RETRACTION: Synthetic triterpenoids, CDDO-Imidazolide and CDDO-Ethyl amide, induce chondrogenesis (Retraction of Vol 20, Pg 446, 2012)

Abstract

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (https://www.elsevier.com/about/our-business/policies/article-withdrawal). This article has been retracted at the request of the Editor-in-Chief due to serious problems with image manipulation. The Smad5 blots in Fig. 1(D) have been demonstrated to be identical with the β-actin blots from an antecedent publication in Biochemical Journal (Medici D, Potenta S, Kalluri R: Transforming growth factor-β2 promotes Snail-mediated endothelial-mesenchymal transition through convergence of Smad-dependent and Smad-independent signaling. Biochem J. 2011 Aug 1;437(3):515-20. doi: 10.1042/BJ20101500. PMID: 21585337). This has been the subject of a thorough investigation at the home institution of the author who produced the blots, and confirmed by the Editors of OAC. The co-authors of this study, Drs. Suh, Reddi, and Sporn have stated that all data for Table I were produced completely independently and they stand by the veracity of all but the offending Figure. The scientific community takes a very strong view on this matter and apologies are offered to readers of the journal that this was not detected previously. © 2012 Osteoarthritis Research Society International