There was a curious retraction published online last month in Physica Scripta, an Institute of Physics journal. The notice, for “Response of Cu 0.5 (Tl 0.5-y Hg y)Ba 2 Ca 3 Zn 2 Cu 2 O 12-δ (y =0, 0.15, 0.25 and 0.35) superconductors in electric and magnetic fields,” reads as follows: Continue reading Physics paper retracted “on ethical grounds” — aka the data had already been published
Angiogenesis retracts two papers, cites image manipulation in eight, as PI blames unethical students
The journal Angiogenesis is retracting two articles by a group of researchers in India whom it accuses of using manipulated images in six other publications as well.
According to the retraction notice for one of the papers, “Gold nanoparticles inhibit vascular endothelial growth factor-induced angiogenesis and vascular permeability via Src
dependent pathway in retinal endothelial cells” (we’ve annotated with links and citation data): Continue reading Angiogenesis retracts two papers, cites image manipulation in eight, as PI blames unethical students
After Luxembourg firing, U. Eastern Finland reportedly looking into Carlberg, too
The news isn’t getting any better for Carsten Carlberg. Earlier this month, Carlberg received a pink slip from the University of Luxembourg in the wake of a data fraud scandal involving a former student named Tatjana Degenhardt. As we wrote last November, journals retracted two of Carlberg’s papers after Degenhardt was found to have fabricated data. Although Degenhardt worked at the University of Kuopio (now the University of Eastern Finland), and Carlberg was not accused of wrongdoing, officials in Luxembourg decided that the mess threatened the public image of their fledgling institution and fired him.
We’d assumed that the University of Eastern Finland considered the matter finished, and that what happened in the Grand Duchy would stay in the Grand Duchy. But we were wrong. Continue reading After Luxembourg firing, U. Eastern Finland reportedly looking into Carlberg, too
Why do — and don’t — journal editors retract articles?
Liz Wager, the chair of the Committee on Publication Ethics, knows something about retractions. In April, she and University College London’s Peter Williams published a paper in the Journal of Medical Ethics showing that journal editors’ approaches to retractions aren’t uniform.
The pair is back with another paper, using the same dataset of retractions and published in Science and Engineering Ethics, in which they ask journal editors why they retract — or don’t. The findings — more on them below — informed COPE’s 2009 guidelines on retractions, as did those in the April paper.
From the introduction to the new paper (link added): Continue reading Why do — and don’t — journal editors retract articles?
Should we change our name to Mori Watch? Yet another retraction from cancer researcher
Earlier this week we reported on the latest retraction of an article by Naoki Mori, number 21 in a series. We could have waited a few days and saved ourselves some trouble.
The journal Leukemia Research has retracted a 2006 paper by Mori, titled “Curcumin suppresses constitutive activation of AP-1 by downregulation of JunD protein in HTLV-1-infected T-cell lines.” From the notice, which is behind a paywall: Continue reading Should we change our name to Mori Watch? Yet another retraction from cancer researcher
Sebastiani group retracts genetics of aging study from Science
When a group of researchers last year claimed to have found a “genetic signature” to identify people likely to live to 100, they were questioned immediately. Now they’ve retracted the controversial paper — but continue to stand behind their assertion.
The paper had been the subject of an “Expression of Concern” in November. The retraction notice in this week’s Science: Continue reading Sebastiani group retracts genetics of aging study from Science
Another for Mori: 1999 Infection and Immunity paper pulled
When we first wrote about Naoki Mori last December, one question we had was why Infection and Immunity, the journal that got the ball rolling in this case, wasn’t retracting a 1999 article by the serial manipulator. Well, it has.
The August issue of the journal, a publication of the American Society of Microbiology — which levied a 10-year ban on Mori for his misdeeds — contains the following retraction notice: Continue reading Another for Mori: 1999 Infection and Immunity paper pulled
Marc Hauser resigns from Harvard
Marc Hauser, the Harvard psychology professor who retracted a paper last year following a university investigation, has resigned his post. As the Boston Globe’s Carolyn Johnson, who broke the original Hauser retraction story, reports: Continue reading Marc Hauser resigns from Harvard
Carsten Carlberg out at University of Luxembourg
The University of Luxembourg has fired researcher Carsten Carlberg after concluding that his name was a drag on the institution.
Here’s an English translation of an article about the firing, which many readers were kind enough to forward to us: Continue reading Carsten Carlberg out at University of Luxembourg
Cryptic “legal issues” lead to retraction of paper about potential Novartis alcohol abuse drug
Readers of this blog by now know that if there’s one thing that really gets us going, it’s obfuscation. So it shouldn’t be surprising that the following retraction notice from the journal Psychopharmacology, made us particularly batty:
This paper has been retracted by the author because of legal issues.
The notice refers to “Selective activation of the metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 7 “mGluR7” attenuates acquisition, expression, and reinstatement of ethanol place preference,” was published online in late June by Amine Bahi under the heading “Original Investigation.”
Bahi is in the department of anatomy at United Arab Emirates University. He has also held positions at Yale and the University of Fribourg in Switzerland. Among his publications is one that involved a collaborator from Novartis (more on that in a moment). Continue reading Cryptic “legal issues” lead to retraction of paper about potential Novartis alcohol abuse drug