| The Hindu | - |
The
scientist who investigated the mystery disease that proved fatal for
many 15-year old children in Muzaffarpur, Bihar at the instance of the
State government has raised ethics issues about the way the research has
been published by the journal ...
Scientist says international journal violated ethics on Bihar’s ‘litchi disease’ report
The scientist who investigated the mystery disease that proved fatal
for many 15-year old children in Muzaffarpur, Bihar at the instance of
the State government has raised ethics issues about the way the research
has been published by the journal
Lancet Global Health
on January 30.
“Not giving due credit for work done by others is not acceptable in science,” Dr. T. Jacob John, a virologist who was earlier attached to the Christian Medical College, (CMC) Vellore says.
“They quote our study but don’t honestly say what we have found. If they did that then they can’t claim originality. They have done a large case-control study but borrowed all important information connected with the illness from us,” he argues.
Dr. John published in 2014 evidence of a link between a fruit in Jamaica, the ackee, from the same family as litchi, and a disease called acute encephalopathy in Jamaicans. He showed the close clinical similarity between ackee poisioning and the Muzaffarpur illness, where litchi consumption and skipping the evening meal could result in very low blood glucose and acute encephalopathy, leading to seizures and coma, and death in many cases.
Authors refute claim
The Lancet authors, however, refute this. “We have acknowledged and cited all three of Dr. John and his colleagues’ papers in Current Science ,” Dr. Padmini Srikantiah at CDC Atlanta and the corresponding author said in an email. “There are a few key findings in our study that have not been, to our knowledge, reported previously. First: the evidence of the metabolites of hypoglycin A and methylenecyclopropylglycine (MCPG) in the specimens of affected children, and the demonstrated metabolic abnormalities that resulted due to the effects of these toxins. And, second, a statistically significant epidemiological association between illness and litchi consumption, as well as the modifying effect of the absence of an evening meal.”
Dr. John’s team had in a May 2014 paper in Current Science pointed out that the illness was due to non-infectious encephalopathy and not viral encephalitis as was widely suspected. That it was a form of encephalopathy associated with low blood sugar was again emphasised in a August 2014 paper in Current Science .
A December 2015 Current Science paper reported presence of MCPG in litchi ; but not MCPG or hypoglycin A in samples of children. But the study strongly suggested the role of MCPG.
“Our finding provides the much needed evidence for biological plausibility that litchi consumption by undernourished children, especially after prolonged fasting, triggers the hypoglycaemic encephalopathy,” early in the morning, the paper says.
Dr. Jacob John’s team said the illness was due to non-infectious encephalopathy and not viral encephalitis
“Not giving due credit for work done by others is not acceptable in science,” Dr. T. Jacob John, a virologist who was earlier attached to the Christian Medical College, (CMC) Vellore says.
“They quote our study but don’t honestly say what we have found. If they did that then they can’t claim originality. They have done a large case-control study but borrowed all important information connected with the illness from us,” he argues.
Dr. John published in 2014 evidence of a link between a fruit in Jamaica, the ackee, from the same family as litchi, and a disease called acute encephalopathy in Jamaicans. He showed the close clinical similarity between ackee poisioning and the Muzaffarpur illness, where litchi consumption and skipping the evening meal could result in very low blood glucose and acute encephalopathy, leading to seizures and coma, and death in many cases.
Authors refute claim
The Lancet authors, however, refute this. “We have acknowledged and cited all three of Dr. John and his colleagues’ papers in Current Science ,” Dr. Padmini Srikantiah at CDC Atlanta and the corresponding author said in an email. “There are a few key findings in our study that have not been, to our knowledge, reported previously. First: the evidence of the metabolites of hypoglycin A and methylenecyclopropylglycine (MCPG) in the specimens of affected children, and the demonstrated metabolic abnormalities that resulted due to the effects of these toxins. And, second, a statistically significant epidemiological association between illness and litchi consumption, as well as the modifying effect of the absence of an evening meal.”
Dr. John’s team had in a May 2014 paper in Current Science pointed out that the illness was due to non-infectious encephalopathy and not viral encephalitis as was widely suspected. That it was a form of encephalopathy associated with low blood sugar was again emphasised in a August 2014 paper in Current Science .
A December 2015 Current Science paper reported presence of MCPG in litchi ; but not MCPG or hypoglycin A in samples of children. But the study strongly suggested the role of MCPG.
“Our finding provides the much needed evidence for biological plausibility that litchi consumption by undernourished children, especially after prolonged fasting, triggers the hypoglycaemic encephalopathy,” early in the morning, the paper says.
Dr. Jacob John’s team said the illness was due to non-infectious encephalopathy and not viral encephalitis
