There is a conflict of interest for the papers below due to the fact that the editor (C. Manikyamba) of the papers is also a frequent co-author of M. Santosh.
It is not the first time it happened for M. Santosh: he has co-authors on a regular basis edit his papers (see: https://pubpeer.com/publications/1865C6548908F3496E0258FBE0E4CF#null ), furthermore, all of this happens in the journal of Geoscience Frontiers of which M. Santosh is the EIC.
C. Manikyamba is a regular editor for the journal
**Paper edited by C. Manikyamba and authored by M. Santosh between December 2022 and January 2024 **:
1° https://pubpeer.com/publications/0D28D8B0D3BBC66F04FFA6AA832E1F
2° https://pubpeer.com/publications/61607D45741C538203553469398CF8
3° https://pubpeer.com/publications/38A874F00881B7F1E5716D561C3860
4° https://pubpeer.com/publications/AB06C9508F9E729C6C6A19604DF376
Papers co-authored between C. Manikyamba and M. Santosh between February 2020 and August 2023:
Both are frequent co-authors, dating back to 2014; more information: https://scholar.google.be/scholar?start=0&q="M.+Santosh"++%2B+C.+Manikyamba&hl=nl&as_sdt=0,5
1° https://pubpeer.com/publications/4E7CBFE3A73B371885B3AD5A276037 (notice that the editor is V. Samuel, someone who also has a conflict of interest with M. Santosh)
2° https://pubpeer.com/publications/944092D140DA4C2737B8ABBD5CC837
3° https://pubpeer.com/publications/69962351B42F574ED46B8CE9970749
There is a conflict of interest for these papers as the editor (Y. Anil Kumar) is a co-author of M. Santosh at the same time when editing M. Santosh his papers.
An odd observation is that Y. Anil Kumar his name is written differently as an editor (2 words for the last name, Anil Kumar) than as an author (1 word for the last name, Y. Anilkumar) while at the website of the Geological journal his name is written in 1 piece: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/journal/10991034/homepage/editorialboard.html
Both have co-authored papers frequently: https://scholar.google.be/scholar?hl=nl&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Y.+Anilkumar+%2B+M.+Santosh&btnG=
Furthermore, M. Santosh has on a regular basis frequent co-authors as editors for his papers:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/76285079D2E9FBF80EDC562221F450#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/43BD8442E1F2BD2C3B333F61BFFDF0#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/3FE4F0F25E7C76040DE023C75EE1A4#1
Paper 1 authored by M. Santosh and edited by Y. Anil Kumar
https://pubpeer.com/publications/3AC983AAF02F81128108A438BB8680
Paper 2 authored by M. Santosh and edited by Y. Anil Kumar
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0A65A5A3A17FB64AC95A59F5E1BCE7
Papers co-authored by Y. Anil Kumar (or written Y. Anilkumar) and M. Santosh at the same time as the 2 papers mentioned above:
A°
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0D28D8B0D3BBC66F04FFA6AA832E1F
B°
https://pubpeer.com/publications/56E34FEB258A82766BD3FF2B846A9D
C° Published a bit before papers 1 and 2 above (to show they have been publishing before as well):
https://pubpeer.com/publications/E8512EECD35CC425A63E5E9FE80180
There is a message on X (twitter) regarding this paper. It seems to indicate the name of the handling editor for this paper was changed (see below). Can the author of this paper and former (alleged) editor, M. Santosh comment on this? This is an issue if the name of the handling editor was changed to avoid a conflict of interest given that M. Santosh potentially was both an editor and author for this paper.
It is especially important as M. Santosh is not just a regular author or 'handling' editor. He is also the EIC of the journal Geoscience Frontiers:
Furthermore; there are at least 2 documented cases where M. Santosh was effectively an editor for his own papers in the journal Gondwana Research, where he is also the EIC: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/gondwana-research
Case 1 of self-editing:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/3D2E69EC2DB9DA6C68F82F22AD2579
and
Case 2 of self-editing:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/95E540F1DDEB5BE3CE3153CB298C36
Message on X (twitter) + screenshots indicating the name of the handling editor was changed over time to avoid the huge conflict of interest:
The handling editor of the manuscript The Early–Middle Triassic Supervolcano in the Yangtze Block, South China and associated obstacles to biotic recovery is Stijn Glorie.
One of the authors of this manuscript is M. Santosh. Both published a paper right before: Breakup of the Neoarchean supercontinent Kenorland: Evidence from zircon and baddeleyite U-Pb ages of LIP-related mafic dykes in the Coorg Block, southern India
This can be seen as a conflict of interest. Furthermore, both also published a paper right after Stijn Glorie served as an editor for M. Santosh his paper: Breakup of the Neoarchean supercontinent Kenorland: Evidence from zircon and baddeleyite U-Pb ages of LIP-related mafic dykes in the Coorg Block, southern India
This all happened in approximately 1 year.
On top of this Stijn Glorie actually works at the same institute as M. Santosh, which also might be regarded as a conflict of interest.
Furthermore, the handling editors for the two other papers that Stijn Glorie and M. Santosh co-authored are also linked to M. Santosh (see respective pubpeer links given below for these 2 papers).
Paper handled by Stijn Glorie:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/6AF3107918B408B51D955ED45DC4C9
Paper co-authored by Stijn Glorie and M. Santosh only 3 months after editing:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0D28D8B0D3BBC66F04FFA6AA832E1F
Paper co-authored by Stijn Glorie and M. Santosh less than 1 month before editing:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/E8512EECD35CC425A63E5E9FE80180
The original editor of this paper was its author and EiC of this journal, M. Santosh himself. http://www.5gh.org.cn/WuGH/20240603.001.html
Turns out, according to an editorial written by the EIC of the journal, Xuanxue Mo, that this potentially self-edited paper was an accident, it was a technical issue and not a self-edited paper. You can find the editorial here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsf.2024.101955
The editorial reads:
The question now remains of course, what about the other 54 potential COIs in this journal?
The following 55 (!) links are all pointing towards a conflict of interest between an author and editor for a paper published in Geoscience Frontiers. (The 55 include the 1 COI with M. Santosh potentially editing his own paper, which turned out to be a technical issue)
https://pubpeer.com/publications/929672AE28DA515F8B2B7DF7A6F0AD
https://pubpeer.com/publications/BAA402ADFD384E3322140AEBDC568D
https://pubpeer.com/publications/251C56C05E829777556AC8E2DDBB40
https://pubpeer.com/publications/4CEDFF5C38DA1C73037501253EEBD3
https://pubpeer.com/publications/B08E5019FDA4D46AB53EACD4AC2E0E
https://pubpeer.com/publications/AFF75EA5CC7D3F782DA603691B1BF0
https://pubpeer.com/publications/1865C6548908F3496E0258FBE0E4CF
https://pubpeer.com/publications/7F33FD4283B401BD9088E36425DB66
https://pubpeer.com/publications/A5E2764DB83FEBD909F66F307168FE
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0B5BEAE56D5E34DB352122D4091C75
https://pubpeer.com/publications/E8C0C82377C89487656C51F24E2167
https://pubpeer.com/publications/C6C17368CF23526175765D08AF28A4
https://pubpeer.com/publications/84953FDF3BF569507E8F6DC58FECEC
https://pubpeer.com/publications/204A55ED256E1ACCDCA467D60C8F07
https://pubpeer.com/publications/B128FB7BF23EFF578E02DB708BAE30
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0B62B95B109314C2C5E841E6E82C3F#null
https://pubpeer.com/publications/70EE3DBBA38439601B71E4B980311C
https://pubpeer.com/publications/91161612715E5FA0ECCC9587ECC100
https://pubpeer.com/publications/43BD8442E1F2BD2C3B333F61BFFDF0
https://pubpeer.com/publications/85F609F2CD74D5AED3D98606EDE19B
https://pubpeer.com/publications/309B0A505C405F19FF8E04CCBED2E7#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/BDB0056FD2F336442C1D02A1BF1259
https://pubpeer.com/publications/EDA788DFDFF1ADB6535D15D89011B7#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/AB05CD0884D11806F59328238D0A03
https://pubpeer.com/publications/467CEEA490CA952E51EC5AB34F0AEA#null
https://pubpeer.com/publications/08AC3537FF8A353938DD3C959B08C4
https://pubpeer.com/publications/B3D0A6A09C8CAA0D1BB445D7D5D8C5
https://pubpeer.com/publications/B16425A1179642963E2020367F1F4B#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/8F272CF12D4B159BBA1E0987651AB9
https://pubpeer.com/publications/79FDDC659E1EF355785F95EBD21415
https://pubpeer.com/publications/7C0F34E135BA81C2D1292FCA495D18
https://pubpeer.com/publications/DE91EB06E0F5B110D4CB5E6A38E34C
https://pubpeer.com/publications/574992AD88B8EA5C4FFD98874221DE#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/D64105CBE1996F055A31A0415D3BB5
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0631B15B8773EAA02B76D3AC34B3DB
https://pubpeer.com/publications/E7C280044C61ED9B7089D0C618ABFC
https://pubpeer.com/publications/CB72A2F18315D98277B5E12490D471
https://pubpeer.com/publications/06B7257BDF659EB5656774B49811DC
https://pubpeer.com/publications/C68F11A822036128F3CBBEC15FE499
https://pubpeer.com/publications/8D7A8575598AE1DD9CF34E3AD23CE8
https://pubpeer.com/publications/6616654A036C73B425096714D3C6C3
https://pubpeer.com/publications/38A874F00881B7F1E5716D561C3860
https://pubpeer.com/publications/B3691D162A943D29CB62C624DDABDC#null
https://pubpeer.com/publications/AB06C9508F9E729C6C6A19604DF376
https://pubpeer.com/publications/72F7E20EC4E528424355B22CA7079E
https://pubpeer.com/publications/6AF3107918B408B51D955ED45DC4C9#1
https://pubpeer.com/publications/18B0557A5330F07F14AEF69AD9A5CD
https://pubpeer.com/publications/4E7CBFE3A73B371885B3AD5A276037
Conflict of interest between author Stijn Glorie and editor M. Santosh:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/12A14FB6CB1346219EBF5D5376AD4C
Co-authored (notice how this paper also has a conflict of interest involving M. Santosh):
https://pubpeer.com/publications/0D28D8B0D3BBC66F04FFA6AA832E1F
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