A genetics journal from a leading scientific publisher has retracted 17 papers from China, in what is believed to be the largest mass retraction of academic research over human rights concerns.
The articles have been published in Molecular Genetics & Genomic Medicine (MGGM), a genetics journal published by the American academic publisher Wiley. The articles were retracted on February 12 following an agreement between the magazine’s editor-in-chief, Suzanne Hart, and the publishing house. During a review process that lasted more than two years, researchers discovered “inconsistencies” between the study and the consent documentation provided by researchers.
The articles by various scientists are all based on research based on DNA samples collected from populations in China. In several cases, the researchers used samples from populations considered vulnerable to exploitation and oppression in China by experts and human rights activists, leading to concerns that they would not be able to freely consent to taking such samples.
Related: Academic article based on Uyghur genetic data, withdrawn due to ethical concerns
Several of the researchers are affiliated with public security authorities in China, a fact that “destroys any notion of free informed consent,” said Yves Moreau, a professor of engineering at the University of Leuven in Belgium who focuses on DNA analysis. Moreau first raised concerns about the papers to Hart, MGGM’s editor-in-chief, in March 2021.
A retracted paper studies the DNA of Tibetans in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, using blood samples taken from 120 individuals. The article stated that “all individuals provided written informed consent” and that the work was approved by the Fudan University ethics committee.
But the retraction notice published Monday said an ethics review “revealed inconsistencies between the consent documentation and the reported research; the documentation was not sufficiently detailed to address the concerns raised.”
Xie Jianhui, the corresponding author of the study, is from the department of forensic medicine at Fudan University in Shanghai. Xie did not respond to a request for comment, but the retraction notice states that Xie and his co-authors disagreed with the retraction.
Several of Xie’s co-authors are affiliated with public security authorities in China, including the Tibetan public security authorities. Tibet is considered one of the most guarded and tightly controlled regions in China. In Human Rights Watch’s latest annual report, the campaign group said authorities are imposing “severe restrictions on freedoms of religion, expression, movement and assembly.”
Another of the withdrawn studies used blood samples from 340 Uyghur individuals in Kashgar, a city in Xinjiang, to study the genetic links between them and Uyghurs from other regions. The scientists said the data would be a source for “forensic DNA and population genetics.”
The retracted articles were all published between 2019 and 2021. In 2021, after Moreau expressed concerns about the articles in MGGM, eight of the magazine’s 25 editors resigned. The magazine’s editor-in-chief, Hart, has remained in her post. Hart and MGGM did not respond to a request for comment.
MGGM is considered by some to be a mid-range genetics publication. It has an impact factor of 2.473, which puts it roughly in the top 40% of journals. It is considered a relatively easy forum for publication, which may have been an attraction for Chinese researchers looking to publish in English-language journals, says David Curtis, professor of genetics at University College London. Curtis resigned as editor-in-chief of Annals of Human Genetics, another Wiley journal, after the publisher vetoed a call to boycott Chinese science over ethical concerns, including those related to DNA collection.
MGGM states that its scope includes human, molecular and medical genetics. It primarily publishes studies on the medical applications of genetics, such as a recent article on genetic disorders associated with hearing loss. The sudden shift to publishing forensic genetics research from China came as other forensic genetics journals became more focused on publishing research based on DNA samples from vulnerable minorities in China, Moreau said. He argues that this may have pushed more controversial research into mid-tier journals such as MGGM, which do not specialize in forensic genetics.
On its information page, MGGM states that it “does not consider studies involving forensic genetic analysis.” That caveat was added in 2023, following an editorial review of the journal’s objectives.
In recent years, there has been increasing attention to research using DNA or other biometric data from individuals in China, especially from vulnerable populations. In 2023, Elsevier, a Dutch academic publisher, retracted an article based on blood and saliva samples from Uyghur and Kazakh people living in Xinjiang, a region in northwest China where there are also widespread reports of human rights abuses.
Wiley’s retractions come days before a Chinese government deadline that requires universities to submit lists of all scientific papers retracted in the past three years. According to an analysis by Nature, nearly 14,000 retraction notices were published last year, three-quarters of which involved a Chinese co-author.
A spokesperson for Wiley said: “We continue to learn from this case, and collaboration with international colleagues is valuable as we develop our policies.
“Investigations involving multiple papers, stakeholders and institutions require significant effort and often involve delays in coordinating and analyzing information between all involved, as well as in translating materials. We realize this will take a significant amount of time, but always aim to act as quickly as possible.”
In recent years, China has surpassed the EU and the US in total research output, and the impact of its research is also overtaking US output.