Notice2024-11829
Findings of Research Misconduct
Primary source
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Published
May 30, 2024
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services Department
Abstract
Findings of research misconduct have been made against Darrion Nguyen (Respondent), who was formerly a Laboratory Technician, Division of Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). Respondent engaged in research misconduct in research supported by U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) funds, specifically Office of the Director (OD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), grant DP5 OD026428-01 and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), NIH, grant K12 NS098482-01. The questioned research was included in a PHS-funded research project progress report (RPPR), specifically DP5 OD026428-04 submitted to OD, NIH. The administrative actions, including supervision for a period of three (3) years, were implemented beginning on May 14, 2024, and are detailed below.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 105 (Thursday, May 30, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 105 (Thursday, May 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46891-46892]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11829]
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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 Darrion
Nguyen (Respondent), who was formerly a Laboratory Technician, Division
of Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Baylor College
of Medicine (BCM). Respondent engaged in research misconduct in
research supported by U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) funds,
specifically Office of the Director (OD), National Institutes of Health
(NIH), grant DP5 OD026428-01 and National Institute of Neurological
Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), NIH, grant K12 NS098482-01. The
questioned research was included in a PHS-funded research project
progress report (RPPR), specifically DP5 OD026428-04 submitted to OD,
NIH. The administrative actions, including supervision for a period of
three (3) years, were implemented beginning on May 14, 2024, and are
detailed below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sheila Garrity, JD, MPH, MBA,
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:
Darrion Nguyen, Baylor College of Medicine (BCM): Based on the
report of an investigation conducted by BCM and additional analysis
conducted by ORI in its oversight review, ORI found that Mr. Darrion
Nguyen (Respondent), former Laboratory Technician, Division of
Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, BCM, engaged in
research misconduct in research supported by PHS funds, specifically
OD, NIH, grant DP5 OD026428-01 and NINDS, NIH, grant K12 NS098482-01.
The questioned research was included in a PHS-funded RPPR, specifically
DP5 OD026428-04 submitted to OD, NIH.
ORI found that Respondent engaged in research misconduct by
intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly falsifying and/or fabricating
experimental data and results that were included in the following one
(1) RPPR, one (1) presentation, one (1) poster, six (6) research
records, and two (2) figures of a prospective manuscript:
<bullet> DP5 OD026428-04, ``Illuminating GABAergic Signaling in
Neurodevelopmental Disorders,'' submitted to OD, NIH, on July 12, 2021
(hereafter referred to as ``DP5 OD026428-04'').
<bullet> Elucidating the role of EBF3 haploinsufficiency in HADD
syndrome pathogenesis. Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research
Institute Seminar (NRI) Series, January 6, 2020 (hereafter referred to
as ``NRI Seminar 2020'').
<bullet> Elucidating the role of EBF3 haploinsufficiency in 10q26
deletion and HADD syndrome pathogenesis. Poster presentation, Baylor
College of Medicine--Texas Children's Hospital Pediatric Research
Symposium, March 24, 2020 (hereafter referred to as ``Poster 2020'').
<bullet> Research Record ``2019-5-1_Cerebellar PC Dens_P0.xlsx''
(hereafter referred to as ``RR1 2019'').
<bullet> Research Record ``2019-6-27_Cerebellar PC Dens_P0.xlsx''
(hereafter referred to as ``RR2 2019'').
<bullet> Research Record ``2019-5-1_P0 Cerebellum Quants.pzfx''
(hereafter referred to as ``RR3 2019'').
<bullet> Research Record ``2019-5-21_DN-Cohort5 (Analyzed).xlsx''
(hereafter referred to as ``RR4 2019'').
<bullet> Research Record ``2019-8-28_Partition-Cohorts 1, 2, 3, 4,
5, 6.pzfx'' (hereafter referred to as ``RR5 2019'').
<bullet> Research Record ``2019-12-11_Dystonia.xlsx'' (hereafter
referred to as ``RR6 2019'').
<bullet> ``Fig1--GeneratingNullLines.v5.tif'' (hereafter referred
to as ``PM Figure 1'') and ``Fig3--Behavior.v6.png'' (hereafter
referred to as ``PM Figure 3'') in a prospective manuscript with
working title ``Ebf3 haploinsufficiency perturbs cerebellar development
and complex behaviors'' (hereafter referred to as the ``manuscript'').
Specifically, ORI found that Respondent intentionally, knowingly,
or recklessly falsified and/or fabricated:
<bullet> the Purkinje Cell (PC) density measurements in the
cerebellum lobes of newborn (P0) wild-type (WT) and Early B Cell Factor
3 heterozygous (Ebf3<SUP>+/-</SUP>) mice in RR1 2019, RR2 2019, RR3
2019, and Slide 24 of NRI Seminar 2020 by copying and pasting
measurement values collected from the histology sections of the brain
from a single mouse to falsely represent the data measurements as from
the brains of three (3) mice;
<bullet> the measurements of the distance between the anchor points
in the cerebellum lobes of P0 WT and Ebf3<SUP>+/-</SUP> mice in RR1
2019, RR2 2019, and RR3 2019 by copying and pasting measurement values
collected from the histology sections of the brain from a single mouse
to falsely represent the data measurements as from the brains of three
(3) mice;
<bullet> the measurements of phosphorylated Histone 3 (PH3)
positive neurons in the cerebellum lobes of P0 WT and
Ebf3<SUP>+/-</SUP> mice in RR1 2019, RR2 2019, RR3 2019, and Slide 28
of NRI Seminar 2020 by copying and pasting measurement values collected
from the histology sections of the brain from a single mouse to falsely
represent the data measurements as from the brains of three (3) mice;
<bullet> the external granule layer (EGL) thickness measurements in
the cerebellum lobes of P0 WT and Ebf3<SUP>+/-</SUP> mice in RR1 2019,
RR2 2019, and RR3 2019 by copying and pasting measurement values
collected from the histology sections of the brain from a single mouse
to falsely represent the data measurements as from the brains of three
(3) mice;
<bullet> the manual scoring of the social interaction behavior of
Cohort 5 mice in a three-chamber assay in RR4 2019 by copying and
pasting the manually scored social interaction behavior values from
Cohort 4 mice;
<bullet> the interaction data of male mice by inserting fabricated
and/or falsified values for two (2) mice that had not been collected as
part of the experiment in RR5 2019, Slide 44 of NRI Seminar 2020,
Figure F in the ``Motor Incoordination and Altered Social Behavior''
section of Poster 2020, PM Figure 3 of the manuscript, and Figure 6E of
DP5 OD026428-04;
<bullet> the number of mice used in the Western blot analysis for
the expression of Ebf3 protein in Ebf3<SUP>-/-</SUP> mice in PM Figure
1B(iv) of the manuscript, Figure
[[Page 46892]]
4A(iii) of DP5 OD026428-04, Slide 16 of NRI Seminar 2020, and Figure
C(i) of the ``Generation and Characterization of Ebf3Null Alleles''
section of Poster 2020; specifically, Western blot data from three (3)
mice were falsely represented as data from five (5) mice;
<bullet> the hindlimb splay measurements of Ebf3<SUP>+/+</SUP> and
Ebf3<SUP>+/-</SUP> mice in RR6 2019 and Figure 4D(ii) of DP5 OD026428-
04 by changing the severity score of the splay measurements in male and
female mice to falsely show enhanced severity of the dystonia symptoms
in Ebf3<SUP>+/-</SUP> mice;
Respondent entered into a Voluntary Settlement Agreement
(Agreement). Respondent neither admits nor denies ORI's findings of
research misconduct. This settlement is not an admission of liability
on the part of Respondent. Respondent voluntarily agreed to the
following:
(1) Respondent will have his research supervised for a period of
three (3) years beginning on May 14, 2024 (the ``Supervision Period'').
Prior to the submission of an application for PHS support for a
research project on which Respondent's participation is proposed and
prior to Respondent's participation in any capacity in PHS-supported
research, Respondent will submit a plan for supervision of Respondent's
duties to ORI for approval. The supervision plan must be designed to
ensure the integrity of Respondent's research. Respondent will not
participate in any PHS-supported research until such a supervision plan
is approved by ORI. Respondent will comply with the agreed-upon
supervision plan.
(2) The requirements for Respondent's supervision plan are as
follows:
i. A committee of 2-3 senior faculty members at the institution who
are familiar with Respondent's field of research, but not including
Respondent's supervisor or collaborators, will provide oversight and
guidance for a period of three (3) years from the effective date of the
Agreement. The committee will review primary data from Respondent's
laboratory on a quarterly basis and submit a report to ORI at six (6)
month intervals setting forth the committee meeting dates and
Respondent's compliance with appropriate research standards and
confirming the integrity of Respondent's research.
ii. The committee will conduct an advance review of each
application for PHS funds, or report, manuscript, or abstract involving
PHS-supported research in which Respondent is involved. The review will
include a discussion with Respondent of the primary data represented in
those documents and will include a certification to ORI that the data
presented in the proposed application, report, manuscript, or abstract
are supported by the research record.
(3) During the Supervision Period, Respondent will ensure that any
institution employing him submits, in conjunction with each application
for PHS funds, or report, manuscript, or abstract involving PHS-
supported research in which Respondent is involved, a certification to
ORI that the data provided by Respondent are based on actual
experiments or are otherwise legitimately derived and that the data,
procedures, and methodology are accurately reported and not plagiarized
in the application, report, manuscript, or abstract.
(4) If no supervision plan is provided to ORI, Respondent will
provide certification to ORI at the conclusion of the Supervision
Period that his participation was not proposed on a research project
for which an application for PHS support was submitted and that he has
not participated in any capacity in PHS-supported research.
(5) During the Supervision Period, Respondent will exclude himself
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.
Dated: May 23, 2024.
Sheila Garrity,
Director, Office of Research Integrity, Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Health.
[FR Doc. 2024-11829 Filed 5-29-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-31-P
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