Swedish scientific breakthrough was faked, researchers say

0 Comments | AFP, April, 2007

STOCKHOLM (AFP) — A major Swedish scientific breakthrough in plant physiology that was published in the journal Science in 2005 was based on false data, the research group at Umeaa University said Wednesday.

"A guest researcher from China who had been invited to join our team manipulated the data to get false results," professor Ove Nilsson from the Faculty of Science and Agriculture at Umeaa University told AFP.

The research studied one of the most important questions in plant physiology: How do plants know when to bloom?

The Chinese researcher, Tao Huang, claimed to have proven that the florigen molecule that controls plant blooming plays the role of messenger in the process.

Science Magazine named the study the third most important scientific...