Retraction to: Cancer Gene Ther https://doi.org/10.1038/cgt.2015.27, published online 10 July 2015

The Editor-in-Chief has retracted this article because it shows significant overlap with a number of previously published articles by different authors [1, 2] and articles by different authors that were simultaneously under consideration [3, 4]. There are also concerns with a number of figures, specifically:

  • Figure 1B: these two mice appear to be identical to the two mice in Figure 1B of [1];

  • Figure 1D: the two panels appear to be identical to Figures 5A and 5B of [1];

  • Figure 1E: The two panels appear to be identical to Figures 5C and 5E of [1];

  • Figure 2C appears to be identical to Figures 2C and 2B of [1];

  • Figure 2D: multiple bands appear to be identical to the bands in Figure 2D of [1];

  • Figure 2F: the western blots appear to be identical to Figure 2B of [1];

  • Figure 2G: multiple bands appear to be identical to the bands in Figure 2C of [1];

  • Figure 3a appears to be identical to Figure 5 of [2];

  • Figure 3b appears to be identical to Figure 4A of [2];

  • Figure 3d appears to be identical to Figure 4C or [2];

  • Figure 4 appears to be identical to Figure 3 of [2].

  • Figure 5B: the tumors appear to be identical to tumors appearing in Figure 7B of [1];

  • Figure 5C appears to be identical to the upper row and bottom row of figures in Figure 5D of [1];

Additionally, the article states that this study was approved was by the Animal Care Committee of Xinxiang Medical University, but none of the authors are affiliated with that institution. The Editor-in-Chief therefore no longer has confidence in the reliability of the article.

The authors have not responded to correspondence regarding this retraction.