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The Editor has retracted this Article at the authors’ request. Following concerns from a reader, the authors initiated an internal investigation. After comparing the laboratory record and the figures, it was concluded that:
The data in Fig. 3c did not originate from three biological replicates as claimed in the legend;
In Figs. 3c and 5f, multiple lanes could not be matched back to the original raw data in the laboratory records;
The GAPDH bands in Figs. 3c, 5f and 6e could not be matched with raw data;
The LC-3B image in Fig. 5f was duplicated and rotated 180 degrees in Fig. 6e to represent p-AMPK (T172);
In Fig. 7d, the 4X and 10X images did not originate from the same samples;
In Fig. 7d, the 10X images of Mtb H37Rv + Ornithine and Mtb H37Rv + Imidazole contain overlap.
Further data similarities have been identified in Figs. 2j and S1, as well as within Figs. S5, S10, S11 and S16. In light of these issues, the authors have requested to retract this Article.
Ramya Sivangala Thandi has not responded to any correspondence from the editor or publisher about this retraction. All other authors agree to this retraction.
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Authors and Affiliations
Department of Pulmonary Immunology, Center for Biomedical Research, University of Texas Health Center, Tyler, TX, 75708, USA
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Sivangala Thandi, R., Radhakrishnan, R.K., Tripathi, D. et al. Retraction Note: Ornithine-A urea cycle metabolite enhances autophagy and controls Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.
Nat Commun13, 6159 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33608-y
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Melissa Martin
Serious concerns are raised regarding lead authors, Dr. Ramakrishna Vankayalapati and Deepak Tripathi engaged in research misconduct by falsifying and/or fabricating data in multiple published papers, submitted manuscripts and possibly in grant applications submitted to PHS funds. The lead authors must request that the multiple following papers be retracted. Further, lead authors are knowingly and recklessly engaged in BSL3 violation exposing the public to pathogenic TB bacteria and allegedly violating UT systems nepotism laws.
1) Indeed we have a serious concern regarding flow cytometric analysis in this published article. The data presented here in Fig2B has been tampered with. Two images in figure 2 appear to overlap in several data points, but are described differently. Deepak Tripathi knowingly, intentionally and/or recklessly falsified flow cytometry imagen by reusing and relabelling the same images to represent different experimental conditions-control and diabetic mice. Key issue is some dots are deliberately removed possibly by photoshopping, thus reducing the possibility that this arose due to a simple copy and paste error. The lead authors regularly feature on pubpeer for several papers.There are 9 entries by this group on pubpeer. https://pubpeer.com/publica... https://pubpeer.com/search?...
2) After publication of this article, questions about the scientific integrity of the article content are brought to the publisher and editors attention. This paper contains a synthetic figure, Figure 7 with Thra1 pv/+ mice on c57bl/6 background never existed in the laboratory of Dr. Ramakrishna Vankayalapati. This paper violates academic integrity. JCI Insights editorial board is requested to launch an investigation. https://insight.jci.org/art...
3) After publication, the article was questioned on pubpeer. The flow data presented in supplemental figure 7A appear to share some data points, not all points thus reducing the possibility of copy and paste error. The panels are duplicated and presented as something else. https://pubpeer.com/publica...
4) After publication, concerns are raised about some of the images shown in figure 5. These are that for Figure 5 NKp46 and DNAM-1 flow cytometry plots, there appears to be overlap raising doubts about the integrity of data and the reliability of the published results. https://pubpeer.com/publica...
5) After publication, concerns were expressed about figure 2A regarding data duplication errors. https://pubpeer.com/publica...
6) Concerns are raised about the scientific integrity of this submitted manuscript. In June/July 2022, falsified data contained in paper communicated to Nature metabolism by Vankayalapati lab/Deepak Tripathi lab. In fig 6a, DAPI channel panel (nuclei) were psuedocolored and presented as D4GDI treatment panel. (see attached). This is clear evidence of fraud. Rajesh Radhakrishnan and Deepak Tripathi committed this. the confocal microscopy in the institute only has 4 channels including DAPI (how did they obtain the other additional channel?) gains too altered in images. Manuscript rejected by Nature metabolism, and submitted elsewhere.
This is an egregious misconduct of science and abuse of the scientific publishing system. The lead authors must be debarred for 5-10 years from participating in scientific research. Further, concerns are raised that lead authors may have received grant money due to falsified results included in grant applications submitted to PHS funds.
B) BSL3 Biosafety Violation I am curious to know how Dr's Ramakrishna Vankayalapati, Deepak Tripathi and Tanmoy Mukherjee performed handling of infectious live bsl3 h37rv TB bacteria or sorted cells from h37rv infected mice using sony sorter kept on bench in BL1 lab (see attached data presented by Tanmoy Mukherjee in lab meeting-sorting of cells from TB infected mice). Who approved these protocols of gross biosafety violation? Is this recommended and approved by CDC guidelines? Is this work involving BL3 violation communicated to journal or NIH for funding? Tanmoy Mukherjee, Deepak Tripathi-Everyone were cognizant about you generating falsified mouse mortality data in TB project and routinely falsifying data. This research misconduct was swept under the carpet.
C) Violation of University of Texas System nepotism laws
i) spouse of Dr. Vankayalapati works on paper under Dr. Anna Kurdowska (biosafety and ethics committee chair)
ii) son (with doubtful qualifications) of Dr. Vankayalapati works on paper under Dr. Torry Tucker (Associate Dean of institute).
Concerns are raised about Dr. Tucker knowingly and recklessly bending UT systems nepotism laws to aid corruption by lead author, Dr. Vankayalapati.
However, both work in Vankayalapati lab violating university nepotism laws.
The institute supervisors are engaged in ceaseless attempts of cover up and fake investigations over the past two years, questioning credibility of biosafety and ethics committee's response to research misconduct. Further, institute supervisors along with alleged lead author Dr. Ramakrishana Vankayalapti had been promptly terminating people who raised the concerns for Vankayalapati lab research misconduct, leading to several members of the Pulmonary Immunology department losing their jobs. They were forced to quit for raising their voice against the Vankayalapati lab research scam. All Pulmonary Immunology members that left in the past two years must be contacted to shed light on the research scam by Vanakayalapti lab.
Data fabrication and corruption, as occurring in UT Tyler research laboratory over a decade, and further indifference and inaction by institute supervisors do not serve the best interests of the nation. Indeed, this sham science by Dr. Vankayalapati and co is ruining science, and these investigators are committing a serious breach of scientific honesty and integrity.
Melissa Martin
Serious concerns are raised regarding lead authors, Dr. Ramakrishna Vankayalapati and Deepak Tripathi engaged in research misconduct by falsifying and/or fabricating data in multiple published papers, submitted manuscripts and possibly in grant applications submitted to PHS funds. The lead authors must request that the multiple following papers be retracted. Further, lead authors are knowingly and recklessly engaged in BSL3 violation exposing the public to pathogenic TB bacteria and allegedly violating UT systems nepotism laws.
1) Indeed we have a serious concern regarding flow cytometric analysis in this published article.
The data presented here in Fig2B has been tampered with. Two images in figure 2 appear to overlap in several data points, but are described differently. Deepak Tripathi knowingly, intentionally and/or recklessly falsified flow cytometry imagen by reusing and relabelling the same images to represent different experimental conditions-control and diabetic mice. Key issue is some dots are deliberately removed possibly by photoshopping, thus reducing the possibility that this arose due to a simple copy and paste error. The lead authors regularly feature on pubpeer for several papers.There are 9 entries by this group on pubpeer. https://pubpeer.com/publica...
https://pubpeer.com/search?...
2) After publication of this article, questions about the scientific integrity of the article content are brought to the publisher and editors attention. This paper contains a synthetic figure, Figure 7 with Thra1 pv/+ mice on c57bl/6 background never existed in the laboratory of Dr. Ramakrishna Vankayalapati. This paper violates academic integrity. JCI Insights editorial board is requested to launch an investigation. https://insight.jci.org/art...
3) After publication, the article was questioned on pubpeer. The flow data presented in supplemental figure 7A appear to share some data points, not all points thus reducing the possibility of copy and paste error. The panels are duplicated and presented as something else.
https://pubpeer.com/publica...
4) After publication, concerns are raised about some of the images shown in figure 5. These are that for Figure 5 NKp46 and DNAM-1 flow cytometry plots, there appears to be overlap raising doubts about the integrity of data and the reliability of the published results.
https://pubpeer.com/publica...
5) After publication, concerns were expressed about figure 2A regarding data duplication errors.
https://pubpeer.com/publica...
6) Concerns are raised about the scientific integrity of this submitted manuscript.
In June/July 2022, falsified data contained in paper communicated to Nature metabolism by Vankayalapati lab/Deepak Tripathi lab. In fig 6a, DAPI channel panel (nuclei) were psuedocolored and presented as D4GDI treatment panel. (see attached). This is clear evidence of fraud. Rajesh Radhakrishnan and Deepak Tripathi committed this. the confocal microscopy in the institute only has 4 channels including DAPI (how did they obtain the other additional channel?) gains too altered in images. Manuscript rejected by Nature metabolism, and submitted elsewhere.
This is an egregious misconduct of science and abuse of the scientific publishing system. The lead authors must be debarred for 5-10 years from participating in scientific research. Further, concerns are raised that lead authors may have received grant money due to falsified results included in grant applications submitted to PHS funds.
B) BSL3 Biosafety Violation
I am curious to know how Dr's Ramakrishna Vankayalapati, Deepak Tripathi and Tanmoy Mukherjee performed handling of infectious live bsl3 h37rv TB bacteria or sorted cells from h37rv infected mice using sony sorter kept on bench in BL1 lab (see attached data presented by Tanmoy Mukherjee in lab meeting-sorting of cells from TB infected mice). Who approved these protocols of gross biosafety violation? Is this recommended and approved by CDC guidelines? Is this work involving BL3 violation communicated to journal or NIH for funding? Tanmoy Mukherjee, Deepak Tripathi-Everyone were cognizant about you generating falsified mouse mortality data in TB project and routinely falsifying data. This research misconduct was swept under the carpet.
C) Violation of University of Texas System nepotism laws
i) spouse of Dr. Vankayalapati works on paper under Dr. Anna Kurdowska (biosafety and ethics committee chair)
ii) son (with doubtful qualifications) of Dr. Vankayalapati works on paper under Dr. Torry Tucker (Associate Dean of institute).
Concerns are raised about Dr. Tucker knowingly and recklessly bending UT systems nepotism laws to aid corruption by lead author, Dr. Vankayalapati.
However, both work in Vankayalapati lab violating university nepotism laws.
The institute supervisors are engaged in ceaseless attempts of cover up and fake investigations over the past two years, questioning credibility of biosafety and ethics committee's response to research misconduct. Further, institute supervisors along with alleged lead author Dr. Ramakrishana Vankayalapti had been promptly terminating people who raised the concerns for Vankayalapati lab research misconduct, leading to several members of the Pulmonary Immunology department losing their jobs. They were forced to quit for raising their voice against the Vankayalapati lab research scam. All Pulmonary Immunology members that left in the past two years must be contacted to shed light on the research scam by Vanakayalapti lab.
Data fabrication and corruption, as occurring in UT Tyler research laboratory over a decade, and further indifference and inaction by institute supervisors do not serve the best interests of the nation. Indeed, this sham science by Dr. Vankayalapati and co is ruining science, and these investigators are committing a serious breach of scientific honesty and integrity.