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Chinese scientists leave posts after whistle-blower raises alarm over their research
🇨🇳 China /Health & Science

Chinese scientists leave posts after whistle-blower raises alarm over their research

From South China Morning Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • Three senior Chinese scientists have been disciplined by their universities following allegations of research misconduct.
  • The allegations were raised by a prominent blogger, prompting investigations into scientific integrity.
  • Universities have removed the scientists from their leadership positions amid the controversy.

A wave of disciplinary actions has hit prominent Chinese universities after a high-profile blogger raised serious concerns about the research integrity of several senior scientists. The universities have responded by removing implicated academics from their posts, signaling a commitment to addressing scientific misconduct.

Nankai University in Tianjin announced the removal of Chen Quan as dean of its College of Life Sciences. The university stated that Chen, as a corresponding author, failed to adequately oversee the quality and authenticity of experimental data in a 2024 paper published in Nature Cancer.

Similarly, Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou reported that Kang Tiebang was removed as deputy director of its State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China. Kuang Dongming also lost his position as associate dean of the School of Life Sciences. The university cited data and image errors in a 2020 paper in Nature Cell Biology for which Kang was the corresponding author. Kuang faced accusations of similar misconduct related to papers in Nature Cell Biology, Science Advances, and Cell.

DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by South China Morning Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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