Search Results for: images

Science retracts paper co-authored by high-profile scientist and former Dutch minister

Science has retracted a 13-year-old paper, five years after data sleuth Elisabeth Bik first raised questions about issues with the images in the article.  The paper, “Secondary siRNAs result from unprimed RNA synthesis and form a distinct class,” appeared in 2007 and was written by a group of researchers in the Netherlands and Switzerland. The … Continue reading Science retracts paper co-authored by high-profile scientist and former Dutch minister

Two and a half years after findings of misconduct, stem cell researchers up to 19 retractions

A group of researchers at Aichi Gakuin University in Nagoya, Japan, continues to lose papers for duplication of images and text from their previous work, and is now up to 19 retractions. Please see an update on this post. Here’s a typical notice, for “Bone morphogenetic protein-induced cell differentiation involves Atg7 and Wnt16 sequentially in … Continue reading Two and a half years after findings of misconduct, stem cell researchers up to 19 retractions

Researchers tried to correct a figure after questions on PubPeer. Then the real trouble started.

Pro tip to would-be fraudsters: If you’re going to submit new figures to support your claims, make sure they’re not obviously fake.  That’s a lesson a group of cancer researchers learned the hard way for their 2016 article in DNA and Cell Biology titled “miR-106a-5p suppresses the proliferation, migration, and invasion of osteosarcoma cells by … Continue reading Researchers tried to correct a figure after questions on PubPeer. Then the real trouble started.

Nanoscience researcher loses four papers for image manipulation, forged authors

Journals published by the Royal Society of Chemistry have retracted four articles by a researcher in China for a range of misconduct, including manipulation of images, fabrication of authors and more.  The papers were written by Rijun Gui, of Qingdao University and formerly of the School of Chemistry and Molecules Engineering at East China University … Continue reading Nanoscience researcher loses four papers for image manipulation, forged authors

Following Retraction Watch and PubPeer posts, journal upgrades correction to a retraction

A year ago, we posted on the case of a paper in the Journal of Cell Science in which editors: allowed a group of researchers in Italy to correct a 2016 paper with questionable images after a faculty member in their institution — and a frequent co-author of the group’s — said his investigation found … Continue reading Following Retraction Watch and PubPeer posts, journal upgrades correction to a retraction

Science retracts paper as authors blame pandemic for image issues

Science has retracted a paper it published in July by a group of authors in China over concerns about two images in the article — problems the researchers have attributed to chaos in their group due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper, “Proton transport enabled by a field-induced metallic state in a semiconductor heterostructure,” was … Continue reading Science retracts paper as authors blame pandemic for image issues

Journal retracts plant paper because authors plagiarized from a garden site — and several papers

A Springer Nature journal has retracted a paper it published in July after learning that the authors manipulated and plagiarized images galore.  The paper, “Novel green synthesis and antioxidant, cytotoxicity, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, anticholinergics, and wound healing properties of cobalt nanoparticles containing Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam leaves extract,” appeared in Scientific Reports. Its authors were affiliated with … Continue reading Journal retracts plant paper because authors plagiarized from a garden site — and several papers

Almond, no joy: Plant geneticist in Iran up to at least six retractions

A plant geneticist in Iran is up to at least six retractions for misuse of figures and other material from previously published papers.  The newest retraction involves a 2017 paper in Scientific Reports, a Springer Nature publication, titled “Comparison of traditional and new generation DNA markers declares high genetic diversity and differentiated population structure of … Continue reading Almond, no joy: Plant geneticist in Iran up to at least six retractions

Author says ‘misguided efforts for the ideal western blot led to the withdrawal of these studies’

The Journal of Biological Chemistry has retracted two papers by a group from the University of Toronto over what the leader of the research says were “misguided efforts” by a co-author to make the perfect Western blot.  The retractions are among a batch of seven recent removals by the journal for image issues, some of … Continue reading Author says ‘misguided efforts for the ideal western blot led to the withdrawal of these studies’

Major heart journal retracts two papers from Oxford group for misconduct

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) has retracted two 2018 papers out of the University of Oxford because of misconduct. Both retraction notices blame first author Alexander Liu, a student in the lab at the time, who disputes the retractions. The studies were part of a larger effort to improve heart imaging … Continue reading Major heart journal retracts two papers from Oxford group for misconduct