Chu et al. studied the effectiveness of a compound called Impaza, which they hoped would enhance erectile function in male rats. They reported that it did.
So far, so usual.
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But then, on May 21, 2020, Chu et al.’s paper got slapped with an Expression of Concern by the journal. On June 23, the paper was retracted.
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This is where things get interesting. When the editor states that “the reagent is diluted beyond the point to which any active molecules are expected to be present”; this sounds very much like they are saying the reagent (meaning the Impaza compound) was a homeopathic treatment.
Homeopathy is a branch of alternative medicine based on the belief that the more dilute a remedy is, the more powerful it becomes. Notoriously, most homeopathic remedies are so dilute that they no longer contain even one molecule of the original ingredients. They are just water.
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This raises the question of how the Chu et al. paper passed peer-review in the first place. I suspect the reviewers just didn’t spot the single reference to homeopathy and rubber-stamped the (otherwise quite unremarkable) paper… I’m not sure, but I’d bet that someone tipped the journal off about the homeopathy that had slipped into their pages. And I further suspect that this person was Alexander Panchin, author of a number of recent articles criticizing Impaza and other similar homeopathy-in-disguise products.