Retracted: Allogeneic Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells for the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Children: Safety Profile and Effect on Cytokine Levels (STEM CELLS Translational Medicine, (2019), 8, 10, (1008-1016), 10.1002/sct3.13044)

Abstract

Notice of Retraction: Allogeneic Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells for the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Children: Safety Profile and Effect on Cytokine Levels Neil H. Riordan, Maria Luisa Hincapié, Isabela Morales, Giselle Fernández, Nicole Allen, Cindy Leu, Marialaura Madrigal, Jorge Paz Rodríguez, Nelson Novarro STEM CELLS Translational Medicine 2019;8:1008-1016. https://doi.org/10.1002/sctm.19-0010. The above article (“the Article”), published online on June 11, 2019 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the journal’s Editors, AlphaMed Press, and Wiley Periodicals LLC. In May 2021, the journal published an article by Turner & Snyder (2021) (1) outlining concerns that participants were charged to participate in the clinical trial reported in the Article. The Article’s authors then published a Letter to the Editor (2) responding to those concerns, followed by an Editor’s Note (3) supporting the initial decision to publish the Article. Following publication of (1), (2), and (3), the journal reopened the investigation upon receipt of newly acquired information pertaining to the clinical trial and participants’ requirement to pay to participate. The journal has determined that participants were charged to participate and that these charges were not disclosed to the journal, which violates the journal’s guidelines on the disclosure of funding sources for clinical trials. As a result, the journal has made the decision to retract the article.