Tokyo, Japan – May 19, 2020 – LPIXEL Inc., a leader in image analysis and processing in life science and medical research, is pleased to announce that its image manipulation and duplication checking system, “ImaChek,” was featured in an article by Nature released on May 13. This article touches on the collaborative initiatives publishers will take to work with software companies to tackle the issue of image fraud in scientific papers. According to the article, in an analysis of more than 20,000 papers, up to 4% of them were reported to contain problematic images.

“Publishers launch joint effort to tackle altered images in research papers”
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01410-9

Ever since its inception, LPIXEL has been on a journey to alleviate the problems associated with research integrity, with special focus on images, by developing technology that flags inappropriately altered and reused images in scientific papers. The introduction of ImaChek to universities and research institutions is anticipated to play a critical role in maintaining the quality and reliability of papers prior to publication.

About ImaChek

Official Website：https://www.imachek.com/

Protecting Institutions from Intentional Misconduct and Honest Error
Research misconduct that involves inappropriately manipulated and duplicated images continues to be a growing problem. Though image manipulation and duplication can occur deliberately, they may also be caused by honest error, where authors accidentally overprocess the images used in their papers. By preventing misconduct derived from honest error, ImaChek can improve the quality of scientific papers, protect the author’s careers and trust of the academic community.

ImaChek Functions
1. PDF documents containing images can be uploaded directly to the system prior to publication
2. The system can automatically detect manipulated and duplicated images in scientific papers
3. A full report outlining the detection results can be downloaded

ImaChek Features
1. Enhance and maintain the quality of scientific papers
Checks for signs of manipulation and duplication that come from honest error and deliberate misconduct
2. Protect the reputation of institutions
Images can be checked in advance to prevent the onset of research misconduct
3. Reduce checking time for faster publication
The image inspection process is automated and more efficient

Inquiries related to ImaChek
LPIXEL Inc.
TEL：+81-3-6259-1972　Email：imachek＠lpixel.net

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About LPIXEL
LPIXEL is a University of Tokyo startup that specializes in providing advanced image analysis and processing technology for the life sciences. Ever since its inception, LPIXEL has been developing solutions tailored to detecting inappropriately manipulated and duplicated images used in scientific papers. LPIXEL’s work in protecting the integrity of research with focus on image data has been featured in a case book published by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED). LPIXEL also holds an impressive track record of providing seminars at over 120 universities and research institutions across Japan to educate life science researchers on the proper practices for processing images. For more information, please visit https://lpixel.net/en/.

Contact Details
LPIXEL Inc.
TEL：+81-3-6259-1972　Email：imachek＠lpixel.net