A scientist critic was sued, and won — but did not emerge unscathed. This is his story.

Retraction Watch readers may be familiar with the name David Sanders. Sanders, a biologist at Purdue University, has become a scientific sleuth, ferreting out problems in numerous papers. In one of those cases, that of Ohio State University professor Carlo Croce, Sanders ended up being sued — before an article in which he was quoted … Continue reading A scientist critic was sued, and won — but did not emerge unscathed. This is his story.

Exclusive: Ohio State researcher kept six-figure job for more than a year after a misconduct finding

In 2016, Mingjun Zhang, a biomedical engineering researcher at The Ohio State University, along with collaborators, published a paper that explored the mechanism behind ivy’s impressive adhesive strength. In it, the authors claimed to report the genetic sequences of the proteins making up the adhesive. The paper, entitled “Nanospherical arabinogalactan proteins are a key component … Continue reading Exclusive: Ohio State researcher kept six-figure job for more than a year after a misconduct finding

Weekend reads: 800 retractions from Russia; paying to publish in Vietnam; a retraction involving Facebook, political misinformation, and Teen Vogue

Before we present this week’s Weekend Reads, a question: Do you enjoy our weekly roundup? If so, we could really use your help. Would you consider a tax-deductible donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? Thanks in advance. The week at Retraction Watch featured: Crossfit being awarded $4 million in sanctions in a case … Continue reading Weekend reads: 800 retractions from Russia; paying to publish in Vietnam; a retraction involving Facebook, political misinformation, and Teen Vogue

Weekend reads: Plagiarism and death threats; peer review by robot; a university apologizes for a job ad

Before we present this week’s Weekend Reads, a question: Do you enjoy our weekly roundup? If so, we could really use your help. Would you consider a tax-deductible donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? Thanks in advance. Retraction Watch came back online on Wednesday of this week, after a 10-day outage for technical … Continue reading Weekend reads: Plagiarism and death threats; peer review by robot; a university apologizes for a job ad

Weekend reads: Controversial paper on transgender teens revised; e-cigarette maker touts study in a questionable journal; Science warns readers about monkey HIV study

Before we present this week’s Weekend Reads, a question: Do you enjoy our weekly roundup? If so, we could really use your help. Would you consider a tax-deductible donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? Thanks in advance. The week at Retraction Watch featured a researcher who faked earthquake data, an ambivalent co-author, and a … Continue reading Weekend reads: Controversial paper on transgender teens revised; e-cigarette maker touts study in a questionable journal; Science warns readers about monkey HIV study

OSU cancer researcher who has faced misconduct allegations sues to regain lost department chairmanship

Carlo Croce, the embattled cancer researcher at The Ohio State University (OSU), is suing the institution to reclaim the department chair he lost late last year for reasons that he says are unclear. In a filing with the Franklin County civil court, Croce and his attorneys, from the Columbus firm of James E. Arnold and … Continue reading OSU cancer researcher who has faced misconduct allegations sues to regain lost department chairmanship

Alfredo Fusco, facing misconduct charges in Italy, up to 21 retractions

Alfredo Fusco, a researcher in Italy who has faced criminal charges for research misconduct for more than five years, has had six more papers retracted, for a total of 21. The latest six retractions are all from Cancer Research. An example, for “Haploinsufficiency of the Hmga1 Gene Causes Cardiac Hypertrophy and Myelo-Lymphoproliferative Disorders in Mice,” a paper … Continue reading Alfredo Fusco, facing misconduct charges in Italy, up to 21 retractions

Under protest, OSU cancer researcher dogged by misconduct allegations stepping down as department chair

Carlo Croce, a professor at The Ohio State University in Columbus who has faced multiple investigations into misconduct allegations, has been forced to step down from his post as department chair. As ABC6 in Columbus reports,

Cancer researcher at OSU up to nine retractions

A cancer researcher and emeritus professor at The Ohio State University has retracted four more papers, bringing his total to nine from a single journal. The four retractions of work by Samson Jacob appear in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, from which Jacob retracted five papers in March. The original papers — one of which … Continue reading Cancer researcher at OSU up to nine retractions

Cancer researcher under cloud of suspicion wins $300,000 science prize

Carlo Croce, who has had numerous papers retracted and corrected for issues including image manipulation, has received an award for more than $300,000 for his achievements in personalized medicine. The Dan David Prize, awarded earlier this month by a charitable organization based at Tel Aviv University, bestowed $1 million to three researchers who have “made pioneering … Continue reading Cancer researcher under cloud of suspicion wins $300,000 science prize