Matsubara lab in Japan: Anything goes? (part 3)

Matsubara lab in Japan: Breathtaking reuse of Western and Northern blot bands (part 1)
Matsubara lab in Japan: Breathtaking reuse of histological images and fragments (part 2)

Article 10
Mano A, Tatsumi T, Shiraishi J, Keira N, Nomura T, Takeda M, Nishikawa S, Yamanaka S, Matoba S, Kobara M, Tanaka H, Shirayama T, Takamatsu T, Nozawa Y, Matsubara H.
Aldosterone directly induces myocyte apoptosis through calcineurin-dependent pathways.
Circulation. 2004 Jul 20;110(3):317-23. Epub 2004 Jul 12.
Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University School of Medicine, Japan.

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111101/_11_

Overlapping micrograph images obtained by fluorescein microscopy despite distinct experimental conditions?

Apoptotic cells were identified on the basis of distinctive condensed or fragmented nuclear morphology, and apoptotic cell counts were expressed as a percentage of the total number of nuclei counted and presented as bar charts including statistical analyses (not shown here). Should we trust these data? The preponderance of evidence available to the reader may favour the conclusion that an official investigation committee should verify the original data.

Article 11
Irie H, Tatsumi T, Takamiya M, Zen K, Takahashi T, Azuma A, Tateishi K, Nomura T, Hayashi H, Nakajima N, Okigaki M, Matsubara H.
Carbon dioxide-rich water bathing enhances collateral blood flow in ischemic hindlimb via mobilization of endothelial progenitor cells and activation of NO-cGMP system.
Circulation. 2005 Mar 29;111(12):1523-9.
Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kamigyo-Ku, Kyoto, Japan.

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111030/_5_

Densities of VEGF mRNA signals were measured
by densitometry and normalized relative to those of GAPDH
mRNA signals. However, GAPDH signals seem to be irregular since identical bands reflect different experimental conditions. Under these conditions, however, densitometric values may be false.

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111029/_9_

Endothelial cells in muscle tissue were stained with anti-factor VIII antibody, followed by incubation with TRIC-conjugated secondary antisera. The ‘CO2 water’ image appears to contain at least two identical image fragments which may be unlikely to occur by coincidence.
„If there is any possibility that the manipulation may be fraudulent, the journal editor should be alerted, and the original data should be obtained from the authors for comparison to the prepared figure.“ (from the Counsil of Science Editors)

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111030/_10_

„Alkaline phosphatase staining turns viable endothelial cells blue“. Have these immunohistological images been created by duplicating and reassembling image fragments. In such a case, individual components could be combined like the building blocks from a kit.
If this were the case here, we have to ask whether this image has been fabricated from scratch?

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111023/2
http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111106/I_SPY_3_Chameleons

We stand in awe.

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111026/_6_

.

The images on the left were derived from nude rats, the images on the right from C57BL/J mice. Apparently, anything goes.

Article 12
Nishikawa S, Tatsumi T, Shiraishi J, Matsunaga S, Takeda M, Mano A, Kobara M, Keira N, Okigaki M, Takahashi T, Matsubara H.
Nicorandil regulates Bcl-2 family proteins and protects cardiac myocytes against hypoxia-induced apoptosis.
J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2006 Apr;40(4):510-9.
Department of Cardiology and Vascular Regenerative Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Kawaramachi-Hirokoji, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan.

http://blog.m3.com/Retraction/20111027/_7_

Fig. 1 Histochemical characterization of apoptotic myocytes. Representative micrographs show myocytes following 7 hours hypoxia with nicorandil with 10 µmol/l ODQ (D), following 7 hours hypoxia pretreated with diazoxide (F), respectively (magnification ×200). Apoptotic cell counts as a percentage of the total number of nuclei counted was illustrated in tables (G–J, not shown here).
These calculations might not be trusted in view of the overlapping images.

Of note, the only coauthor on all 12 articles is Hiroaki Matsubara.

Professor Hiroaki Matsubara is director at the Division of Cardiology and Vascular Regenerative Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine.

The sheer scope of the alleged manipulations in these 12 articles is reminiscent of the research misconduct investigations at Borstel/Germany into the work of Prof. Bulfone-Paus and at NUS/Singapore into the work of Prof. Melendez.

„When questioned about data in a paper, many senior authors feign ignorance and blame the first author or data generator, but I find that disingenuous. If you are the senior author, it is incumbent on you to verify all of the raw data yourself. There is intense pressure to produce, and to produce high-impact results. Sometimes this can lead to a student doing anything to please. If the paper goes out with your name on it, you should be able to verify every single piece of data in it and take responsibility for it.“ (cited from J Clin Invest Editorial: ‘All data are not created equal‘)