Japanese researcher fails to replicate her 'stem cell breakthrough'

Haruko Obokata, who rose to fame for her breakthrough research but was later disgraced when it was revealed to be flawed, ends the year on a very low note.

The scandal involving her research, which detailed simple ways to reprogramme mature cells back to an embryonic-like state, eventually led to the retraction of papers published in the influential journal Nature and tarnished the reputation of Japanese scientific research.