The discovery of suspicious images in two papers published in January in the British scientific journal Nature has cast doubt on the results of ground-breaking stem cell research led by scientist Haruko Obokata.
Riken, the research institute based in Kobe that hosted the research, has opened an investigation into whether the photos, which depict the placental development of a mouse, were intentionally altered, Nature said Monday.
The research, which explored the use of physical stress to induce adult cells in mice to return to an embryonic state, appeared to provide a simple solution to the complicated problem of producing stem cells for use in medical treatments.
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