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(Molecular Therapy: Nucleic Acids 17, 644-656; September 2019)
This article has been retracted at the request of the editor-in-chief.
Similarities were reported between images in this article and an article in Bioscience Reports by unrelated authors (Liu et al., 2017, Biosci. Rep. 37, BSR20160532, https://doi.org/10.1042/BSR20160532). These concerns were initially reported in a Pubpeer thread (https://pubpeer.com/publications/8FBBBCF3BA05C6D21349074897D103). Image analysis performed by the editorial office confirmed the findings of image duplication in Figure 5A of the Molecular Therapy - Nucleic Acids article. Additional duplication was found within Figure 5B, between Figures 5A and 5C, and between images in Figure 6A of the Molecular Therapy - Nucleic Acids article. This reuse (and in part misrepresentation) of data without appropriate attribution represents a severe abuse of the scientific publishing system.