A recent investigation conducted by the City University of New York (CUNY) has found that neuroscientist Hoau-Yan Wang, whose studies are foundational to an experimental Alzheimer’s drug called simufilam, was “reckless” in his failure to keep or provide original data. This misconduct has been deemed a significant violation of research standards. The investigation also revealed errors in some of the papers co-authored by Wang and Lindsay H. Burns, the chief scientist at Cassava Sciences, the pharmaceutical company that produces simufilam. The CUNY committee investigating the matter reserved their harshest criticism for Wang, citing his “egregious misconduct in data management and record keeping.”
Scientists have been skeptical about the drug’s efficacy and mode of action, with some accusing Cassava Sciences and Wang of manipulating the results of clinical trials. Furthermore, two scientists filed a citizen’s petition with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expressing concerns over the quality and integrity of the research supporting simufilam. Cassava’s founder and CEO, Remi Barbier, called these scientists “bad actors” due to their profiting from a decline in the company’s stock.
The release of the investigation report resulted in a 40% increase in short selling of Cassava stocks. Cassava’s market value has drastically decreased, falling from nearly $5 billion to around $624 million. Other experts in Alzheimer’s disease have also criticized the published results, especially in terms of irregularities in the images used. The Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Institutes of Health have launched their own investigations into Cassava’s research. Additionally, scientific journals that published Wang’s papers have expressed concern about their integrity and accuracy, with one journal retracting five of his papers after an investigation.
The CUNY committee faced difficulties in accessing Wang’s files and primary data, leading to an inability to assess most of the allegations against him objectively. Nevertheless, the report concluded that the evidence suggested deliberate scientific misconduct by Wang in 14 of the 31 allegations. Cassava Sciences responded to the report, stating that it focused on internal record-keeping failures rather than proving data manipulation. CUNY declined to comment on these allegations. Wang claimed that some of his research records were missing due to the college discarding boxes in response to COVID-19 protocols, a statement that the college denies.
