Search Results for: medical

Nature fixes highly cited paper suggesting food additives hurt the gut

A 2015 study about dietary emulsifiers has been corrected by Nature after another researcher pointed out a few ambiguities. When it first appeared, the study — which showed emulsifiers cause inflammation in the guts of mice — received a fair amount of media attention, including from Nature’s own news department. But since publication, a researcher noted some imprecision around the … Continue reading Nature fixes highly cited paper suggesting food additives hurt the gut

Researchers decry study warning of low-carb diet risks

Advocates of low-carbohydrate diet are voicing concern about a recent paper that suggested the diet could cause weight gain, contrary to previous research. One expert has even called for its retraction. The study, published in Nutrition & Diabetes in February, also found that the low-carb diet did little to prevent the progression of type 2 diabetes. … Continue reading Researchers decry study warning of low-carb diet risks

Weekend reads: A peer reviewer goes on strike; why science should be more boring; publish or perish = less quality

The week at Retraction Watch featured an economist being asked to review his own paper, and a new member of our leaderboard. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

After painful retraction, authors republish replicated findings five years later

It was one of the most difficult posts we’ve ever written: A researcher’s eagerness to publish a paper before asking all co-authors for their permission forced him to retract the article, wasting a postdoc’s time and destroying a professional relationship in the process. This 2011 post wasn’t difficult to write because the facts were complex; … Continue reading After painful retraction, authors republish replicated findings five years later

“Mixed up” images earn biologists four retractions

Four different journals have pulled papers from the same authors due to alleged duplication or manipulation of images. All four papers have two authors in common — Jianting Miao and Wei Zhang, both based at The Fourth Military Medical University in Xi’an City, Shaanxi, China. Many of the other co-authors are also listed in two … Continue reading “Mixed up” images earn biologists four retractions

Weekend reads: Another autism-vaccine fraud movie?; zombie papers; herbicide-cancer report taken down

The week at Retraction Watch featured an imposter editor and an author who threatened to sue a journal if it didn’t reverse a retraction. Here’s what was happening elsewhere:

Stem cell researchers fix two papers following PubPeer comments

A pair of stem cell researchers have earned two corrections, the result of images that were mislabeled, distorted, or compiled incorrectly, according to the notices. Kang Cheng prepared the gels when he was a research fellow in last author Sanjeev Gupta‘s lab at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Gupta told us he reviewed the original gels, and the errors didn’t affect the … Continue reading Stem cell researchers fix two papers following PubPeer comments

Imposter edits journal in latest peer review scam

When a computer scientist approached a journal about editing a special issue, little did the journal know he — or she — was using a stolen identity. Before the jig was up, someone posing as a researcher named Xavier Delorme had edited three articles on optimization problems for The Scientific World Journal. The scammer used a fake email address, … Continue reading Imposter edits journal in latest peer review scam

Macchiarini did not obtain necessary ethics approvals, says Swedish Research Council

Surgeon Paolo Macchiarini did not apply for the necessary ethics approval to perform the pioneering transplants he’s known for, according to the Swedish Research Council. Chief Legal Counsel Anna Hörnlund, who wrote a letter in this week’s The Lancet, says Macchiarini’s work needed to obtain ethical approval from one of six regional ethical review boards, as required by … Continue reading Macchiarini did not obtain necessary ethics approvals, says Swedish Research Council