‘Ethics is not a checkbox exercise.’ Bioinformatician Yves Moreau reacts to mass retraction of papers from China
Moreau notes the research teams have unusually high proportions of investigators affiliated with the police and justice system. The retraction notices don’t mention this concern, but Moreau says it suggests the DNA profiling could be used to surveil and control minority populations. Many of the papers do mention forensic applications of the research. Moreau’s efforts had previously led other journals to retract 11 papers. He says publishers are still investigating dozens of others he has flagged.