10 retractions and counting

In an unusually large case of misconduct, an immunology lab at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, has pulled 10 papers so far, with about five more expected, and cancelled a clinical trial after a senior research associate was found guilty of falsifying data.

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"I was shocked when I initially got the letter from Dr. [Larry] Pease" -- linkurl:the head of the lab;http://mayoresearch.mayo.edu/staff/pease_lr.cfm -- "stating the decision to retract all these papers (approximately 15)," linkurl:Lieping Chen,;http://gradimmunology.med.som.jhmi.edu/FacultyDetails.aspx?fid=3 co-author on some of the papers, told The Scientist in an email. "It is very unfortunate when anybody has such an associate in the laboratory," said Chen, based at The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. "It's surprising that a falsification could go on at such an extensive level for so long," added molecular immunologist linkurl:Gordon Freeman;http://www.dfhcc.harvard.edu/membership/profile/member/31/0/ of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. "It's the...