---
title: "Retraction notice: concerns over figures in study on CCDC6 sumoylation and CREB1 regulation"
id: "plos-one-15-retraction-identification-of-sumoylation-sites-in-ccdc6-the-first-identified"
canonical_url: "https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/plos-one-15-retraction-identification-of-sumoylation-sites-in-ccdc6-the-first-identified"
content_type: "clinical_feed_article"
specialty: "Oncology"
source_name: "PLOS ONE (Medicine)"
source_url: "https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0357529"
published_at: "2026-09-03T14:00:00.000Z"
evidence_level: "Journal Feed"
license: "CC-BY-NC-4.0 / Informational Use"
---
# Retraction notice: concerns over figures in study on CCDC6 sumoylation and CREB1 regulation
## Provenance & Clinical Metadata
- **Canonical URL:** https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/plos-one-15-retraction-identification-of-sumoylation-sites-in-ccdc6-the-first-identified
- **Specialty:** [Oncology](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/oncology.md)
- **Primary Source:** PLOS ONE (Medicine)
- **Source URL:** [Original Journal Publication](https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0357529)
- **Published At:** 2026-09-03T14:00:00.000Z
- **Evidence Rating:** Journal Feed
## Executive GIST (TL;DR)
- This PLOS One article is a formal **retraction** of a 2012 research paper that reported identification of sumoylation sites in **CCDC6** and their role in regulating **CREB1** transcriptional activity in the context of papillary thyroid carcinoma. - The retraction was published by The PLOS One Editors on September 3, 2026 and cites unresolved concerns about image data presented in multiple figures (Figs 1, 3, 4, and S3). - Specific image concerns include apparent duplication or unexpected similarity of Western blot bands and microscopy panels across lanes and panels that were supposed to represent independent results. - Instances called out: Fig 1C (Ni-NTA pull down IB anti-HIS lanes 2 and 4; total extract IB anti-CCDC6 lanes 2 and 3); Fig 3C (similarities between CCDC6wt Flag and CCDC6 TM Flag when background-adjusted; similarities between CCDC6 TM GFP and Hoechst and between Fig S3 CCDC6wt GFP and Hoechst); and Figs 4B/4C CREB1 panels (lanes appearing similar despite representing different experiments). - The corresponding author acknowledged a figure-preparation error for Fig S3 and provided replacement panels for that figure. - For Figs 4B and 4C the corresponding author explained that the CREB1 panels were a shared loading control derived from the same master lysate run on the same gel, and that Fig 4C included a spliced panel; uncropped original blots underlying those panels are no longer available. - The corresponding author’s responses did not resolve editorial concerns about Figs 1C and 3C. - The editors therefore retracted the article; one author (AC) did not agree with the retraction, and other named coauthors either did not respond or could not be reached. - The retraction notice cites the original article reference and provides DOI and publication metadata; it is open access under a Creative Commons Attribution License.
## Clinical Analysis & Structured Key Points
Retraction: Identification of sumoylation sites in CCDC6, the first identified RET partner gene in papillary thyroid carcinoma, uncovers a mode of regulating CCDC6 function on CREB1 transcriptional activity | PLOS One Browse Subject Areas ? Click through the PLOS taxonomy to find articles in your field. For more information about PLOS Subject Areas, click here . Article Metrics Comments Media Coverage Reader Comments Following the publication of this article [ 1 ] concerns were raised about results presented in Figs 1, 3, 4, and S3. Specifically, In Fig 1C, the following bands appear more similar than would be expected from independent results: Ni-NTA pull down IB anti-HIS lanes 2 and 4. Total extract IB anti-CCDC6 lanes 2 and 3. The following panels appear more similar than would be expected from independent results: Fig 3C CCDC6wt Flag and Fig 3C CCDC6 TM Flag when levels are adjusted to visualize background. Fig 3C CCDC6 TM GFP and Hoechst, and Fig S3 CCDC6wt GFP and Hoechst respectively. Fig 4B CREB1 lanes 2-5 and Fig 4C CREB1 lanes 1-4 appear similar despite representing different experimental results. The corresponding author confirmed that the Fig S3 CCDC6wt GFP and Hoechst panels were incorrect as a result of a figure preparation error and provided replacement panels. Regarding the concerns with Figs 4B and 4C, the corresponding author stated that the CREB1 panels serve as a shared loading control for these figures derived from the same master lysate mix run on the same gel. They clarified that the Fig 4C CREB1 panel was spliced, such that the first lane of the Fig 4C CREB1 panel corresponds to the first lane of the Fig 4B CREB1 panel. They stated that the uncropped blots underlying the Figs 4B and 4C results are no longer available. The corresponding author’s response to the concerns with Fig 1C and Fig 3C did not resolve the editorial concerns. In light of the above unresolved concerns, the PLOS One editors retract this article. AC did not agree with the retraction. CL, FM, VL, SP, DS, and AF either did not respond directly or could not be reached. Reference 1. Luise C, Merolla F, Leone V, Paladino S, Sarnataro D, Fusco A, et al. RETRACTED: Identification of sumoylation sites in CCDC6, the first identified RET partner gene in papillary thyroid carcinoma, uncovers a mode of regulating CCDC6 function on CREB1 transcriptional activity. PLoS One. 2012;7(11):e49298. pmid:23145146 View Article PubMed/NCBI Google Scholar Citation: The PLOS One Editors (2026) Retraction: Identification of sumoylation sites in CCDC6, the first identified RET partner gene in papillary thyroid carcinoma, uncovers a mode of regulating CCDC6 function on CREB1 transcriptional activity. PLoS One 21(9): e0357529. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357529 Published: September 3, 2026 Copyright: © 2026 The PLOS One Editors. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Download PDF Citation XML Print Share Reddit Facebook LinkedIn Mendeley Bluesky Email Related PLOS Articles RETRACTION pertains to RETRACTED: Identification of Sumoylation Sites in CCDC6, the First Identified RET Partner Gene in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma, Uncovers a Mode of Regulating CCDC6 Function on CREB1 Transcriptional Activity View Page PDF Advertisement
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