Attorneys Author Peer-Reviewed Article Proposing Changes to Research Misconduct Regulatory Framework in Light of PubPeer Comments

In The News
August 14, 2024

Online platform PubPeer was established to encourage discourse on scientific research. But for institutions that publish research, investigating comments that appear on PubPeer and other internet sources can be burdensome.

In an Accountability in Research article, health care and educational institutions counsel Minal Caron, associate Carolyn Lye and partner Mark Barnes, and Dr. Barbara Bierer of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, describe the institutional challenges of handling PubPeer comments within the existing regulatory framework for reviewing allegations of research misconduct relating to federally funding research.

The authors propose new regulatory interpretations and provisions to ensure that specific, credible allegations are rigorously assessed, while reducing burden on institutions tasked with investigating the multitude of comments on PubPeer and other internet sources.

Accountability in Research is a peer-reviewed interdisciplinary journal focused on ethics, standards and policy issues in science, medicine, law, management and public policy.