.  Examples of each of these styles are given below.

If you are writing a class paper, check with your instructor to see which style they prefer.  For a journal article, the journal's instructions to authors will indicate which style to use.

Citation Styles and Examples

Citing a journal article:

CBE Citation-Sequence Style:
Authors(s). Article title. Abbreviated journal title year month;volume number (issue number):inclusive pages.

Example: Steiner U, Klein J, Eiser E, Budkowski A, Fetters LJ. Complete wetting from polymer mixtures. Science 1992 Nov 13;258 (5085):1122-9.

CBE Name-Year Style:
Authors(s). Year. Article title. Journal title volume number (issue number):inclusivepages.

Example: Steiner U, Klein J, Eiser E, Budkowski A, Fetters LJ. 1992. Complete wetting from polymer mixtures. Science 258 (5085):1122-9.

ACS Style:
Author 1; Author 2; Author 3; etc. Title of article. Journal abbreviation Year , Volume , inclusive pagination.

Example: Steiner, U.; Klein, J.; Eiser, E.; Budkowski, A.; Fetters, L. J. Complete wetting from polymer mixtures. Science 1992 , 258 :1122-1129. 

Citing an online journal article:

CBE Citation-Sequence Style:
Authors(s). Article title. Abbreviated journal title [type of medium]date of publication;volume number (issue number):inclusivepages. Availability statement. Date of accession as needed. 

Example: Winzor DJ, Jones S, Harding SE. Determination of protein charge by capillary zone electrophoresis. Anal Biochem [serial online] 2004; 333(2):225-9. Available from: Science Direct. Accessed 2004 Oct 15

CBE Name-Year Style:
Authors(s). Date of publiction. Article title. Abbreviated journal title [type of medium];volume number (issue number):inclusivepages. Availability statement. Date of accession as needed.

Example: Winzor DJ, Jones S, Harding SE. 2004. Determination of protein charge by capillary zone electrophoresis. Anal Biochem [serial online]; 333(2):225-9. Available from: Science Direct. Accessed 2004 Oct 15 

ACS Style:
Author 1; Author 2; Author 3; etc. Title of article. Journal abbreviation [Online] Year , Volume , inclusive pagination or other identifying information.

Example: Craw, J. S.; Hinchcliffe, A. Electron. J. Theor. Chem. [Online] 1995 , 1 , 8-10.  

Citing a Website:

ACS Style:
Author (if any). Title of Site. URL (accessed date), other identifying information.

Example: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Home Page. http://www.epa.gov (accessed July 2002).

For more information see:

CBE Citation Guide from the Ohio State University Libraries

ACS Guidelines for Documenting Sources from CORE and Youngstown State University.

CBE Style for Electronic Resources from Columbus State University

American Chemical Society (ACS) Citation Style for Internet Sources from Penn State Lehigh Valley

Scientific Style and Format: The CBE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers, 6th ed.

In Collier Library’s Reference section -- Z250.6.B5 C64 1994

The ACS Style Guide: A Manual for Authors and Editors, 2nd ed.

In Collier Library’s Reference section -- QD8.5 .A25 1997