Tom Wilemon

twilemon@tennessean.com

A former Vanderbilt scientist falsified research in biomedical engineering that was supported with taxpayer dollars, a federal agency determined this week.

Retractionwatch.com, which monitors mistakes and misconduct in the scientific research community, posted the report on its blog and said Igor Dzhura “committed fraud on a massive scale.” The case summary released by the Office of Research Integrity on Thursday noted that findings by Dzhura published in academic journals over a six-year period would be retracted.

The federal oversight agency said Dzhura “significantly departed from accepted research practices by engaging in the intentional and knowing fabrication and falsification of data files.”

Vanderbilt assisted with the investigation, said John Howser, a university spokesman. While Dzhura was once employed as a research technician at Vanderbilt, Howser said, he was never a faculty member.

“Policies governing how we address questions regarding employment status or questions about investigations into the integrity of the scientific research process limit how much I can respond,” Howser said. “However, I am able to confirm that Vanderbilt collaborated with the Office of Research Integrity throughout the investigation of this matter. The integrity of the scientific research process is taken with the utmost seriousness.”

Dzhura entered into voluntary exclusion agreement with the federal government on Oct. 29 that forbids him from contracting or subcontracting with programs financed by the U.S. government or taking part in any advisory capacity with the U.S. Public Health Service.

“As ORI’s misconduct finding and sanctions are placed upon Dzhura, there is no basis for concern that the outcome of this investigation might influence federal research funding at Vanderbilt,” Howser said. “As is customary scholarly practice in such matters, appropriate communications with the editors of the involved academic journals are already underway.”

The fake data included inflated numbers of experiments, false characterizations of biochemical reactions and graphics manipulated to support his contentions. It was included in at least 69 images and 12 graphic elements. False data was also submitted in three grant applications, the report said.

The misconduct occurred over several years. The research that will be retracted was published between 2000 and 2005 in Nature Cell Biology, Journal of Physiology, Circulation and FASEB Journal.

Dzhura was a senior research associate at Vanderbilt in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in work supported by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the National Cancer Institute.

Reach Tom Wilemon at 615-726-5961 and on Twitter @TomWilemon.