The authors of the manuscript contacted the POR Editorial Office to request a correction to the figures in the manuscript, citing improper image processing over Figure 1B and an aspect-ratio stretch in Figure 3A.

Upon receiving this request, concerns were raised regarding the integrity of the published figures. In Figure 1B, two images labelled as separate parallel samples at the 0-h timepoint contain overlapping areas, indicating that they may not represent independent samples as described. In addition, image regions in Figure 3A correspond to figure parts published in a related 2013 article by an overlapping author group (Zhang X. et al., Dig Dis Sci, DOI 10.1007/s10620-013-2666-1), in which they are presented as depicting a different cell line and experimental condition.

The authors were asked to provide the full raw data files from the original study but failed to provide a satisfactory explanation during the investigation, which was conducted in accordance with Pathology & Oncology Research policies. Following provision of raw data by the authors, the Editor-in-Chief concluded that the article’s conclusions and assertions were not sufficiently supported by the findings from the material provided. During the investigation it was found that parts of the figures in question were duplicates of pictures from another paper by the same authors. As a result, the data and conclusions of the article have been deemed unreliable and the article has been retracted.

This retraction was approved by the Editor-in-Chief of Pathology & Oncology Research. The authors do not agree to this retraction.