Notice2022-27316
Findings of Research Misconduct
Primary source
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Published
December 16, 2022
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services Department
Abstract
Findings of research misconduct have been made against Alice C. Chang, Ph.D. (formerly named Chun-Ju Chang) (Respondent), who was an Associate Professor of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue University (PU). Respondent engaged in research misconduct in research supported by U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) funds, specifically National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), grants P30 CA023168 and R37 CA215087. The administrative actions, including debarment for a period of ten (10) years, were implemented beginning on December 7, 2022, and are detailed below.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 241 (Friday, December 16, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 241 (Friday, December 16, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77128-77129]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-27316]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Office of the Secretary
Findings of Research Misconduct
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HHS.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: Findings of research misconduct have been made against Alice
C. Chang, Ph.D. (formerly named Chun-Ju Chang) (Respondent), who was an
Associate Professor of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Veterinary
Medicine, Purdue University (PU). Respondent engaged in research
misconduct in research supported by U.S. Public Health Service (PHS)
funds, specifically National Cancer Institute (NCI), National
Institutes of Health (NIH), grants P30 CA023168 and R37 CA215087. The
administrative actions, including debarment for a period of ten (10)
years, were implemented beginning on December 7, 2022, and are detailed
below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wanda K. Jones, Dr.P.H., Acting
Director, Office of Research Integrity, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite
240, Rockville, MD 20852, (240) 453-8200.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby given that the Office of
Research Integrity (ORI) has taken final action in the following case:
Alice C. Chang, Ph.D., Purdue University: Based on the report of an
investigation conducted by PU and additional analysis conducted by ORI
in its oversight review, ORI found that Dr. Alice C. Chang (formerly
named Chun-Ju Chang), former Associate Professor of Basic Medical
Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, PU, engaged in research
misconduct in research supported by U.S. Public Health Service (PHS)
funds, specifically National Cancer Institute (NCI), National
Institutes of Health (NIH), grants P30 CA023168 and R37 CA215087.
ORI found that Respondent engaged in research misconduct by
knowingly, intentionally, or recklessly falsifying and/or fabricating
data included in the following sixteen (16) grant applications
submitted for PHS funds:
<bullet> R21 CA191797-01, ``Targeting miR-200c for early detection
of aggressive breast cancer,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 02/17/2014.
<bullet> R21 CA194474-01, ``The role of miRNA regulated-cell
polarity machinery in breast cancer stem cell fate decision,''
submitted to NCI, NIH, on 06/19/2014.
<bullet> R03 CA198606-01, ``Targeting cell polarity machinery to
exhaust breast cancer stem cell pool,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 10/
28/2014 (funded).
<bullet> R01 CA205940-01, ``Epigenetic regulation governing ATRA-
mediated cellular programming,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 06/04/2015.
<bullet> R01 CA208325-01, ``Epigenetic mechanism underlying
retinoic acid resistance in breast cancer stem cells,'' submitted to
NCI, NIH, on 10/05/2015.
<bullet> R01 CA208325-01A1, ``Epigenetic mechanism underlying
retinoic acid resistance in tumor stem cells,'' submitted to NCI, NIH,
on 11/07/2016.
<bullet> R21 CA215908-01, ``Targeting EMT-induced mitochondrial
heterogeneity in breast cancer,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 06/24/2016.
<bullet> R01 CA211063-01, ``The role of mitochondrial regulation in
directing the cancer stem cell fate,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 01/28/
2016.
<bullet> R01 CA215087-01, ``Targeting metformin-directed stem cell
fate in triple negative breast cancer,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 06/
03/2016.
<bullet> R37 CA215087-01A1, ``Targeting metformin-directed stem
cell fate in triple negative breast cancer,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on
03/06/2017 (funded).
<bullet> R01 CA226951-01, ``(PQ11) Role of DHA in directing luminal
differentiation and therapy response in triple-negative breast
cancer,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 06/22/2017.
<bullet> R01 CA231940-01, ``Regulation of Tet2 in programming
mammary stem cell fate,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 10/05/2017.
[[Page 77129]]
<bullet> R01 CA231940-01A1, ``Regulation of Tet2 in programming
mammary stem cell fate,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 06/26/2018.
<bullet> R01 CA233941-01, ``DHA directs epigenetic programming in
triple-negative breast cancer,'' submitted to NCI, NIH, on 02/05/2018.
<bullet> R01 GM121775-01, ``The role of Tet2 regulation in
directing mammary stem cell fate,'' submitted to the National Institute
of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), NIH, on 02/05/2016.
<bullet> R35 GM124972-01, ``Novel role of microRNA in directing
stem cell fate decision,'' submitted to NIGMS, NIH, on 11/04/2016.
Specifically, ORI found that Respondent knowingly, intentionally,
or recklessly falsified and/or fabricated data from the same mouse
models or cell lines by reusing the data, with or without manipulation,
to represent unrelated experiments from different mouse models or cell
lines with different treatments in three hundred eighty-four (384)
figure panels in sixteen (16) grant applications.
In addition, ORI found that Respondent engaged in research
misconduct by knowingly, intentionally, or recklessly falsifying and/or
fabricating data included in two (2) PHS-supported published papers.
Respondent neither admits nor denies ORI's findings with respect to the
two (2) published papers:
<bullet> Chang CC, Wu MJ, Yang JY, Camarillo IG, Chang CJ. Leptin-
STAT3-G9a signaling promotes obesity-mediated breast cancer
progression. Cancer Res. 2015 Jun 1;75(11):2375-86. doi: 10.1158/0008-
5472.CAN-14-3076.
<bullet> Wu MJ, Kim MR, Chen YS, Yang JY, Chang CJ. Retinoic acid
directs breast cancer cell state changes through regulation of TET2-
PKC[zeta] pathway. Oncogene 2017 Jun 1;36(22):3193-206. doi: 10.1038/
onc.2016.467.
Specifically, ORI found that Respondent intentionally, knowingly,
or recklessly falsified and/or fabricated:
<bullet> confocal image data for generation, differentiation, and
drug sensitivity of cancer stem cells (CSC) in mouse models and cell
lines by reusing the data, with or without manipulation, and relabeling
them to represent different experiments in fifty-four (54) figure
panels included in fifteen (15) grant applications;
<bullet> Western blot and co-IP blot images for different protein
expression in different mouse models and cell lines by reusing the
images, with or without manipulation, and relabeling them to represent
different experiments in eighty-one (81) figure panels in thirteen (13)
grant applications;
<bullet> figures, charts, and graphs reporting gene expression
related results for the global or tissue-related gene expression in
mouse models and cell lines with drug treatments by reusing them, with
or without manipulation, and relabeling them to represent different
experiments in one hundred nineteen (119) figure panels in fifteen (15)
grant applications and two (2) published papers;
<bullet> figures, charts, and graphs about cellular experiment
related results for different mouse models and cell lines by reusing
them, with or without manipulation, and relabeling them to represent
different experiments in forty-two (42) figure panels in thirteen (13)
grant applications;
<bullet> photomicrographs for different results from different
mouse models and cell lines by reusing them, with or without
manipulation, and relabeling them to represent different experiments in
eighty-five (85) figure panels in fifteen (15) grant applications;
<bullet> CSC frequency (xenograft tumor formation) data reporting
different results from either mouse models or cell lines by reusing and
relabeling the same data to represent different experiments in three
(3) figure panels in three (3) grant applications.
Dr. Chang entered into a Voluntary Exclusion Agreement (Agreement)
and voluntarily agreed to the following:
(1) Respondent will exclude herself voluntarily for a period of ten
(10) years beginning on December 7, 2022 (the ``Exclusion Period'')
from any contracting or subcontracting with any agency of the United
States Government and from eligibility for or involvement in
nonprocurement or procurement transactions referred to as ``covered
transactions'' in 2 CFR parts 180 and 376 (collectively the ``Debarment
Regulations'').
(2) During the Exclusion Period, Respondent will exclude herself
voluntarily from serving in any advisory or consultant capacity to PHS
including, but not limited to, service on any PHS advisory committee,
board, and/or peer review committee.
(3) Respondent will request that the following papers be corrected:
<bullet> Cancer Res. 2015 Jun 1; 75(11):2375-86.
<bullet> Oncogene 2017 Jun 1; 36(22):3193-206.
Respondent will copy ORI and the Research Integrity Officer at PU
on the correspondence with the journal(s).
Dated: December 13, 2022.
Wanda K. Jones,
Acting Director, Office of Research Integrity, Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Health.
[FR Doc. 2022-27316 Filed 12-15-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-31-P
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