Hwang affair

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The Hwang affair,[1] or Hwang scandal,[2] or Hwanggate,[3] is a case of scientific misconduct and ethical issues surrounding a South Korean biologist, Hwang Woo-suk, who claimed to have created the first human embryonic stem cells by cloning in 2004.[4][5] Hwang and his research team at the Seoul National University reported in the journal Science that they successfully developed a somatic cell nuclear transfer method with which they made the stem cells. In 2005, they published again in Science the successful cloning of 11 person-specific stem cells using 185 human eggs.[6] The research was hailed as "a ground-breaking paper" in science. Hwang was elevated as "the pride of Korea",[7] "national hero" [of Korea],[8] and a "supreme scientist",[9] to international praise and fame.[10][11] Recognitions and honours immediately followed, including South Korea's Presidential Award in Science and Technology, and Time magazine listing him among the "People Who Mattered 2004"[12] and the most influential people "The 2004 Time 100".[13]

Suspicion and controversy arose in late 2005, when Hwang's collaborator, Gerald Schatten at the University of Pittsburgh, came to know of the real source of oocytes (egg cells) used in the 2004 study.[14] The eggs, reportedly from several voluntary donors, were from Hwang's two researchers, a fact which Hwang denied. The ethical issues made Schatten immediately break his ties with Hwang. In December 2005, a whistleblower informed Science of reuse of the same data. As the journal probed in, it was revealed that there was a lot more data fabrication.[14] The SNU immediately investigated the research work and found that both the 2004 and 2005 papers contained fabricated results. Hwang was compelled to resign from the university,[15] and publicly confessed in January 2006 that the research papers were based on fabricated data.[14] Science immediately retracted the two papers.[16]

In 2009, the Seoul Central District Court convicted Hwang for embezzlement and bioethical violations, sentencing him to a two-year imprisonment.[17] The incident was then recorded as the scandal that "shook the world of science,"[6] and became "one of the most widely reported and universally disappointing cases of scientific fraud in history".[18]

  1. ^ Kim, Jongyoung; Park, Kibeom (2013). "Ethical Modernization: Research Misconduct and Research Ethics Reforms in Korea Following the Hwang Affair". Science and Engineering Ethics. 19 (2): 355–380. doi:10.1007/s11948-011-9341-8. ISSN 1353-3452. PMID 22218997. S2CID 255432950.
  2. ^ Fuyuno, Ichiko (2006). "Hwang scandal hits Korean biotech hard". Nature. 439 (7074): 265. Bibcode:2006Natur.439..265F. doi:10.1038/439265a. ISSN 1476-4687. PMID 16421542. S2CID 5413877.
  3. ^ Saunders, R.; Savulescu, J. (2008). "Research ethics and lessons from Hwanggate: what can we learn from the Korean cloning fraud?". Journal of Medical Ethics. 34 (3): 214–221. doi:10.1136/jme.2007.023721. ISSN 1473-4257. PMID 18316467. S2CID 38183620.
  4. ^ Kim, Jongyoung (2009). "Public feeling for science: The Hwang affair and Hwang supporters". Public Understanding of Science. 18 (6): 670–686. doi:10.1177/0963662508096778. ISSN 0963-6625. S2CID 145094651.
  5. ^ Rincon, Paul (2006-01-10). "Science takes stock after clone row". BBC. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  6. ^ a b Hong, Sungook (2008-03-01). "The Hwang Scandal That "Shook the World of Science"". East Asian Science, Technology and Society. 2 (1): 1–7. doi:10.1215/s12280-008-9041-x. ISSN 1875-2160.
  7. ^ Sample, Ian (2006-01-11). "Stem cell pioneer accused of faking all his research. Apart from the cloned dog". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  8. ^ Kakuk, Péter (2009). "The legacy of the Hwang case: research misconduct in biosciences". Science and Engineering Ethics. 15 (4): 545–562. doi:10.1007/s11948-009-9121-x. ISSN 1471-5546. PMID 19247809. S2CID 38704110.
  9. ^ Sudworth, John (2009-10-26). "S Korea clone scientist convicted". BBC. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  10. ^ Prasad, R. (2009-10-28). "The future for Hwang Woo Suk does not look gloomy". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  11. ^ Lalchhandama, Kholhring (2020). "The making of scientific ethics – lessons from unethical conducts". Science Vision. 20 (3): 118–131. doi:10.33493/scivis.20.03.03. ISSN 2229-6026. S2CID 229527301.
  12. ^ "People Who Mattered 2004". Time. December 27, 2004. Archived from the original on 2004-12-30. Retrieved March 16, 2013.
  13. ^ Kluger, Jeffrey (2004-04-26). "The 2004 TIME 100 - TIME". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2023-05-01.
  14. ^ a b c Resnik, David B.; Shamoo, Adil E.; Krimsky, Sheldon (2006). "Fraudulent human embryonic stem cell research in South Korea: lessons learned". Accountability in Research. 13 (1): 101–109. doi:10.1080/08989620600634193. ISSN 0898-9621. PMC 1892198. PMID 16770863.
  15. ^ "S Korea cloning research was fake". BBC. 2005-12-23. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
  16. ^ "Journal retracts Hwang research". BBC. 2006-01-13. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
  17. ^ Cyranoski, David (2009). "Woo Suk Hwang convicted, but not of fraud". Nature. 461 (7268): 1181. doi:10.1038/4611181a. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 19865133. S2CID 205049062.
  18. ^ Cyranoski, David (2014). "Cloning comeback". Nature. 505 (7484): 468–471. Bibcode:2014Natur.505..468C. doi:10.1038/505468a. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 24451524. S2CID 4402662.