Another expression of concern (EOC) has appeared for a pair of lung researchers formerly employed by Duke University.
Co-authors Erin Potts-Kant, a research assistant who left the school and was charged with embezzlement, and Michael Foster, who has retired, share more than a dozen retractions, corrections and EOCs.
Like many of those papers, the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine is being flagged over concerns it is “unreliable.” Here’s more from the EOC:
Authors of an article published in 2009 (1) have informed the Journal that they have become aware that some of the data in this article may be unreliable. Therefore, we are publishing this expression of concern while the situation is being reviewed.
“Protection from Lipopolysaccharide-induced Lung Injury by Augmentation of Airway S-Nitrosothiols” has been cited 26 times since 2009, according to Thomson Reuters Web of Science.
The first author on the paper is Harvey Marshall, and the last author is Richard Auten, both also affiliated with Duke. Auten has shared some previous retractions with Potts-Kant and Foster.
Per our records, Potts-Kant now has 15 retractions, three corrections, four partial retractions and four expressions of concern. She had one other expression of concern, which turned into a retraction (included in the total above). Foster’s total is 12 retractions, five corrections, four partial retractions, and four expressions of concern.
As a source told Retraction Watch in April, researchers at Duke are working to repeat experiments by the pair. It’s currently unclear how many retractions and corrections will result.
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