El fraude en ciencia perjudica seriamente a la salud (y a la propia ciencia)

Artículo de divulgación publicado en The Conversation España el día 24/01/2023.El fraude en ciencia no es nuevo. Sin embargo, en lugar de disminuir, hay evidencias de que está aumentando. Sus consecuencias pueden ser nefastas.N

Residential Radon in Central and South America: A Systematic Review.

Radon gas is a pulmonary carcinogen and the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. There are many countries that have not implemented measures to reduce the risk it poses to the general population. The aim of this study was to locate available evidence on exposure to residential radon and the regulations to monitor and control this across Central and South America, by conducting a review of the scientific literature and government documents in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. This review included 31 studies which had taken measurements of radon in these countries. While Brazil, Argentina, and Peru have undertaken most research, no country in Central and South America has a national map of exposure to residential radon. The prevalence of exposure to radon was uneven, both among the different countries and within individual countries. No country has regulations to prevent the entry of radon into homes, and nine countries have not set maximum permissible concentrations for residential radon. There is a limited number of studies in South and Central America, with a limited spatial coverage, and there is a need to improve knowledge on exposure to residential radon and its effects, and for governments to take the necessary actions to introduce preventive measures in their statutory regulations

Retracted papers originating from paper mills: cross sectional study

OBJECTIVES To describe retracted papers originating from paper mills, including their characteristics, visibility, and impact over time, and the journals in which they were published. DESIGN Cross sectional study. SETTING The Retraction Watch database was used for identification of retracted papers from paper mills, Web of Science was used for the total number of published papers, and data from Journal Citation Reports were collected to show characteristics of journals. PARTICIPANTS All paper mill papers retracted from 1 January 2004 to 26 June 2022 were included in the study. Papers bearing an expression of concern were excluded. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Descriptive statistics were used to characterise the sample and analyse the trend of retracted paper mill papers over time, and to analyse their impact and visibility by reference to the number of citations received. RESULTS 1182 retracted paper mill papers were identified. The publication of the first paper mill paper was in 2004 and the first retraction was in 2016; by 2021, paper mill retractions accounted for 772 (21.8%) of the 3544 total retractions. Overall, retracted paper mill papers were mostly published in journals of the second highest Journal Citation Reports quartile for impact factor (n=529 (44.8%)) and listed four to six authors (n=602 (50.9%)). Of the 1182 papers, almost all listed authors of 1143 (96.8%) paper mill retractions came from Chinese institutions and 909 (76.9%) listed a hospital as a primary affiliation. 15 journals accounted for 812 (68.7%) of 1182 paper mill retractions, with one journal accounting for 166 (14.0%). Nearly all (n=1083, 93.8%) paper mill retractions had received at least one citation since publication, with a median of 11 (interquartile range 5-22) citations received. CONCLUSIONS Papers retracted originating from paper mills are increasing in frequency, posing a problem for the research community. Retracted paper mill papers most commonly originated from China and were published in a small number of journals. Nevertheless, detected paper mill papers might be substantially different from those that are not detected. New mechanisms are needed to identify and avoid this relatively new type of misconduct

Does retraction after misconduct have an impact on citations? A pre–post study

Background: Retracted articles continue to be cited after retraction, and this could have consequences for the scientific community and general population alike. This study was conducted to analyse the association of retraction on citations received by retracted papers due to misconduct using two-time frames: during a postretraction period equivalent to the time the article had been in print before retraction; and during the total postretraction period. Methods: Quasiexperimental, pre-post evaluation study. A total of 304 retracted original articles and literature reviews indexed in MEDLINE fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Articles were required to have been published in a journal indexed in MEDLINE from January 2013 through December 2015 and been retracted between January 2014 and December 2016. The main outcome was the number of citations received before and after retraction. Results were broken down by journal quartile according to impact factor and the most cited papers during the preretraction period were specifically analysed. Results: There was an increase in postretraction citations when compared with citations received preretraction. There were some exceptions however: first, citations received by articles published in first-quartile journals decreased immediately after retraction (p<0.05), only to increase again after some time had elapsed; and second, postretraction citations decreased significantly in the case of articles that had received many citations before their retraction (p<0.05). Conclusions: The results indicate that retraction of articles has no association on citations in the long term, since the retracted articles continue to be cited, thus circumventing their retraction

The Research Integrity Office in Spain. A pending issue

En los últimos años han salido a la luz muchos casos de mala conducta científica, algunos con importantes consecuencias, que han evidenciado las brechas que globalmente existen en cuanto a integridad científica. En España también se han dado casos notables de mala conducta científica en el ámbito de la investigación biomédica. Sin embargo, hasta el momento no se ha creado un organismo encargado de supervisar las fases de ejecución, análisis y publicación de las investigaciones biomédicas desde un punto de vista ético. Por lo tanto, en este contexto, consideramos que es necesaria la creación de una oficina que supervise la integridad científica en España y que actúe en caso de sospecha de mala conducta científica, llevando a cabo una investigación independiente y con capacidad sancionadora. La existencia de dicho organismo sería de especial importancia en el caso de las investigaciones financiadas con fondos públicos, ya que en ese caso el fraude en investigación supondría la malversación de dinero público. La creación de una oficina que realmente actúe frente a los casos detectados podría tener un efecto disuasorio sobre una potencial mala conducta de algunos investigadores, previniendo así situaciones de mala conducta científica.In recent years, many cases of scientific misconduct have come to light, some with considerable consequences, highlighting the existing breaches in the scientific integrity globally. In Spain, there have also been high-profile cases of scientific misconduct. However, so far, no organism or agency has been created to monitor the execution, analysis and publication phases of biomedical research from an ethical point of view. Therefore, in this context, we consider that there is a need for the creation of an office which supervises research integrity in Spain which would act in cases of suspected scientific misconduct, carrying out an independent investigation and proposing public sanctions. The existence of such an organism would be of particular importance in the case of publicly funded research, since in that case research fraud would involve the misappropriation of public funds. The creation of an office that would act on detected cases could have a deterrent effect on potential misconduct by some researchers, thus preventing cases of scientific misconduct.Este trabajo forma parte de la tesis doctoral de Cristina Candal-Pedreira, que ha recibido una beca PFIS (número de referencia FI21/00149) del Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII)

Inner wall filler as a singular and significant source of indoor radon pollution in heritage buildings: An exhalation method-based approach

Abstract The presence of radon in buildings is a matter of growing concern in the industry. A further layer of complexity is present in heritage buildings, where sources of exhalation other than those observed in more modern conventional buildings may render diagnosis and intervention even more difficult. This study explored the high exhalation rates originating in the inner fillers in thick elements such as bearing walls and structural floors and vaults characterising historic construction. They were found to be close to the values observed in soils and one to two orders of magnitude greater (range: 32.5 mBq/m2·s to 149.7 mBq/m2·s) than found in the construction materials themselves, such as granite. The radon emitted into building interiors by those members exhibited more or less uniform concentration profiles on all storeys, irrespective of elevation and consequently distance form the soil. Further to the results delivered by an accumulative model, the only explanation for the empirical findings is that the inner filler in structural members sources a substantial fraction of the high exhalation rates. That would open a new exploratory pathway for remedies that should necessarily address all emissions, rather than deeming the soil as the sole or primary source of radon gas. The issue is broached in this article on the grounds of a case study of the Tower of Hercules at Corunna, Spain, a building dating from Roman times and presently used as a museum and monument open to the public

Lung emphysema and lung cancer: what do we know about it?

Emphysema and lung cancer (LC) are two diseases which share common risk factors, e.g., smoking. In recent years, many studies have sought to analyse this association. By way of illustration, we conducted a review of the scientific literature of the studies published to date, whose main designated aim was to demonstrate the relationship between emphysema and LC, and this association's influence on the histology, prognosis and molecular mechanisms responsible. We included over 40 studies (ranging from case-control and cohort studies to systematic reviews and meta-analyses), which highlight the association between emphysema and LC, independently of smoking habit. These studies also report a possible influence on histology, with adenocarcinoma being the most frequent lineage, and an association with poor prognosis, which affects both survival and post-operative complications. Oxidative stress, which generates chronic inflammatory status as well as the presence of certain polymorphisms in various genes (CYP1A1, TERT, CLPTM1L, ERK), gives rise-in the case of patients with emphysema-to alteration of cellular repair mechanisms, which in turn favours the proliferation of neoplastic epithelial cells responsible for the origin of LC

Estimations of smoking-attributable mortality in Spain at a regional level: comparison of two methods

Purpose: To estimate and discuss smoking-attributable mortality (SAM) for the 17 regions in Spain among the population aged ≥35 years in 2017, using two methods. Methods: A descriptive analysis of SAM was conducted using two methods, the prevalence-independent method (PIM) and the prevalence-dependent method (PDM). Observed mortality was obtained from the National Institute of Statistics; smoking prevalence from three National Health Surveys; lung cancer mortality rates from the Cancer Prevention Study-II; and relative risks from five US cohorts. SAM and percentages of change were estimated for each region overall, by sex, age and cause of death. Results: In 2017, tobacco caused 56,203 deaths in Spain applying the PIM. Using the PDM the number of deaths was 4.4% (95% CI: 3.4-5.5) lower (53,825 deaths). Except in four regions, the PIM estimated a higher overall SAM and the maximum percentage of change was 18.6%. Overall percentages of change were higher for women (15.7% 95% CI: 12.6-19.0) and for cardiovascular diseases-diabetes mellitus (13.8%; 95% CI: 11.5-16.2). Conclusions: At the national level, both methods estimate similar figures for SAM. However, the difference in estimates appears at the subnational level. Differences were higher in subgroups with lower smoking prevalence and for causes of death with periods of induction shorter than those for lung cancer.This paper forms part of the research conducting to the PhD degree of Julia Rey-Brandariz, who has received a FPU fellowship (reference number FPU20/00926), from the Ministry of Universities of Spain. This study has been funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) through the project “PI19/00288″ and co-funded by the European Union.S

Residential exposure to radon and DNA methylation across the lifecourse: an exploratory study in the ALSPAC birth cohort [version 2; peer review: 2 approved, 1 not approved]

Background: Radon (and its decay products) is a known human carcinogen and the leading cause of lung cancer in never-smokers and the second in ever-smokers. The carcinogenic mechanism from radiation is a combination of genetic and epigenetic processes, but compared to the genetic mechanisms, epigenetic processes remain understudied in humans. This study aimed to explore associations between residential radon exposure and DNA methylation in the general population. Methods: Potential residential radon exposure for 75-metre area buffers was linked to genome-wide DNA methylation measured in peripheral blood from children and mothers of the Accessible Resource for Integrated Epigenomic Studies subsample of the ALSPAC birth cohort. Associations with DNA methylation were tested at over 450,000 CpG sites at ages 0, 7 and 17 years (children) and antenatally and during middle-age (mothers). Analyses were adjusted for potential residential and lifestyle confounding factors and were determined for participants with complete data (n = 786 to 980). Results: Average potential exposure to radon was associated in an exposure-dependent manner with methylation at cg25422346 in mothers during pregnancy, with no associations at middle age. For children, radon potential exposure was associated in an exposure-dependent manner with methylation of cg16451995 at birth, cg01864468 at age 7, and cg04912984, cg16105117, cg23988964, cg04945076, cg08601898, cg16260355 and cg26056703 in adolescence. Conclusions: Residential radon exposure was associated with DNA methylation in an exposure-dependent manner. Although chance and residual confounding cannot be excluded, the identified associations may show biological mechanisms involved in early biological effects from radon exposure

Impact of quality of life related to foot problems : a case-control study

[Abstract] Foot problems are highly prevalent conditions, being a frequent reason for medical and podiatric consultation. The aim of this study was to compare the differences of quality of life (QoL) related to foot health in people with and without the presence of foot problems. A case-control study was carried out in an outpatient centre, where a clinician recorded data related to sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. In addition, self-reported data on foot health-related quality of life were recorded using the Spanish version of the Foot Health Status Questionnaire. The sample consisted of 498 participants (249 cases and 249 controls), with a median age of 30 years and an interquartile range of 23 years. The differences between the groups were statistically significant for gender, age, footwear, general health, foot health, and physical activity. Cases showed lower scores for the domain of footwear, physical activity and vitality compared to controls. Foot pathologies have a negative impact on quality of life related to foot health, and the domains of footwear, general health and physical activity seem to be the factors that are associated with the presence of alterations and foot deformities