![]() She decided to try a reverse image search on Google, which uses a specific image to drive search results. While we endeavor to complete our investigations as quickly as possible, we do need to ensure that we follow due process.” Springer Nature is a member of the committee on publication ethics (COPE), an advisory body that provides journal editors with core practices and guidance on a variety of topics, including the handling of allegations of misconduct.īik’s investigation did not end with ImageTwin. In an email, Chris Graf, research integrity director at Springer Nature, which publishes Nature Communications said, “We are looking into the paper carefully following an established process and in line with COPE best practice. He added, “At least as presented, all of those manipulations have affected the interpretation of the data.” Rossner added that many of the images appeared to have been altered, most commonly cropped or contrast adjusted. “The images that highlighted as duplicated indeed appear to be duplicated,” said Mike Rossner, an independent biomedical image consultant at Image Data Integrity, who reviewed the allegations related to the 2022 Nature Communications paper. 3 None of the authors of the 2022 Nature Communications paper authored the 2010 PLoS ONE paper, and Shi-Yong Sun, a cancer biologist at Emory University School of Medicine and corresponding author of the 2010 PLoS ONE paper, said that he’s not familiar with Shah’s laboratory, and he doesn’t know the study authors. 2 For example, Bik said that two images labeled as glioblastoma tissue looked identical to higher-resolution images in a 2010 paper published in PLoS ONE on the topic of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. However, while she was cross-referencing images in a paper published in Nature Communications in 2022, she noticed that some of the images looked like they were taken from publications from outside of Shah’s team. Many of the papers that Bik examined appeared to duplicate images from the same paper or reuse an image from one of Shah’s previous publications. ![]() “Most of these are duplicated panels from mice or from cells or tissues." For example, in a 2020 paper published in Scientific Reports, Bik said that two microscopy images looked identical but were used to represent two different treatment conditions. To check for potential image problems, Bik employed the AI-based image analysis tool ImageTwin, which uses proprietary software to compare images to a database of images taken from publicly available scientific articles. Shah declined an interview, but deferred to Paul Anderson, chief academic officer at Mass General Brigham, who said in an emailed statement, “We take very seriously any questions, concerns, or allegations regarding research conducted at our hospitals and undertake a robust and confidential process to assess and respond to any claims that are brought to our attention in accordance with hospital policy and federal regulations.” Shah is listed as the first, second, or corresponding author on 25 of the 29 papers.įollowing Bik’s report, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital opened an official investigation into the claims. She looked into potential research misconduct and claimed to find image reuse or duplication problems across 29 papers, which he published in 21 different journals between 20. Shah uses gene editing approaches to develop cell-based therapeutics for brain cancers.Īccording to Bik, she started her investigation following a tip from someone who was familiar with Shah’s laboratory. In her report, she outlined 59 instances of alleged image duplication or reuse in papers published by Khalid Shah, a neuroscientist at Harvard Medical School and its teaching hospital Brigham and Women’s Hospital. In early February, microbiologist and science integrity consultant Elisabeth Bik released reports from her latest investigation into a suspected case of scientific misconduct. ABOVE: Accusations of alleged image duplication and reuse in papers by a prominent researcher at Harvard Medical School are currently under investigation. Rueden, C., Dietz, C., Horn, M., Schindelin, J., Northan, B., Berthold, M. To add a tool to this list, add the doi: for ![]() The following table lists all citable software packages, plugins, etc.,ĭocumented on the site. ImageJ Ops Rueden, C., Dietz, C., Horn, M., Schindelin, J., Northan, B., Berthold, M. ![]()
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