A professor specializing in the health of children and pregnant women has left her post at the University of Glasgow, and issued three retractions in recent months.
All three notices — issued by PLOS ONE — mention an investigation at the university, which found signs of data manipulation and falsification. Fiona Lyall, the last author on all three papers, is also the only author in common to all three papers; she did not respond to the journal’s inquiries.
According to the University of Glasgow, the affiliation listed for Lyall, she is no longer based at the university. When we asked about the circumstances of her departure, the spokesperson told us the university has a “commitment to confidentiality,” but noted:
We take all allegations of research misconduct extremely seriously and investigate appropriately.
After the first two retractions were issued in June, the pseudonymous whistleblower Clare Francis took a closer look at Lyall’s work, and alerted the university to potential issues in two other papers; one of those two other papers was retracted this week.
Here’s the retraction notice for one of the papers retracted in June, which shares similar language with the others:
The PLOS ONE Editors retract this article in light of concerns raised about Figure 2.
Similarities were noted between bands within the β-actin panel, which also appears to duplicate the β-actin panel in Figure 2 of [Heat Shock Protein 27 Is Spatially Distributed in the Human Placenta and Decreased during Labor].
In addition, lanes 1, 2 of the HSP 70 blot for labor samples (middle panel) appear similar to the bands shown in the β-actin blot (e.g. in lanes 2, 3).
The University of Glasgow investigated these concerns and recommended retraction owing to signs of data manipulation and falsification. In the course of the investigation, it was established that the original data underlying the figure panels in question are no longer available.
In light of these concerns, and in line with the institution’s communication, the PLOS ONE Editors retract this article, as the concerns raised call into question the integrity of the data and validity of the article’s results and conclusions.
The retracted article, “Heat Shock Protein 70 Expression Is Spatially Distributed in Human Placenta and Selectively Upregulated during Labor and Preeclampsia,” has been cited 19 times since it was published in 2013. The notice cites another paper, also co-authored by Lyall, which has also been retracted, with a similar notice. “Heat Shock Protein 27 Is Spatially Distributed in the Human Placenta and Decreased during Labor” has been cited six times since it appeared in 2013.
The article that was retracted this week, “Apelin Receptor (APJ) Expression during Cardiopulmonary Bypass in Children Undergoing Surgical Repair,” has only been cited twice since it was published in 2014. According to the retraction notice, the first two authors disagreed with the retraction; the other two (including Lyall) did not respond.
We emailed Lyall at her institutional address (the only one we could find), but haven’t heard back.
A secret sleuth
After noticing the first two retractions, issued June 21 and 22, Clare Francis contacted the university on June 22 about concerns regarding two other papers by Lyall; one of those is the third retraction, issued August 6. Francis tells us:
I am pleased with Glasgow University’s response. They did not seem offended, like most universities, that problematic data had been pointed out.
Francis added:
Glasgow seems to take problematic data seriously.
Francis forwarded to us correspondence he received from the University of Glasgow on June 26 saying they had requested the retraction of another paper co-authored by Lyall, published in 2013 in Cell Stress and Chaperones. We’ve asked the publisher (Springer Nature) to confirm.
Update, 9 August 2018, 14:42 UTC time: Springer Nature confirms the Cell Stress and Chaperones paper is under investigation:
Until our investigations are concluded, we unfortunately cannot disclose any details.
Hat tip: Rolf Degen (for one retraction)
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Hmmm…almost wonder whether there should be a new category. A “doing the right thing”, but then for Universities/Institutes that rapidly and comprehensively investigate.
Anyways, well done “Clare Francis”, whoever you are, and well done Glasgow University for swiftly and promptly doing what was needed.
It would be interesting to know why the first two authors did not agree to the retraction, though.
Francis forwarded to us correspondence he received …
Clare Francis is male?
Population, female (% of total)
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL.FE.ZS
2018 retraction (noted by Elisabeth Bik) for:
J Reprod Immunol
. 2014 Mar;101-102:89-95. doi: 10.1016/j.jri.2013.09.002. Epub 2013 Sep 26.
Heat shock protein 27 expression is spatially distributed in human placenta and selectively regulated during preeclampsia
Akrem Abdulsid 1, Fiona Lyall 2
Affiliations collapse
Affiliations
1University of Glasgow, Institute of Medical Genetics, Yorkhill Hospital, Glasgow G38SJ, UK.
2University of Glasgow, Institute of Medical Genetics, Yorkhill Hospital, Glasgow G38SJ, UK. Electronic address: [email protected].
PMID: 24182452
2018 retraction notice.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165037818302201
This article has been retracted at the request of the Editor-in-Chief.
After investigation by the University of Glasgow Research Integrity Council it was found that Figure 2 is a photomontage of two bands. Consequently, the research integrity of the paper is compromised.
Cell Stress Chaperones. 2013 May;18(3):269-77. doi: 10.1007/s12192-012-0379-6. Epub 2012 Oct 19.
Heat shock protein 27 is increased in cyanotic tetralogy of Fallot myocardium and is associated with improved cardiac output and contraction
Susan Walker 1, Mark Danton, Edward Weng Koon Peng, Fiona Lyall
Affiliations expand
PMID: 23080524
Problematic data figure 1.
See:
https://pubpeer.com/publications/643AA997D011E17900857A66A51D37#2
I had not realised that Elisabeth Bik was on the case in 2016.
Credit should go to Elisabeth Bik.
It is of concern that Cell Stress Chaperones has still not taken any action on Cell Stress Chaperones. 2013 May;18(3):269-77.
Nucleic Acids Res. 2004; 32(18): 5553–5569.
Published online 2004 Oct 14. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkh876
PMCID: PMC524287
PMID: 15486205
Protein kinase CK2 phosphorylation regulates the interaction of Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus regulatory protein ORF57 with its multifunctional partner hnRNP K
Poonam Malik and J. Barklie Clements*
Author information
Division of Virology, Institute of Biomedical and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Church Street, Glasgow, G11
5JR, Scotland, UK
*To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel: +44 141 330 4027; Fax: +44 141 337 2236; Email: [email protected]
Problematic data figures 6C, 8B, 8C and 8E. Much more similar than expected.
Figure 6C. Much more similar than expected.
See: https://imgur.com/GIRiLC5
Figure 8B. Much more similar than expected.
See: https://imgur.com/nCmRaLe
Figures 8C and 8E. Much more similar than expected.
See: https://imgur.com/0Uk8BpO
Retraction of ‘Protein kinase CK2 phosphorylation regulates the interaction of Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus regulatory protein ORF57 with its multifunctional partner hnRNP K’
Nucleic Acids Research, gkac574, https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkac574
Published:
04 July 2022
https://academic.oup.com/nar/advance-article/doi/10.1093/nar/gkac574/6619470
“Following allegations of image manipulation in Figures 1A, 6C, 8B, 8C, and 8E in 2021, the journal conducted a brief investigation, referred the matter to the authors’ institution, and published an Expression of Concern. In May 2022, the institutional panel investigating the allegations concluded the figures are not authentic and the scientific integrity of the article is compromised, and they recommended retracting the article. Their report includes: ‘On the balance of probabilities, the Panel believe that these data as presented in the publication have been inappropriately manipulated. As such, the data and its interpretation are misleading and unreliable.’ The Editors of the journal are, therefore, now retracting this article.”
J Virol . 2001 Mar;75(6):2710-28. doi: 10.1128/JVI.75.6.2710-2728.2001.
Herpes simplex virus type 1 blocks the apoptotic host cell defense mechanisms that target Bcl-2 and manipulates activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase to improve viral replication
G Zachos 1, M Koffa, C M Preston, J B Clements, J Conner
Affiliations collapse
Affiliation
1Institute of Virology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G11 5JR, United Kingdom.
PMID: 11222695 PMCID: PMC115896 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.75.6.2710-2728.2001
Figures 1B and 1C. Much more similar than expected.
https://imgur.com/x2zJxOc
Figure 2. Much more similar than expected.
https://imgur.com/1Zz0CmM
and
https://imgur.com/mwF8610
Figure 3. Much more similar than expected.
https://imgur.com/V5LUrZ4
Figure 4. Much more similar than expected.
https://imgur.com/JS1Sz29