BOSTON, July 17 — On the ground at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a team of researchers has lost a published paper after an investigation by the hospital and Harvard Medical School found image duplication.
The study, which appeared in the September 2019 edition of the *Journal of Experimental Medicine*, described a potential treatment for tumors caused by tuberous sclerosis complex, a rare genetic disorder. Several of the article’s 12 authors work within Brigham and Women’s Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine division.
Corresponding author David Kwiatkowski is an oncologist at both Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and a professor at Harvard Medical School. The research drew partial funding from two grants from the U.S. Department of Defense and a National Institutes of Health grant awarded to Kwiatkowski.
According to the retraction notice, dated June 12, the authors themselves requested the retraction. That request followed a joint investigation by the two institutions. Four images in the paper were found to have been duplicated.
By nightfall, the retraction stands as a formal correction to the scientific record. The paper is no longer available in the *Journal of Experimental Medicine*.
What the study claimed
The September 2019 paper described a treatment approach for tumors caused by tuberous sclerosis complex. The disorder leads to non-cancerous growths in multiple organs, including the lungs, brain, and kidneys. The researchers were exploring a pathway that could shrink those tumors.
Kwiatkowski, the senior author, has a long track record in tuberous sclerosis research. His laboratory at Brigham and Women’s and Harvard Medical School has been a central hub for studying the condition. The NIH grant that helped fund this work was awarded to him specifically.
The investigation and its findings
The joint investigation by Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School uncovered four duplicated images within the paper. The authors then moved to retract the study.
The retraction notice does not specify which figures were duplicated or whether the duplication was intentional. It simply states that the images were found to have been duplicated and that the authors requested the retraction.
The *Journal of Experimental Medicine* has now removed the paper from its active archives.
What comes next
The retraction leaves a gap in the published literature on tuberous sclerosis complex treatments. Researchers in the field will need to look to other studies for data on this particular therapeutic approach.
Kwiatkowski remains at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. His lab continues to receive funding for other projects.
For patients and families affected by tuberous sclerosis complex, the retraction does not change the current standard of care. The treatment described in the paper was not yet in clinical use.
Consult your doctor for medical advice.
Sources
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