Advertisement Search My account Terms and Conditions Date of version: 4th August 2017 Thank you for visiting this website. These website terms of use (“Terms") apply to your use of this website and any and all other websites operated by BioMed Central Limited (each a "Site"). Please note that these Terms apply, regardless of the means of delivery of any Site to you. Any reference to ‘you’ or ‘your’ is a reference to you as a user of a BioMed Central website or service. By using any Site, you indicate that you have read and accept these Terms and agree to abide by and be bound by all such Terms. If you do not accept all applicable Terms, please refrain from using any Site. Please note that we may change these Terms from time to time without notice so you should review them each time that you visit any Site. We draw your attention to the limitations on liability contained in clause 11 below and to the consents to data transfer and processing contained in clause 9 below. In addition to these Terms each Site may have supplementary terms and conditions which apply to the Site(s) on which they appear or the services available on the Site ("Additional Terms"). Please ensure that you read any Additional Terms and the Privacy Policy as they form part of these Terms in respect of the Site(s) to which they relate. To the extent that the Additional Terms conflict with these Terms, the Additional Terms shall prevail (including, without limitation, any liability limitations or exclusions in the Additional Terms), but only in respect of the Site(s) on which they appear. Table of contents About us Contact us Using sites Linking Registration Your content Third party content Intellectual property rights Your personal information Interactive services Our liability Maintenance of the Site Severance Variation Jurisdiction and applicable law 1. About us Back to top 1.1 Each Site is operated by BioMed Central Ltd ("we", "us", "our"), a company registered in England and Wales (registered company number 03680030) with registered office at The Campus, 4 Crinan Street, London, N1 9XW, United Kingdom, VAT number GB 823 8263 26. 2. Contact us Back to top 2.1 For general comments on any Site, or to seek permission to do anything prohibited by or not contained in the applicable Terms, or which requires our prior consent or agreement, you can contact us following the instructions found on the ‘Contact’ page on the relevant Site. 2.2 We respect the intellectual property rights of others, and we request that our visitors do the same. It is our policy to terminate the accounts of users who repeatedly infringe the rights of others. If you think your work has been copied in a manner that constitutes copyright infringement, you may notify our copyright agent, who can be reached at: Springer Nature 233 Spring Street New York, NY 10013 Attention: Regional General Counsel, Americas e-mail: CopyrightAgent@springernature.com 2.3 Please include all of the following in your notification: a. A physical or electronic signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive copyright that is allegedly infringed; b. a description of the copyrighted work you claim has been infringed; c. a description of where the material you claim is infringing is located on the site; d. your address, telephone number, email address and all other information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact you; e. a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent or the law; and f. a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed. 2.4 If you would like to report any defamatory content, please click here. 3. Using sites Back to top 3.1 Access to any Site is permitted on a temporary basis and we reserve the right to withdraw or amend the service we provide on the Site or part of the Site without notice. We will not be liable or responsible if for any reason any or all Site(s) is (are) unavailable. 3.2 We may update any Site from time to time, and may change the content at any time. Please note that any of the content on any Site may be out of date at any time, and we are under no obligation to update it. 3.3 All articles published by us on this Site marked "Open Access" are licensed by the respective authors of such articles for use and distribution by you subject to citation of the original source in accordance with the relevant Open Access license. Each Open Access article will state which Creative Commons licence applies. 3.4 With the exception of material marked "Open Access" which may be used in accordance with the relevant Open Access license, you must not (whether directly or indirectly): a) distribute, transmit, syndicate, sell or offer to sell or otherwise make available all or any part of any Site or in any way seek to commercialise all or part of the combination of materials which together constitute the Site; b) distribute, transmit, syndicate, sell or offer to sell or otherwise make available any content, files, feeds or data from a Site, whether publicly available or not, except as specifically permitted by that Site and in compliance with any applicable conditions or restrictions; or c) copy, download, or store any content, files, feeds or data from any Site, whether publicly available or not, to make or populate a database or publication of any kind whatsoever, provided that for the avoidance of doubt this is not intended to restrict copying of an insubstantial part of any such material where you are able to show ‘fair dealing’ with it, in each case in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988; d) alter, adapt or reverse engineer any part of the Site. 3.5 You may only play video or audio files using the media player on any Site or on the website of one of our licensees who is displaying such material with our authorisation. Where any videos or other materials are displayed through a third-party embedding service you must comply with all applicable conditions of that third party. 3.6 If you would like to ‘share’ a story, an application, or other content from any Site with somebody, please use the ‘SharedIt' facility or ‘share’ function (or such other similar feature) on the Site, or you may email a link to the Site to your friend or simply ask them to visit the Site. Please ensure that you have their consent before entering their details. 3.7 Whether or not you are a registered user, you must not abuse any Site’s ‘Report this Comment’ facility (or any similar feature) (such as, without limitation, by making malicious reports). 3.8 You are solely liable and responsible for any third-party charges incurred by you in accessing and using any Site, including in particular any network charges for fixed or mobile internet use. 4. Linking Back to top 4.1 You may establish a link to one or more website(s), provided that: a) the link is legal and not detrimental or damaging to and/or does not take unfair advantage of our reputation or business; b) such linking is not for advertising or promotional purposes (unless we have expressly agreed to it); c) the link is not from any website which promotes any political or religious views, or promotes or depicts intolerance, hatred, discrimination, violence, pornography or illegal activity (websites of any such nature being referred to as an "Unacceptable Forum"); d) the link does not falsely or misleadingly imply or suggest that we endorse, approve of or are associated with the linked website, its webpages or any of its contents; and e) framing of any Site on any other website is not allowed and you must not provide access to the Site or part of it under any other URL. 4.2 We may withdraw your right to link to any Site without notice and at any time (acting in our sole discretion). 4.3 Subject to these Terms and to applicable Additional Terms you may only include links on any Site to third party websites or webpages if: a) the third party website is not an Unacceptable Forum, and the content of or linking to such third party websites or webpages does not breach any of the provisions set out in clause 6.6; b) the terms of use of such websites or webpages allows such linking; c) links are clearly and visibly marked as such; d) the content of any linked website or webpages are relevant and clearly related to the Content to which it is linked; and e) the link will not result in any automatic download. 4.4 Where any Site and/or applications contain links to other websites, webpages, resources, or mobile services which are proprietary to third parties, other users, advertisers or sponsors, such websites, webpages, resources and mobile services are provided for your information only and you access them at your own risk. We are not liable or responsible for the content or operation of third party websites, webpages, resources or mobile services. You should read any applicable terms and conditions and privacy policies. 5. Registration Back to top 5.1 Where you are required to register to use a Site or part of a Site, it is your responsibility to provide accurate and complete registration details and to keep such details up to date. We are entitled to rely on any such registration details you provide to us. 5.2 Unless stated otherwise, each registration is for a single user only and not for multiple users. If you choose, or you are provided with, a user identification code, password or any other piece of information as part of our security procedures, you must treat such information as confidential. You must not disclose it to any third party. You are solely responsible for any loss or damage you or we may suffer as a result of your failure to do so. 5.3 Your registration with any Site must be in your own, real, name, not under any false or assumed name and not with any other person’s identity. You must not pretend to be a different person. You must provide a valid email address when you register for any Site. If you provide an email address to us then you warrant to us that you are entitled to receive email to such email address. You also acknowledge and agree that we may stop sending emails to you without prior notification. 5.4 You are responsible for everything done using your registration details. You must not disclose your login details to any other person. If you think that another person may have access to, or be using, your registration details, you must inform us immediately. 5.5 We may suspend, terminate or prevent your account and/or your access to any or all Site(s) at our sole discretion. Where we suspend, terminate or prevent your registration, you must not attempt to re-register or submit any content, material or applications without our prior written consent. 5.6 For the avoidance of doubt, where we suspend, terminate or otherwise prevent your account or your access to any Site, we may continue to publish or use your Content (as defined in clause 6) in accordance with the provisions of the applicable Terms. 6. Your content Back to top 6.1 Each Site may, in accordance with its own Additional Terms, offer you the opportunity to submit, post, display, transmit, perform, publish, distribute or broadcast content and materials, including, without limitation, articles, commentaries, photographs, text, music, video, audio recordings, computer graphics, pictures, data, questions, comments, suggestions or personally identifiable information ("Content"). You retain ownership of any intellectual property rights that you hold in the Content. 6.2 You grant to us a royalty-free, non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable license to use, copy, edit, adapt, publish, reproduce, translate, sub-license, create derivative works from, make available, communicate, display, store and distribute your Content (in whole or part) and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form, format, media, or technology now known or later developed (including without limitation in print, digital and electronic form) throughout the world in accordance with the provisions of these Terms. By submitting your Content, you warrant that you have the right to grant this license. To the extent permitted by law, you waive all moral rights in your Content. To the extent that you are unable to waive any such moral rights, you agree not to assert the same. 6.3 It is our sole discretion, subject to any rules and procedures applicable to any Site, whether or not we choose to publish or otherwise make available Content on the Site. We may remove Content at our discretion, subject only to our obligations in respect of peer-reviewed articles. 7. Third party content Back to top 7.1 We are not liable or responsible for any third party content on any Site. Third party content includes, for example, comments, blogs and articles posted by any third parties, Content, the content of advertisements, applications posted by other third parties and content accessed through applications. 7.2 Open Access content may contain third party content not covered by the Creative Commons licence. Before using any content from the Site you are required to ascertain whether any third party rights within all images, diagrams, photographs or other illustrative material which are indicated within such an article as not being owned by the authors or us, that these are cleared independently and appropriately with the relevant owner. 8. Intellectual property rights Back to top 8.1 We are the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights in all Sites. All such rights are reserved in full. Our status (and that of any identified contributors) as the authors of content on our site must always be acknowledged. 8.2 The proprietary content, design, look and feel, databases (and data) and images on this Site are protected by UK and other international intellectual property laws and are owned by us or our licensors. With the exception of material marked "Open Access" which may be used in accordance with the relevant Open Access license, you must not: a) reproduce, store in any medium, including but not limited to a retrieval system, or transmit, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, broadcasting) nor, show in public any part of a website; b) create any derivative work or make any other adaptation, without our prior written consent; c) modify the copies you have displayed or printed in any way; d) use any illustrations, photographs, videos or audio sequences or any graphics separately from any accompanying text. 8.3 Notwithstanding the provisions of clause 8.2, you may print a small proportion of content of this Site or display this on your screen or both, strictly for your personal non-commercial use. 9. Your personal information Back to top 9.1 In addition to these Terms and the Additional Terms, please read the Privacy Statement page for the Site carefully as it governs our collection and use of information about you and states that we may collect your information in the UK and transfer it to companies within our group (including companies based outside of the UK and Europe). By using our Site, you consent to us obtaining, holding, processing and transferring your data as set out in the Privacy Policy. 10. Interactive services Back to top 10.1 We may from time to time provide interactive services on any Site, including (without limitation) chat rooms, bulletin boards and other forums ("interactive services"). 10.2 Where we do provide any interactive service, we will provide clear information to you about the kind of service offered. We are under no obligation to oversee, monitor or moderate any interactive service we provide on any Site, and we expressly exclude our liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of any interactive service by a user in contravention of our content standards at clause 6 of these Terms, and as contained in any Additional Terms, whether the service is moderated or not. 10.3 The use of our interactive services by a minor is subject to the consent of their parent or guardian. We advise parents who permit their children to use an interactive service that it is important that they communicate with their children about their safety online. Minors who are using any interactive service should be made aware of the potential risks to them. 10.4 Where we do moderate an interactive service, we will normally provide you with a means of contacting the moderator, should a concern or difficulty arise. 11. Our liability Back to top 11.1 The provisions of this clause 11 set out our entire financial liability (including any liability for the acts or omissions of our employees, agents and sub-contractors) to you in respect of all losses, claims or liabilities arising under or in connection with these Terms or your use of any Site generally, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise. 11.2 The information and material contained on each Site is for general information purposes only and does not constitute advice on which you should rely, whether medical, legal, financial or otherwise. Such information and material may be incorrect or out of date and should not be considered as a definitive or complete statement. You should check any information and material on the Site and use your own judgement before doing or not doing anything on the basis of such information or material. Any description or reference to a product or publication does not imply endorsement of that product or publication. We make no representations or warranties with respect to the Site or its content. All warranties (express or implied) (including without limitation the implied warranties of satisfactory quality and fitness for purpose relating to any Site and/or its content) are hereby excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law. No representations or warranties are given as to the accuracy or completeness of the information or material provided on any Site or any website or webpage to which it is linked. 11.3 Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or for fraud of fraudulent misrepresentation or any other liability that cannot be limited by applicable law. 11.4 To the fullest extent permitted by law, we, other members of our group of companies and third parties connected to us hereby expressly exclude any liability for: a) loss of or corruption to data; or b) loss of profit; or c) loss of anticipated savings; or d) loss of anticipated revenue; or e) loss of business; or f) loss of opportunity; or g) adverse effect on reputation and/or goodwill; or h) any indirect or consequential loss or damage save that for these purposes losses arising as a result of regulatory fines and damage to property shall to the extent arising as a natural consequence of the breach in question not be regarded as indirect or consequential. 11.5 Subject to the provisions of clause 11.3 above, our total liability to you in respect of all losses and liabilities arising under or in connection with these Terms, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, shall in no circumstances exceed an amount equal to the amount paid by you to us in the 12 month period immediately preceding the date on which such loss or liability arose or £250, whichever is the greater. 11.6 Without prejudice to the generality of the exclusions of liability contained in this clause 11, we shall not be liable to you if you cannot access any Site properly or at all (wholly or partly) or if some of its features are unavailable to you due to events outside our control (including without limitation the performance of any internet service provider, the performance of any internet browser, limitations of the device you use to access the Site and/or any malicious or unintentional harm done by yourself or others). 11.7 We shall have no liability to you for any loss, damage or inconvenience suffered due to the unavailability, withdrawal, corruption or loss of any Content, material or other information or data from or on any Site, or for any use of or reliance on any Content on any Site. 11.8 Whilst we monitor each Site with a view to locating and fixing defects, you acknowledge and agree that we cannot and do not guarantee that each Site or any individual feature of each Site will be error free, be available at all times and/or be free from viruses and defects. We shall not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a virus, distributed denial-of-service attack, or other technologically harmful material that may infect your computer equipment, computer programs, data or other proprietary material due to your use of any Site or to your downloading of any content on it, or on any website linked to it. 12. Maintenance of the Site Back to top 12.1 You acknowledge and agree that from time to time we may need to suspend access to all or a part of any Site while we: a) fix defects and errors in the Site; b) install updates and undertake general diagnosis and maintenance of the Site; and c) undertake emergency maintenance and/or suspend access to the servers, and that as a result the Site may be less accessible or unavailable to you from time to time. 13. Severance Back to top 13.1 If any court or competent authority finds that any provision of these Terms (or part of any provision) is invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that provision or part-provision shall, to the extent required, be deemed to be deleted, and the validity and enforceability of the other provisions of these Terms shall not be affected. 14. Variation Back to top 14. Variation 14.1 We may revise these Terms at any time by amending this page or the page on which the Additional Terms appear. You must check this page, and the page of each Site where Additional Terms appear, from time to time to take notice of any changes we make, as they are binding on you. Some of the provisions contained in these Terms may also be superseded by provisions or notices published elsewhere on the Site, including without limitation in Additional Terms. 15. Jurisdiction and applicable law Back to top 15.1 The law governing these Terms, and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them or their subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. The courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim that arises out of or in connection with these Terms or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims). For our exclusive benefit and to the extent possible in the applicable jurisdiction, we retain the right to bring or enforce proceedings as to the substance of the matter in the courts of the country of your residence or, where these Terms are entered into in the course of your trade or profession, the country of the place of business in which you agreed to these Terms or (if different) the country of your principal place of business. 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