[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 3, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27904-27905]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09355]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Office of the Secretary


Findings of Research Misconduct

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Findings of research misconduct have been made against Johnny 
J. He, Ph.D. (Respondent), who is a Professor, Department of 
Microbiology and Immunology, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine 
and Science (RFUMS). Respondent engaged in research misconduct in 
research reported in grant applications submitted for U.S. Public 
Health Service (PHS) funds, specifically U01 DA056010-01 and DP1 
DA056160-01 submitted to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), 
National Institutes of Health (NIH), R01 AG078019-01 submitted to the 
National Institute on Aging (NIA), NIH, and R35 NS127233-01 submitted 
to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), 
NIH. The administrative actions, including supervision for a period of 
three (3) years, were implemented beginning on April 17, 2023, and are 
detailed below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sheila Garrity, JD, MPH, MBA, 
Director, Office of Research Integrity, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite 
240, Rockville, MD 20852, (240) 453-8200.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby given that the Office of 
Research Integrity (ORI) has taken final action in the following case:
    Johnny J. He, Ph.D., Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and 
Science: Based on the report of an investigation conducted by RFUMS, an 
admission by Respondent, and analysis conducted by ORI in its oversight 
review, ORI found that Johnny J. He, Ph.D., Professor, Department of 
Microbiology and Immunology, RFUMS, engaged in research misconduct in 
research reported in grant applications submitted for PHS funds, 
specifically U01 DA056010-01 and DP1 DA056160-01 submitted to NIDA, 
NIH, R01 AG078019-01 submitted to NIA, NIH, and R35 NS127233-01 
submitted to NINDS, NIH.
    ORI found that Respondent engaged in research misconduct by 
intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly falsifying, fabricating, and 
plagiarizing experimental data and text that described the research 
from one (1) pre-print and four (4) published papers and represented 
the data and/or ideas as his own under different experimental 
conditions in four (4) NIH grant applications and in one research 
record. The falsified, fabricated, and plagiarized research data and 
text appeared in the following NIH grant applications:

 NIA, NIH, grant R01 AG078019-01, ``iTat mice to model HIV-
impaired neurogenesis and accelerated aging,'' submitted on September 
7, 2021
 NIDA, NIH, grant U01 DA056010-01, ``Single cell and spatial 
transcriptomic changes of cocaine use in the iTat HAND model,'' 
submitted on July 20, 2021
 NIDA, NIH, grant DP1 DA056160-01, ``Targeting epigenetic 
changes to understand and treat CUD in people living with HAND,'' 
submitted on August 13, 2021
 NINDS, NIH, grant R35 NS127233-01, ``HIV-associated 
neurocognitive disorder: from mechanisms to therapeutics,'' submitted 
on July 13, 2021

    The sources of the plagiarized images and text were:

 Clin Transl Med. 2017 June 8;6(1):20. doi: 10.1186/s40169-017-
0150-9 (hereafter referred to as ``Clin Trans Med 2017'')
 Sci Adv. 2019 October 16;5(10):eaax1532. doi: 10.1126/
sciadv.aax1532 (hereafter referred to as ``Sci Adv 2019'')
 BioRxiv. March 5, 2020. doi:10.1101/2020.02.29.970558v2 
(hereafter referred to as ``BioRxiv 2020''). BioRxiv 2020 is a preprint 
version of Nature. 2021 October 6;598(7879):103-110. doi: 10.1038/
s41586-021-03500-8
 Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2020 May;84(5):919-926. 
doi:10.1080/09168451.2020.1714420 (hereafter referred to as ``BBB 
2020'')
 Front Oncol. 2021 January 19;10:607349. doi: 10.3389/
fonc.2020.607349 (hereafter referred to as ``Front Onc 2021'')

    Specifically, ORI found that Respondent knowingly, intentionally, 
or recklessly:
     falsified, fabricated, and plagiarized research data and 
the text that described the research by:

--using Figures 1A and 1B of BBB 2020, representing wild-type and APP23 
mice at 6 and 24 months, as the Respondent's own data in Figures 5A and 
5B of U01 DA056010-01 and Figures 7A and 7B of R01 AG78019-01, 
representing wild-type and iTat mice at 6 and 12 months
--using Figures 3c and 3d of BioRxiv 2020, representing results in 60 
days old Snap25-IRES2-Cre mice crossed to Ai14 mice, as the 
Respondent's own data in Figure 6 of U01 DA056010-01 and Figure 8 of 
R01 AG078019-01, representing results in 12-weeks old iTat mice
--using, cropping, and splicing Figures 5g-5i of BioRxiv 2020, 
representing cell type transcription factors networks signature of the 
regulatory genome in neurons isolated from the brains of Snap25-IRES2-
Cre mice crossed to Ai14 mice, as the Respondent's own data in one 
research record intended for use in preparing figures for incorporation 
in U01 DA056010-01, representing spatiotemporal atlas of gene 
regulatory networks and biological pathways in the brain during 
neurogenesis and aging altered by Tat expression and HIV infection

     fabricated and plagiarized research data and text that 
described the research by:

--using Figure 3 of Front Onc 2021 as the Respondent's own data in 
Figure 8 of U01 DA056010-01 and Figure 10 of R01 AG078019-01

     plagiarized text by:

--using a paragraph from Sci Adv 2019 as the Respondent's own text 
describing cocaine use disorder in the section titled ``The problem 
description and a new therapeutic strategy for CUD in people living 
with HAND'' of DP1 DA056160-01
--using a paragraph from Clin Trans Med 2017 as the Respondent's own 
text describing single cell sequencing in Specific Aim 2 of both U01 
DA056010-01 and R01 AG078019-01

    Dr. He entered into a Voluntary Settlement Agreement (Agreement) 
and voluntarily agreed to the following:
    (1) Respondent will have his research supervised for a period of 
three (3) years beginning on April 17, 2023 (the ``Supervision 
Period''). Prior to the submission of an application for PHS support 
for a research project on which Respondent's participation is proposed 
and prior to Respondent's participation in any capacity in PHS-
supported research, Respondent will submit a plan for supervision of 
Respondent's duties to ORI for approval. The supervision plan must be 
designed to ensure the integrity of Respondent's research. Respondent 
will not participate in any PHS-supported research until such a 
supervision plan is approved by ORI. Respondent will comply with the 
agreed-upon supervision plan.

[[Page 27905]]

    (2) The requirements for Respondent's supervision plan are as 
follows:
    i. A committee of 2-3 senior faculty members at the institution who 
are familiar with Respondent's field of research, but not including 
Respondent's supervisor or collaborators, will provide oversight and 
guidance for a period of three (3) years from the effective date of the 
Agreement. The committee will review primary data from Respondent's 
laboratory on a quarterly basis and submit a report to ORI at six (6)-
month intervals setting forth the committee meeting dates and 
Respondent's compliance with appropriate research standards and 
confirming the integrity of Respondent's research.
    ii. The committee will conduct an advance review of each 
application for PHS funds, or report, manuscript, or abstract involving 
PHS-supported research in which Respondent is involved. The review will 
include a discussion with Respondent of the primary data represented in 
those documents and will include a certification to ORI that the data 
presented in the proposed application, report, manuscript, or abstract 
are supported by the research record.
    (3) During the Supervision Period, Respondent will ensure that any 
institution employing him submits, in conjunction with each application 
for PHS funds, or report, manuscript, or abstract involving PHS-
supported research in which Respondent is involved, a certification to 
ORI that the data provided by Respondent are based on actual 
experiments or are otherwise legitimately derived and that the data, 
procedures, and methodology are accurately reported and not plagiarized 
in the application, report, manuscript, or abstract.
    (4) If no supervision plan is provided to ORI, Respondent will 
provide certification to ORI at the conclusion of the Supervision 
Period that his participation was not proposed on a research project 
for which an application for PHS support was submitted and that he has 
not participated in any capacity in PHS-supported research.
    (5) During the Supervision Period, Respondent will exclude himself 
voluntarily from serving in any advisory or consultant capacity to PHS 
including, but not limited to, service on any PHS advisory committee, 
board, and/or peer review committee.

    Dated: April 28, 2023.
Sheila Garrity,
Director, Office of Research Integrity, Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Health.
[FR Doc. 2023-09355 Filed 5-2-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-31-P