Scientific Integrity Principles and Best Practices: Recommendations from a Scientific Integrity Consortium.

A Scientific Integrity Consortium developed a set of recommended principles and best practices that can be used broadly across scientific disciplines as a mechanism for consensus on scientific integrity standards and to better equip scientists to operate in a rapidly changing research environment. The two principles that represent the umbrella under which scientific processes should operate are as follows: (1) Foster a culture of integrity in the scientific process. (2) Evidence-based policy interests may have legitimate roles to play in influencing aspects of the research process, but those roles should not interfere with scientific integrity. The nine best practices for instilling scientific integrity in the implementation of these two overarching principles are (1) Require universal training in robust scientific methods, in the use of appropriate experimental design and statistics, and in responsible research practices for scientists at all levels, with the training content regularly updated and presented by qualified scientists. (2) Strengthen scientific integrity oversight and processes throughout the research continuum with a focus on training in ethics and conduct. (3) Encourage reproducibility of research through transparency. (4) Strive to establish open science as the standard operating procedure throughout the scientific enterprise. (5) Develop and implement educational tools to teach communication skills that uphold scientific integrity. (6) Strive to identify ways to further strengthen the peer review process. (7) Encourage scientific journals to publish unanticipated findings that meet standards of quality and scientific integrity. (8) Seek harmonization and implementation among journals of rapid, consistent, and transparent processes for correction and/or retraction of published papers. (9) Design rigorous and comprehensive evaluation criteria that recognize and reward the highest standards of integrity in scientific research.

Scientific integrity resource guide: Efforts by federal agencies, foundations, nonprofit organizations, professional societies, and academia in the United States.

Scientific integrity is at the forefront of the scientific research enterprise. This paper provides an overview of key existing efforts on scientific integrity by federal agencies, foundations, nonprofit organizations, professional societies, and academia from 1989 to April 2016. It serves as a resource for the scientific community on scientific integrity work and helps to identify areas in which more action is needed. Overall, there is tremendous activity in this area and there are clear linkages among the efforts of the five sectors. All the same, scientific integrity needs to remain visible in the scientific community and evolve along with new research paradigms. High priority in instilling these values falls upon all stakeholders.

Achieving a transparent, actionable framework for public-private partnerships for food and nutrition research.

Officers and other representatives of more than a dozen food-, nutrition-, and health-related scientific societies and organizations, food industry scientists, and staff of the USDA, the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration, and the NIH convened on 8 December 2014 in Washington, DC, to reach a consensus among individuals participating on guiding principles for the development of research-oriented, food- and nutrition-related public-private partnerships. During the daylong working meeting, participants discussed and revised 12 previously published guidelines to ensure integrity in the conduct of food and nutrition research collaborations among public, nonprofit, and private sectors. They agreed to reconvene periodically to reassess the public-private partnership principles. This article presents the guiding principles and potential benefits, outlines key discussion points, and articulates points of agreement and reservation.

Insights and perspectives on emerging inputs to weight of evidence determinations for food safety: workshop proceedings.

This workshop aimed to elucidate the contribution of computational and emerging in vitro methods to the weight of evidence used by risk assessors in food safety assessments. The following issues were discussed: using in silico and high-throughput screening (HTS) data to confirm the safety of approved food ingredients, applying in silico and HTS data in the process of assessing the safety of a new food ingredient, and utilizing in silico and HTS data in communicating the safety of food ingredients while enhancing the public's trust in the food supply. Perspectives on integrating computational modeling and HTS assays as well as recommendations for optimizing predictive methods for risk assessment were also provided. Given the need to act quickly or proceed cautiously as new data emerge, this workshop also focused on effectively identifying a path forward in communicating in silico and in vitro data.

Principles for building public-private partnerships to benefit food safety, nutrition, and health research.

The present article articulates principles for effective public-private partnerships (PPPs) in scientific research. Recognizing that PPPs represent one approach for creating research collaborations and that there are other methods outside the scope of this article, PPPs can be useful in leveraging diverse expertise among government, academic, and industry researchers to address public health needs and questions concerned with nutrition, health, food science, and food and ingredient safety. A three-step process was used to identify the principles proposed herein: step 1) review of existing PPP guidelines, both in the peer-reviewed literature and at 16 disparate non-industry organizations; step 2) analysis of relevant successful or promising PPPs; and step 3) formal background interviews of 27 experienced, senior-level individuals from academia, government, industry, foundations, and non-governmental organizations. This process resulted in the articulation of 12 potential principles for establishing and managing successful research PPPs. The review of existing guidelines showed that guidelines for research partnerships currently reside largely within institutions rather than in the peer-reviewed literature. This article aims to introduce these principles into the literature to serve as a framework for dialogue and for future PPPs.

The new Dietary Reference Intakes in food labeling: the food industry's perspective.

The food industry appreciates the complexity of applying the new Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) in labeling. The industry is prepared to update food labels to reflect new nutrient recommendations and views upcoming changes as an opportunity to harmonize nutrition information across the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, MyPyramid.gov, and the food label. Members of the Grocery Manufacturers Association are unanimous in their belief that the food label be as useful to consumers as possible. This article raises discussion points, issues, and implications associated with implementation of the new DRIs on the food label.

Effects of two models of nutritional intervention on homebound older adults at nutritional risk.

OBJECTIVE: To test the feasibility of two models of home meal delivery with Meals-on-Wheels (MOW) applicants who were identified as being malnourished or "at-risk" as determined by the validated Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA). DESIGN: A 6-month, prospective comparative study of two nutrition intervention models with data collection at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months. Randomized treatment assignment was followed, with a few exceptions linked to particular client circumstances. SUBJECTS: A total of 203 older adults (age range = 60 to 90 years) newly applying for homebound meal service were enrolled. At baseline, the body mass index (BMI) was 26.3+/-7.2 (mean+/-SD) in the "Traditional" MOW model (101 subjects including 30 malnourished), and the BMI was 27.6+/-9.0 in the "New" MOW model (102 subjects including 26 malnourished) (P = ns). INTERVENTION: Study participants received either the Traditional MOW program of five hot meals per week, meeting 33% of the Daily Reference Intake (DRI) or the restorative, comprehensive New MOW program of three meals and two snacks per day, 7 days a week, meeting 100% of the DRI. Assessments were conducted in the home of the participants. Main outcome measures The MNA was used to evaluate nutritional risk and status of participants at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months. Standardized functional impairment scales, Activities of Daily Living (ADL), and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) evaluated limitations in activities of daily living and life management skills. Statistical analysis Comparisons between treatment groups were calculated with t tests or Wilcoxon rank-sum tests when appropriate. Comparisons among time periods between treatment groups were conducted with repeated measures analysis of variance. A general linear model was used to evaluate the relationship between change in functional status and BMI, controlling for sex. RESULTS: The New MOW group gained significantly more weight between baseline and 3 months than did the Traditional MOW group (2.78 lb vs -1.46 lb, respectively, P =.0120) and again between baseline and 6 months (4.30 lb vs -1.72 lb, respectively, P =.0004). MNA improved faster in the New MOW group. Functional change appeared to be related more to BMI and age than to treatment intervention. The malnourished participants in both groups took longer to affect positive change in nutrition measurements, with the New MOW group showing the most improvement over the 6-month measurement period. Both delivery models were well accepted. CONCLUSIONS: Applicants for home meal delivery have varying nutrition needs. By addressing nutritional risk, interventions can be targeted to meet these needs. A new, restorative, comprehensive meal program improved nutritional status and decreased nutritional risk and can possibly impact independence and functionality.