The University of Queensland says a Parkinson's disease study published by a former staff member may not have actually been carried out.

The university released a statement today saying that "no primary data can be located, and no evidence has been found that the study described in the article was conducted".

UQ has asked the academic journal that published the research to retract the article, and the journal has agreed.

The university said Professor Bruce Murdoch, a former staff member from the university's Centre for Neurogenic Communication Disorders Research, was one of the authors of the article.

Titled "Treatment of articulatory dysfunction in Parkinson's disease using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation", the article was published online in October 2011 in the European Journal of Neurology.

An investigation is continuing and the Crime and Misconduct Commission has been informed, the university's statement said.

UQ has also returned a $20,000 grant from "a non-government organisation" because it fears the money was allocated on the basis of information in the article.

It said there was no National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funding for the paper.

"By having the paper retracted, the university enables the global scientific community to learn that the research reported in the paper has no place in the body of scientific knowledge and so cannot be used as a basis for further research," the statement said.