Dive Brief:
- After being accused of misconduct, Dr. Paolo Macchiarini, a stem cell researcher at Sweden's Karolinska Institute, fought back—and won.
- In May, an independent investigation led to the conclusion that Dr. Macchiarini had misreported data from work he did on transplants of artificial windpipes.
- Dr. Macchiarini's defense consisted of a 23-page report.
Dive Insight:
Regenerative medicine, which is largely driven by stem cell research, has been beset from ethical issues and allegations against researchers, largely because of misunderstandings, but also because more guidelines are needed.
And even though Dr. Macchiarini has been cleared of the broad charges lodged against him, the committee still maintains that he fell short of quality standards and did not have all of the required permits and ethical clearances he needed to conduct research. In Dr. Macchiarini's estimations, those are minor issues, which he plans to address. Overall, he feels that he has won.