Int J Mol Med 58: [Related article:] 200, 2026; DOI:
10.3892/ijmm.2026.5871
Following the publication of the above article, an
interested reader raised several comments on the study that
required clarification on the part of the authors in order to
confirm the reporting of certain of the results, and to make the
paper fully comprehensible. First, in the Materials and methods
section, the single-cell RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) source did not
appear to match the presented groups for the scRNA-seq data that
were obtained from the GSE116222 dataset, specifically using 'three
human UC samples', where three distinct groups, namely the
'Normal', 'Non-inflamed' and 'Inflamed' groups, were shown in
various of the figures (for example, Fig. 1D and Fig. 6K).
Secondly, the description of the Weighted Gene
Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) in the Materials and methods
section did not tally with the findings reported in the Results
section. It was stated in the 'Construction of co-expression
network' subsection of the Methods that WGCNA was performed
'based on the GSE116222 dataset, specifically exploring the
association between FXR and CD133 in intestinal cells'; however,
all the WGCNA results shown (in Figs. 4D and 5A) were based on the
bulk transcriptome dataset GSE87466, not on single-cell data; no
WGCNA output from GSE116222 was presented in the paper.
Thirdly, some confusion between human and mouse data
appeared in the reporting of the experiments in Fig. 1E. The figure
part showed macroscopic photographs of whole large intestines and
spleens labeled 'Control' and 'UC groups', and these images must
have been derived from the DSS-treated mouse model. The figure
legend did not specify that these are mouse data, and the labeling
of the 'UC group' was misleading.
Finally, a typographical error in the reporting of
the human control group sex distribution was contained in the
'Human sample collection and processing' subsection: 'the
control group consisted of 8 men and 2 men' was presumably intended
to have read as '8 men and 2 women'.
The authors have considered these points, and
acknowledge that clarifications of all of them are necessary in the
published paper; therefore, the following changes and edits to the
text are required (all highlighted in bold). First, in the
'Materials and methods' section, in the 'Single-cell RNA
sequencing (scRNA-seq)' subsection, the text which read as
'scRNA-seq data from three human UC samples were downloaded from
the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database…' has now been changed
to 'scRNA-seq data from 9 samples (3 healthy, 3 non-inflamed,
and 3 UC) were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus
(GEO) database…'
In response to the second of the reader's queries,
in the 'Construction of co-expression network' subsection of
the Methods, the text which read: 'In the present study, the
'WGCNA' package in R was employed to construct a co-expression
network based on the GSE116222 dataset, specifically exploring the
association between FXR and CD133 in intestinal cells.', should be
changed to: 'In the present study, the 'WGCNA' package in R was
employed to construct a co-expression network based on the
GSE87466 dataset to identify key gene modules associated with
UC.'
In response to the third query, and to properly
clarify the descriptions of the experiments in the figure legend
for Fig. 1, the text for Fig. 1E should be changed from what was
written to the following: '(E) Representative macroscopic images of
the large intestines and spleens from the Control and DSS
groups.' (i.e., 'UC groups' has been corrected to 'DSS
groups').
Finally, the authors acknowledged that a
typographical error was present in the reporting of the human
control group sex distribution in the 'Human sample collection
and processing' subsection, and the text here should have read
as 'the control group consisted of 8 men and 2 women (mean
age, 46.2±7.5 years).'
The authors thank the reader for drawing these
matters to their attention. They are grateful to the Editor of
International Journal of Molecular Medicine for granting
them the opportunity to publish this corrigendum. Note that the
proposed changes to the text only correct errors in what was
written, or clarify the meaning of the text; the results and
conclusions of the paper are not affected by these changes.
Finally, the authors apologize to the readership for any
inconvenience caused.
