Last year, the nationwide uproar over a paper on Stimulus-Triggered Acquisition of Pluripotency cells (STAP cells) uncovered some of the problems inherent in Japan’s science community. One is about morality of scientists. Another is about the way the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) ought to be as Japan's representative natural science research institution. As to the STAP cells in question, it has been concluded that they are actually identical to what is today known as embryonic stem cells (ES cells). The paper itself has been withdrawn. However, that cannot put an end to the turmoil. The true nature of the matter is that a paper has been forged by a researcher at an institute globally reputed as RIKEN and that the way the institute addressed the fabrication was quite poor. The existence or non-existence of STAP cells is not the issue.

刺激惹起性多能性獲得細胞（ＳＴＡＰ細胞）に関する論文をめぐって、昨年、日本の科学界の問題点が浮き彫りになった。ひとつは科学者の倫理観。もうひとつは国内唯一の自然科学系総合研究機関、理化学研究所（理研）の組織としてのあり方だ。問題のＳＴＡＰ細胞は今では、既存の胚性幹細胞（ＥＳ細胞）との取り違えであったと結論づけられ、論文も取り下げられた。だが、これで騒動の幕引きにはならない。問題の本質は、「ＲＩＫＥＮ」として国際的にも名を知られる、日本を代表する研究所の研究者によって、論文がねつ造されてしまったこと、ねつ造発覚後の理研の対応の悪さなどであり、ＳＴＡＰ細胞の有無ではない。

  It was in January 2014 that the paper on STAP cells written by Ms. Haruko Obokata, then a RIKEN researcher, was published for the first time in a science journal. She was played up as so-called “rikejo” (women engaged in science) in various circles, helping to bring such women into the limelight across the country. However, some doubt began to be cast about the authenticity of her paper. That doubt did not stop there but spilled over to involve the doctoral thesis she had written in her student days. After months of investigations, RIKEN acknowledged that Ms. Obokata’s paper contained fabricated and manipulated images, and infringed copyrights. Her paper was withdrawn from the British scientific journal Nature on July 2, 2014. On October 7 that year, Waseda University decided to retract her Ph.D. with a grace period.

小保方晴子・元理化学研究所研究員のＳＴＡＰ細胞に関する論文が、科学誌に初めて掲載されたのは昨年１月のこと。小保方氏は、いわゆる「リケジョ」として多方面で取り上げられ、科学界で活躍する女性が脚光を浴びるきっかけとなった。しかし、次第に小保方氏の論文に不正の疑義が投げかけられるようになった。そしてこの疑義は、ＳＴＡＰ細胞論文だけではなく、同氏が学生時代に書いた博士論文にまでも及んだ。小保方氏の論文には画像のねつ造・改ざんや著作権侵害行為が認められ、７月２日、英国の科学誌「ネイチャー」に掲載された論文は撤回され、博士号は猶予付き取り消しという処分が下された。

  One may argue that her immaturity as a researcher alone cannot fully explain what she did in her research. The question remains if ES cells got erroneously mixed in her experimental process or did someone intentionally bring and mix them? The fabrication of the paper as well as those unanswered questions may well induce one to infer that Ms. Obokata lacked morality as a researcher. Even if she had mistaken ES cells for STAP cells, her lack of morality cannot be dismissed given the injustice she did in her paper. In future, every necessary measure must be taken to ensure ethics of researchers.

研究不正の原因について、小保方氏が研究者として未熟だったということだけでは説明がつかない。ＥＳ細胞が実験過程において混入してしまったのか、それとも意図的に混入させたのか。こうした疑問だけでなく、論文のねつ造自体、小保方氏に研究者としての倫理観が欠けていたことがうかがえる。仮に小保方氏がＥＳ細胞をＳＴＡＰ細胞であると誤信していたとしても、論文に不正がある以上、倫理観の欠如は否定できない。今後、研究者の倫理観を徹底させる方策が求められる。

  A more thorough check of research papers should be another pressing need along with ethical education. Pundits say that it is next to impossible to eradicate acts of dishonesty in research.  But still research institutes should work harder to get rid of wrongdoings by researchers. At the same time, we must keep watching what they will do when dishonesty is detected.

倫理教育と合わせ、急務とされるのは研究論文のチェックの徹底だ。最大限の努力をはらっても不正根絶は不可能に近いと言われているが、研究機関は研究者の不正撲滅に努めていかなければならない。また、それと同時に不正が発覚した後の対応にも目を向ける必要がある。　

RIKEN to which Ms. Obokata belonged was repeatedly criticized for its lukewarm handling of her case. In particular, many people still criticize it for not having elucidated all the suspicions that had surfaced. RIKEN initially maintained that Ms. Obokata’s immaturity had resulted in her wrongdoing and retained the posts of her bosses, including Mr. Yoshiki Sasayama, the deputy director of its Center for Developmental Biology (CDB), who were engaged in the STAP cell research. There is no denying that Mr. Sasayama’s suicide made it harder to unravel the whole truth. However, RIKEN obviously tried to evade its responsibility as an organization.

小保方氏が所属していた理研の対応には批判が相次いだ。特に、浮上した疑惑のすべてを解明していないことへの批判が強い。当初、理研は小保方氏の未熟さゆえに起きた不正であるとする立場をとり、ＳＴＡＰ細胞を研究していた発生・再生科学総合研究センター（ＣＤＢ）の副センター長、笹山芳樹氏を始めとする小保方氏の上司らは同じポストにとどまった。笹山氏がのちに自殺したこともあり、真相解明への道のりが遠ざかったことは否めないが、理研が組織としての責任を負おうとしなかったことは明らかである。

  It has since been not fully positive to resolve all the problems involved. At one point, for instance, it allowed Ms. Obokata to join its experiments aimed to verify the existence of STAP cells. What it has been criticized for is its inadequate assumption of responsibility rather than elucidation of scientific truth. In the wake of the incidence, RIKEN had its government subsidy cut by 1.6 billion yen, but it is only 3% of what it received the previous year. Given the persistent criticism against it, the government seems to have belittled the impact of the incidence. If RIKEN had been properly managed and its researches had been closely supervised, those wrongdoings and the loss of the researcher who had contributed to the development of Japan’s science community might have been prevented. Japanese people should take a serious view of what happened at RIKEN and turn their stern eyes to improprieties on the part of both researchers and research institutes.

理研はその後も小保方氏をＳＴＡＰ細胞の再現実験に参加させるなど、積極的に不正解明に乗り出す姿勢を見せていない。理研が今問われているのは科学真理ではなく組織としての責任だ。一連の事件を受けて、理研への国からの交付金は１６億円削減されたが、前年の約３％減にすぎない。組織としてのあり方について批判を浴び続けたことを考えれば、国は今回の事件を過小にとらえていると思われる。もし、理研が組織として適正に運営され、研究が綿密に管理されていたならば、不正や日本科学界の発展に貢献してきた研究者の自殺を防ぐことができたかもしれない。事件を重く受け止め、科学者の不正や研究機関の組織体制には厳しい目を向けなければならない。

 (Written by: Naoto Takeda)