Stem cell research team’s report full of fabrications

The Post-Gazette reported during the break that none of the 11 stem cell lines cited in a… The Post-Gazette reported during the break that none of the 11 stem cell lines cited in a breakthrough collaborative effort between a Pitt researcher and a team in South Korea ever existed.

Stem cells are unspecialized cells. A stem cell line is a group of cells that constantly divide.

According to a Dec. 30 article, Pitt is now conducting its own closed-doors investigation of Dr. Gerald Schatten, who co-authored the study on stem cells with Dr. Woo-Suk Hwang, of Seoul National University.

“Dr. Hwang’s study had sparked excitement in the stem-cell research community because it suggested that cloned embryos could be developed from individuals and that stem cells could be derived from those embryos with relatively high efficiency,” the article explained. “The findings thus supported the idea that customized stem cell lines could be developed for treatment of various diseases.”

Hwang and Schatten also made headlines this summer for announcing the first-ever cloned dog, a male Afghan hound named Snuppy. That study is now too under investigation by the journal Nature.

Editor’s note: Read The Pitt News later this week for more information.