[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 238 (Monday, December 13, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77641-77642]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-31168]


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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: Notice is hereby given that the Office of Research Integrity 
(ORI) has taken final action in the following case:
    Sagar S. Mungekar, PhD, New York University School of Medicine: 
Based on the Respondent's written admission and set forth below, the 
New York University School of Medicine (NYUSOM) and the Office of 
Research Integrity (ORI) found that Sagar S. Mungekar, PhD, former MD/
PhD student in the Sackler Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at 
NYUSOM, engaged in research misconduct in research supported by 
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), National 
Institutes of Health (NIH), grants R01 GM35769, R01 GM55624, and T32 
GM07308, and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases 
(NIAID), NIH, grant T32 AI007180.
    Dr. Mungekar admitted that in his PhD thesis he ``increased 
statistical significance of the calculated means and standards of 
deviation [sic] of the UV spectrophometic [sic] data presented by 
discarding certain experimental data and thus presented data that was 
falsified. In addition, as the repression ratios calculated and 
conclusions reached based on these data that included falsified data, 
those values and conclusions are fabricated. Approximately, 60-75 of 
the [Respondent's] PhD research data was changed or falsified.'' Dr. 
Mungekar also admitted ``while doing these experiments, I did not 
sequence all of the constructs that I constructed, thus, I could not be 
certain of the exact identity of the plasmids in question.''
    ORI found that Dr. Mungekar engaged in research misconduct (42 CFR 
93.103) by fabricating and falsifying data. Specifically, ORI found 
that Dr. Mungekar falsified five tables and five figures (Tables 2-1, 
2-2, 3-1, 4-1, 4-2 and Figures 2-3, 3-1, 3-2, 4-3, and 4-4) in his 
Ph.D. thesis entitled ``Autoregulation of Ribonuclease E,'' by 
discarding certain spectrophotometric data, to increase statistical 
significance, used to calculate repression ratios and RNA decay rates. 
Dr. Mungekar also claimed to have constructed 53 different reporter 
plasmids with RNase E mutants, when sequencing data did not exist to 
support this claim.
    Dr. Mungekar has entered into a Voluntary Settlement Agreement in 
which he has voluntarily agreed, for a period of three (3) years, 
beginning on November 22, 2010:
    (1) That any institution that submits an application for PHS 
support for a research project on which the Respondent's participation 
is proposed or that uses him in any capacity on PHS-supported research, 
or that submits a report of PHS-funded research in which he is 
involved, must concurrently submit a plan for supervision of his duties 
to ORI for approval; the supervisory plan must be designed to ensure 
the scientific integrity of his research contribution; Respondent 
agrees that he will not participate in any PHS-supported research until 
such a supervision plan is submitted to ORI;
    (2) that any institution employing him submits, in conjunction with 
each application for PHS funds, or report, manuscript, or abstract 
involving PHS-funded research in which he is involved, a certification 
to ORI that the data provided by the Respondent are based on actual 
experiments or are otherwise legitimately derived and that the data, 
procedures, and methodology are accurately reported in the application 
or report; and
    (3) to exclude himself voluntarily from serving in any advisory 
capacity to the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS), including but not 
limited to service on any PHS advisory committee, board, and/or peer 
review committee, or as a consultant.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Director, Division of Investigative

[[Page 77642]]

Oversight, Office of Research Integrity, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite 
750, Rockville, MD 20852, (240) 453-8800.

John Dahlberg,
Director, Division of Investigative Oversight, Office of Research 
Integrity.
[FR Doc. 2010-31168 Filed 12-10-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-31-P