ELSEVIER INVESTIGATING ARTICLES LINKED TO CONTROVERSIAL FRENCH RESEARCHER
According to a “Publisher’s Note” that appeared November 9 in Elsevier’s New Microbes and New Infections, “concerns have been raised about a number of articles” published in the journal by researchers affiliated with the Institut Hospitalo-Universitaire Méditerranée Infection (IHU-MI) in Marseille.
The note said: "Expressions of Concern will be issued to articles published in NMNI if it is deemed that there is a particular need to alert readers to serious concerns while investigation is ongoing.
These Expressions of Concern will remain appended to the articles until the investigation has concluded, and the journal has taken any further action deemed necessary (which may include updates to the Expressions of Concern). In instances where a permanent correction is deemed necessary, the journal will make appropriate corrections to the record, in accordance with Elsevier policies."
A group of researchers identified 456 clinical studies by authors affiliated with IHU-MI with “serious concerns on the ethics approvals of the trials,” such as nearly 250 that use the same ethics approval number despite significant differences in design. Of the studies they flagged with ethical concerns, 135 were published in New Microbes and New Infections.
The critics published their findings, as well as their correspondence with editors and publishers of journals where the studies with ethical concerns had appeared. Their records indicate that Elsevier has been aware of their concerns since July 2022.
