Leading stem cell researchers are accusing some scientists of abusing the peer-review system, writing unreasonable or obstructive reviews and delaying the publication of high quality science.
Two researchers -- Robin Lovell-Badge, who spoke in a personal capacity, and Austin Smith, from the University of Cambridge -- linkurl:told the BBC;http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8490291.stm that sometimes scientists might write negative reviews of the work or request additional and unnecessary experiments in an effort to get their own papers, and those of their friends, published sooner. In an linkurl:open letter;http://eurostemcell.org/commentanalysis/peer-review to the editors of major scientific journals published last year, a group of 14 researchers, including Smith, argue that "papers that are scientifically flawed or comprise only modest technical increments often attract undue profile. At the same time publication of truly original findings may be delayed or rejected." To prevent this sort of corruption, they say, reviews, response to reviews, and associated editorial...
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