Retraction Note: J Exp Clin Cancer Res 37, 52 (2018)
10.1186/s13046-018-0677-7
The Editor-in-Chief has retracted this article. After publication, concerns were raised regarding highly similar images in the present figures, specifically:
The Transwell assay images in Fig. 6e and f, and 7i appear to contain multiple overlapping panels;
A number of images in Fig. 6e appear highly similar to those in Figs. 4d and 5d in the authors’ earlier article [1].
Figure 7h middle panel p-Akt lanes 3 and 4 appear highly similar to Fig. 7k right panel N-Cad lanes 1 and 2.
Figure 7h left and right panel b-actin blots appear highly similar to those in Fig. 7k, but the middle panel blots are different.
Additionally, the study used Bel7402 and Bel/5-FU cell lines, which have both been reported to be HeLa derivatives. Therefore, these cells are not suitable models for hepatocellular carcinoma.
The authors have provided the raw data from the Transwell, immunohistochemistry and western blot assays. However, further checks by the publisher found labelling errors in the original western blot data that may have affected the results and conclusions of the article. The Editor-in-Chief therefore no longer has confidence in the presented data.
Corresponding Author Tao Tian has stated on behalf of all co-authors that they do not agree to this retraction.
Footnotes
The online version of the original article can be found at 10.1186/s13046-018-0677-7.
Publisher’s Note
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Contributor Information
Yu Yao, Email: 13572101611@163.com.
Tao Tian, Email: tiantao0607@163.com.
References
- 1.Fu X, Wen H, Jing L, Yang Y, Wang W, Liang X, et al. Micro RNA-155‐5p promotes hepatocellular carcinoma progression by suppressing PTEN through the PI 3K/Akt pathway. Cancer Sci. 2017;108(4):620–31. doi: 10.1111/cas.13177. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]