Abstract

KIE: Braunwald, a professor at Harvard Medical School, responds to a paper by Walter W. Stewart and Ned Feder ("The integrity of the scientific literature," Nature 1987 Jan 15; 325(6101): 207-214) concerning their findings of errors, discrepancies, and other lapses in publications coauthored by John Darsee, a biomedical researcher in Braunwald's laboratory who was found guilty of fraud, and by colleagues of Darsee's at the Harvard and Emory University medical schools. Braunwald charges that the alleged lapses of the Harvard coauthors are incorrectly labeled as lapses or are insignificant. While supporting the need for greater vigilance in detecting scientific fraud, he emphasizes the integrity of the vast majority of scientists.