Tang J, Huang N, Zhang X, et al. Int J Nanomedicine. 2017;12:3899–3911. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S133166
We, the Editors and Publisher of the Journal, International Journal of Nanomedicine have retracted the published article.
After publication, concerns have been raised by a third party in 2025 about the integrity of the data in Figure 3 of the article.
Further investigation conducted by the Journal and Publisher confirmed unusual similarities present in the image panels representative of different treatment conditions in Figure 3. Additional data integrity concerns were identified in Figures 6 and 7 due to unexpected similarities between image panels representative of different samples. When approached for an explanation, the authors have been unable to fully address the concerns raised.
As verifying the validity of published work is core to the integrity of the scholarly record, we are therefore retracting the article. The corresponding author listed in this publication has been informed.
We have been informed in our decision-making by our editorial policies and the COPE guidelines.
The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as ‘Retracted’.