Panel Debunks South Korean Scientist's Research
Jan. 10, 2006 — -- He was South Korea's celebrity scientist, stunning his peers with breakthrough achievements and research. But it was all fabricated, except Snuppy, that is.
Hwang Woo-suk's two landmark studies documenting how he and his team cloned a human embryo, extracted stem cells from it and also matched stem cells to patients, were fake. The research promised possible treatments for a variety of diseases, including Alzheimer's, but a university panel concluded Hwang's experiments were phony and undermined scientific principles.
His limelight has turned to a spotlight, as Hwang may now be embroiled in one of the biggest cases of scientific fraud in recent history. He has changed his cell phone number and been in seclusion since his claims first came into question in December.
A nine-member panel from Seoul National University found Hwang had no proof of 11 tailored human embryonic stem cells, proof he'd claimed in a 2005 Science journal report. Last month the same panel released an interim report that concluded a 2004 Science journal report was also made up.
The disgraced scientist blamed malicious colleagues for the mistake, claiming other researchers in his lab switched some of his stem cells. Hwang maintains, given the opportunity, he could reproduce his research.
Still, the professor of veterinary medicine has said he would resign from the university but has yet to do so. Yet another chink in his armor surfaced after allegations arose that he coerced female members of his team to donate their own eggs for the research.
Now the once-admired and publicly revered Hwang could face serious charges for misappropriation of funds, as he'd received massive government grants for his work.
As for Snuppy, Hwang's Afghan hound who he says is the world's first cloned dog -- that claim is genuine. The university panel supported that 2005 milestone.
Scientific journals rely largely on peer review and jurisprudence to sound alarms for suspected or apparent misconduct. Publishing groundbreaking achievements in research is often the first stage in revealing flaws and fostering discussion.
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