Editors at Applied Biological Chemistry have retracted a study that claimed fisetin, a plant-derived flavonoid, protected rats against kidney injury and fibrosis caused by diesel particulate matter through effects on IL-23/mTOR/S6K-b1 signaling and caveolin-1 expression. The retraction note was published on 19 September 2026, and the notice appears as Volume 69, article number 69 of the journal.
The original article, published on 7 February 2026 under DOI 10.1186/s13765-025-01072-z, was retracted after concerns were raised about the animal experiments conducted in the research. An investigation by the publisher found significant ethical concerns. According to the retraction notice, the welfare of the animals and the methodologies used in the study do not appear to adhere to ethical guidelines.
The authors were given an opportunity to respond. Upon request, they provided the ethics approval and the experimental protocol for the study. However, the editors concluded that the documents did not provide a satisfactory response to the concerns raised, and that they appeared to indicate breaches of the journal’s editorial policies for research involving animals.
On that basis, the Editors-in-Chief stated that they no longer have confidence in the results and conclusions of the article. Author Yasmin K. Mahmoud, writing on behalf of all authors, disagrees with the retraction, according to the notice. The retraction note is open access and lists the author group including Yasmin K. Mahmoud, Hoda E. Mohamad, Ahmed A. Hasan, Hager Y. Mohamed and Omer I. Fantoukh. The notice had recorded 462 accesses at the time of the source record.
Subject of Research: Retraction of a rat study on fisetin's protective effects against diesel particulate matter-induced kidney injury
Article Title: Retraction Note: Fisetin protects against renal injury and fibrosis evoked by diesel particulate matter via downregulation of IL-23/mTOR/S6K-b1 signaling and caveolin-1 expression in rats
Article References: Mahmoud, Y. K., Mohamad, H. E., Hasan, A. A., Mohamed, H. Y., & Fantoukh, O. I. (2026). Retraction Note: Fisetin protects against renal injury and fibrosis evoked by diesel particulate matter via downregulation of IL-23/mTOR/S6K-b1 signaling and caveolin-1 expression in rats. Applied Biological Chemistry, 69(1), Article 69. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13765-026-01138-6
Image Credits: AI Generated
DOI: 10.1186/s13765-026-01138-6
Keywords: retraction, fisetin, diesel particulate matter, kidney injury, fibrosis, animal ethics, Applied Biological Chemistry, research integrity, rats, IL-23/mTOR signaling, caveolin-1, Editors-in-Chief
News Source: Bethany Barker. (October 29, 2026). Journal retracts rat study on fisetin and diesel pollution kidney damage over ethics concerns. Scienmag.
