Exp Ther Med 19:[Related article:] 597–602, 2020; DOI:
10.3892/etm.2019.8270
Following the publication of this paper, the authors
personally requested that the article be retracted on account of
their subsequent realization that they had used improper
experimental methods, combined with general concerns about the
published data and the fact that a large number of the experimental
findings were found to be irreproducible. Independently of the
authors’ request, it was drawn to the Editor’s attention by a
concerned reader that the immunohistochemical data shown in the
various data panels in Fig. 1 on p. 599 were overlapping, such that
data which had been included in the figure to represent different
experimental conditions may have been derived from the same
original source(s). In addition, control western blotting data
shown in Fig. 3 on p. 600 were strikingly similar to data appearing
in different form in other articles written by different authors at
different research institutes, which had either already been
published or were under consideration for publication at around the
same time.
Owing to the fact that contentious data in the above
article had already been published prior to its submission to
Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine, and also based on an
overall lack of confidence in the presented data, the Editor has
accepted the request of the authors to retract this paper from the
Journal. The Editor apologizes to the readership for any
inconvenience caused.
