Int J Mol Med 36: [Related article:] 685-697, 2015; DOI:
10.3892/ijmm.2015.2292
Following the publication of the above paper, it was
drawn to the Editor's attention by a concerned reader that the
α-tubulin protein bands shown in Fig. 2A on p. 689 were strikingly
similar to data appearing in different form in the following paper:
Tian R, Li Y and Gao M: Shikonin causes cell-cycle arrest and
induces apoptosis by regulating the EGFR-NF-κB signalling pathway
in human epidermoid carcinoma A431 cells. Biosci Rep 35: e00189,
2015. Moreover, there were a pair of overlapping data panels shown
in the cell invasion and migration assay data in Fig. 5B on p. 692,
one identified instance of western blot data being shared between
Figs. 3D and 4F, and a pair of overlapping data panels in Fig. 5D,
such that all these data, which were intended to have shown the
results from differently performed experiments, may have been
derived from a smaller number of original sources.
Owing to the fact that the contentious data in the
above article were already under consideration for publication
prior to its submission to International Journal of Molecular
Medicine and an overall lack of confidence in the presented
data, the Editor has decided that this paper should be retracted
from the Journal. The authors were asked for an explanation to
account for these concerns, but the Editorial Office did not
receive a satisfactory reply. The Editor apologizes to the
readership for any inconvenience caused.
