One-stop source for cardiology news and links

Main menu

[See update at the end of the story] Following an extensive investigation, Depak Das, a professor in the Department of Surgery and director of the Cardiovascular Research Center at the University of Connecticut Health Center, has been accused of serious scientific misconduct. UConn has informed 11 scientific journals about the investigation.

Das had numerous publications on resveratrol and other nutrition-related cardiovascular subjects. According to an online biography, he was a founding editor and editor-in chief of the journal Antioxidant and Redox Signaling, and also served as associate editor of the American Journal of Physiology: Heat and Circulatory Physiology and consulting editor of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry.

The University said the investigation had been sparked by an anonymous allegation of research irregularities in 2008, resulting in a 60,000 page report that found Das guilty of 145 counts of fabrication and falsification of data. UConn said it worked closely with the US Office of Research Integrity during the investigation. UConn is now preparing to dismiss Das.

“While we are deeply disappointed by the flagrant disregard for the University’s Code of Conduct, we are pleased the oversight systems in place were effective and worked as intended,” said Philip Austin, interim vice president for health affairs. “We are grateful that an individual chose to do the right thing by alerting the appropriate authorities. Our findings were the result of an exhaustive investigation that, by its very nature, required considerable time to complete.”

Das appears to have had a relationship with a Las Vegas resveratrol maker called, unsurprisingly, Longevinex. The company has promoted his research, and Das also shows up in a lengthy video touting the nutrient as the next aspirin. The infomercial is guided by an “investigative reporter” named Gailon Totheroh, who is affiliated with the Christian Broadcasting Network.

Here is the list of journals notified by UConn:

American Journal of Physiology – Heart & Circulatory

Antioxidants & Redox Signaling

Cellular Physiology & Biochemistry

Free Radical Biology

Free Radical Research

Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry

Journal of Cellular & Molecular Medicine

Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry

Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Molecular & Cellular Cardiology

Molecular & Cellular Chemistry

Update:The Chronicle of Higher Educationhas added several important new details about the case. Chronicle reporter Tom Bartlett links to a 49-page summary of the investigation and provides the following summary of the highlights:

Das was “intimately involved in the generation of figures that were determined to have been manipulated (either by fabrication or falsification).”

Others in his laboratory may have also been involved in wrongdoing. DeFrancesco, the spokesman, said an investigation into who else might have been involved is continuing.

The data manipulation, investigators concluded, was “intentional” and “designed to deceive.”