RETRACTED ARTICLE: Coffee and caffeine potentiate the antiamyloidogenic activity of melatonin via inhibition of Aβ oligomerization and modulation of the Tau-mediated pathway in N2a/APP cells

This paper has been retracted.

Zhang LF, Zhou ZW, Wang ZH, et al. Drug Des Devel Ther. 2014;9:241–272.

The Editor and Publisher of Drug Design, Development and Therapy wish to retract the published article. Concerns were raised regarding the alleged duplication of bands in the western blot images from Figures 12, 15 and 16. Specifically,

• Western blot bands for Figure 12D, Coff+Mel, β-actin appear to have been duplicated with the same bands from Figure 15A, Coff+Mel, β-actin, and Figure 15A, Caff+Mel, β-actin.
• Western blot bands for Figure 14A, Coff+Mel, β-actin appear to have been duplicated with the same bands for Figure 14A, Caff+Mel, β-actin.
• Western blot bands for Figure 14A, Coff+Mel, β-actin, and Caff+Mel, β-actin appear to have been duplicated with the same bands for Figure 16A, Coff+Mel, β-actin, and Figure 16A, Caff+Mel, β-actin.
• Western blot bands for Figure 15A, Coff+Mel, β-actin appear to have been duplicated with the same bands for Figure 15A, Caff+Mel, β-actin.
• The western blot band for Figure 16A, Coff+Mel, p-Akt, Lane C, appears to have been duplicated with the same band for Figure 16A, Caff+Mel, p-Akt, Lane C.

The authors responded to our queries but were unable to provide a satisfactory explanation for the alleged duplication, nor were they able to provide original data that could adequately verify the findings. The Editor requested to retract the article and the authors were notified of this.

We have been informed in our decision-making by our policy on publishing ethics and integrity and the COPE guidelines on retractions.

The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as “Retracted”.