Alexandru S. Biris is an Associate Professor in the Department of Applied Science at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and the Director/Chief Scientist at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences.[1] He is self-claimed to be a researcher who specializes in nanoscience and nanotechnology. His major research topics include developing electrodynamic screens for space exploration in collaboration with NASA, inventing techniques to mass produce high-purity carbon nanotubes, and designing and developing filters based on carbon nanostructures which can efficiently remove biochemical contaminants from air and water, and also include advances in how cancer cells can be targeted and destroyed through drug delivery.

Alexandru S. Biris was one of seven winners of the 2011 faculty excellence award for research at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock,[2] where he leads the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. It was officially claimed that within 5 years Dr. Biris has been published in more than 240 journals, presented at numerous international conferences, and been granted more than 33 U.S. patents. [3] [4] He is on the editorial board of Particulate Science and Technology: An International Journal,[5] Journal of Nanomedicine & Nanotechnology [6] and is an advisory board member for ISOS Group LLC, an international company that focuses on green energy technologies.[3]

However, he has been accused of scientific misconduct, including plagiarism and data fabrication, in earlier papers in this field. An independent organization investigated scientific misconduct in his research.[7] But Biris did not respond to several phone calls or email messages, and a spokesperson for the university for UALR did not return calls for comment. As of 2023, Alexandru Biris has had 4 research papers published together that have been retracted.[8]

Personal life and education

Alexandru S. Biris was born into a middle-class family (Lidia and Alexandru – Radu Biris) in Cluj-Napoca, Romania on May 14, 1974. He is the eldest of two children, and has a younger sister, Gabriela. He received his B.S. in physics in 1996 and M.S. Material Science in 1997 from the University of Cluj – Napoca, Romania. In 2004, he obtained his Ph.D. in Engineering Science from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where he studied under Professor Malay K. Mazumder.[9] His Dissertation title is “Appearance and Texture Control of Powder Coated Films”. After his Ph.D., he was hired as research associate at the Department of Chemistry, ULAR, to research nanotechnology.

Biris' father, Alexandru Radu Biris, is a professor and researcher at the National Institute for Research and Development of Isotopic and Molecular Technologies in Romania. His father helped him with lots of publications. His mother, Lidia, is a physics teacher. His younger sister, Gabriela, works for Johnson & Johnson in Romania. His first marriage with Renalda Ioana Rusu on July 19th, 1997, only lasted one year, and divorced on Nov. 23rd, 1998. At Little Rock, he married his former colleague Glediana Rexha as his second wife.

Career

Alexandru Biris has been the Chief Scientist of the UA Little Rock Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences (CINS) since it began in 2005, serving as director since 2009. In 2007, Biris became an assistant professor in the Department of Applied Science at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Biris claims his expertise including nanotechnology, Raman spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction, planetary instrumentation (Mars dust analyzer), particulate science, nanoparticle and carbon nanotube generation, nanomedicine, nanocomposite materials for space exploration, surface technology, nano-sensors and bio nano-sensors, materials science and engineering, coating technology, hydrogen interaction with metals, alloys, and carbon nanostructures.[10]

"It's very easy to forget about collaboration because you can be very self-sufficient, but we are so weak. It's teamwork, teamwork, teamwork," he said, "trying to share everything we have with whoever wants to work with us, basically. [9] He asked everyone who use the facilities at the center to include him as co-author in their publications. Published a lot, but quite a few are first-authored work. Others are from customers who use the facilities at the center.

"He has been extraordinary at getting people to work with him from around the state and particularly he has been able to get some joint things going with people from the four-year schools around the state," said Mary Good, the dean of UALR's Donaghey College of Information Science and Systems Engineering. "He's got some interesting work going on with a professor from Arkansas Tech [University in Russellville] and some with a person down at Henderson State [University in Arkadelphia] and some stuff at Arkansas State [University in Jonesboro] and, of course, he does some direct collaboration with both the medical school and the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.[9]

He holds three patents and has more than 20 patent applications in nanotechnology, tissue engineering, bio-nanotechnology, space exploration and materials science. He is working on patents in energy and sensors for military applications. Among his research achievements are the design of carbon nanostructure-based filters to remove biochemical contaminants from air and water and the development of a tissue regeneration system to grow bone tissue, already successfully used in 33 clinical trials.[9]

In 2011, he was named as a winner for the faculty excellence award for research at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where he leads the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences.[2][11]

Scientific misconducts

Published peer-reviewed works

Biris's research into nanomaterials and nanotechnology has been the subject of cheating due to concerns regarding reproducibility. In 2007, Biris published a paper on “Influence of the RF Excitation of the Catalyst System on the Morphology of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes” in Journal of Physical Chemistry C 2007, 111, 48, 17970–17975.[12] This paper by Biris et al., DOI: 10.1021/jp0740346, was retracted at the request of the Editor-in-Chief due to violations of the Ethical Guidelines to Publication of Chemical Research of the American Chemical Society for reason of unacceptable redundant inclusion of text and graphics contained within a previously published paper in Chemistry of Materials (DOI: 10.1021/cm062237l) [13] and duplicated in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C and ACS Nano (DOI: 10.1021/nn900887m). [14]

Data fabrication was found in most of Biris’ publications. For instance, In his article “Catalyst excitation by radio frequency for improved carbon nanotubes synthesis”, [15] Biris simply fabricated his Chemical Physics Letters 429 (2006) 204–208 article by coping Fig1a and Fig2a in Carbon 44 (2006) 2032–2038 - also shows up in as Fig2a (left), and Nanotechnology 21 (2010) 045301 as Fig1a. Additionally he also used Fig3b in Chemical Physics Letters 429 (2006) 204–208 for Fig2a in Journal of Biomedical Optics 14 (2) , (2009) 021007, and Fig1b in Nanotechnology 21 (2010) 045301, although the experimental methods are quite different in these publications.

Besides data fabrication, Biris also published the same results in multiple journals. His articles “Graphitic materials for RF thermal ablation of tumors”,[16] and “Cobalt nanoparticles coated with crystalline graphitic shells as high efficient and localized RF absorbers for tumor thermal ablation”, [17] are the same. His article on “‘One Step Synthesis of Ceramic Carbon Nanotube Composites with Nanojunctions’ in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Letters” was retracted due to the duplication of “‘Novel synthesis process for ceramic carbon nanotube nanocomposites with nanojunctions’ in Physica Status Solidi A-Applications and Materials Science 206, 2826 (2009)” Figure 1, 2 and 3ab in NNL are copied from Figure 4, Figure 5, Figure 6c and Figure 7 in Phys. Status Solidi A 206, 2826 (2009).

More recently, Biris continue committing data fabrication. For example, Figure 4 in Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine 21 (2019) 102048[18] was reused as Figure 2 for a different article Scientific Reports volume 10, 3362 (2020) [19] In his another article on Scientific Reports. 12: 8671,[20] Figure 4b is the same as Figure 5a, he used the same image to address different things.

Biris never got punished for his integrity issues but received numerous awards instead. Even under the awareness of so many retractions of Biris publications, the university still frequently awarded him with honors. In 2014, with the university leaders’ commendation, Biris was selected among the state's first research fellows. [9]“I am pleased that Dr. Biris has been recognized for his remarkable research as an ARA Fellow,” said UALR Chancellor Joel Anderson. “His record as a researcher, teacher, and mentor speaks for itself. In a state with limited resources, Dr. Biris has been a facilitator for leveraging funds, and his belief in nurturing the next generation of scientists is evident in his work with students.” Biris became a gem at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Mary Good, the dean of UALR's Donaghey College of Information Science and Systems Engineering, praised Biris "did some really neat work." "He just clearly was the right person to be the scientific driver behind it. He is a bit unique in the sense that we do not normally hire our own graduates. But he is an extraordinary young man and we've made an exception, and so far, our judgment has been more than borne out as being a good one."[9]

"He doesn't want to do for others, he's an encourager and he helps, but it's important for them to do the work themselves," says Bill Walker, the UALR's vice chancellor for advancement, who considers Biris a friend as well as a colleague.[9]

With so many leaders’ unconditional rapport, academic misconduct makes Biris even more successful. He got promoted in professor rank and a high salary raise. It was found that about two third of the publications in his faculty applications are problematic and some don't even exist.[21] Note that University of Arkansas at Little Rock's ranking in the 2024 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, #390.[22]

Spin-out company NuShores Biosciences LLC

In 2014, Alexandru Biris formed a startup company called NuShores Biosciences. This was designed to exploit patents held by Biris and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. NuShores Biosciences, LLC (NuShores), [23] was formed to commercialize patented bone and tissue regeneration technologies developed at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock from over $12 million in grant research to date. Biris won a $1.7 million Fast Track grant from the National Institutes of Health to support NuShores’ bone regeneration research. Biris holds the position of Chief Technology Officer at the company.

References

  1. ^ Biris, Alexandru (April 30, 2011). "Research Staff at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, University of Arkansas at Little Rock". UALR Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "University of Arkansas at Little Rock 2011 Faculty Excellence : Alexandru S. Biris – University Winner". University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Office of the Provost, University of Arkansas at Little Rock. April 30, 2011. Retrieved March 31, 2024.}
  3. ^ a b Biris, Alexandru (April 30, 2011). "Alexandru S. Biris - Forefront of Nanotechnology Research". Faculty of excellence. No. 2011. Office of the Provost, University of Arkansas at Little Rock. University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  4. ^ "How can Alexandru Biris be so successful at University of Arkansas at Little Rock? In just 5 years Mr. Biris published in more than 240 journals, presented at numerous international conferences, and been granted more than 33 U.S. patents". www.quora.com. quora.com. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  5. ^ Biris, Alexandru. "Particulate Science and Technology Editorial board". Particulate Science and Technology Editorial board. Taylor and Francis Online. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  6. ^ Biris, Alexandru. "Editorial Board of Journal of Nanomedicine & Nanotechnology". Walsh Medical Media. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  7. ^ Biris, Alexandru (26 September 2012). "Reused figures lead to two chemistry retractions, one correction". retractionwatch.com. retractionwatch. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  8. ^ Biris, Alexandru. "PubPeer: Alexandru Sorin Biris' data fraud". PUBPEER The online Journal club. PUBPEER. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Dishongh, Kimberly (September 27, 2009). "Alexandru Sorin Biris As head of UALR's Nanotechnology Center, Romanian native Alexandru Biris hopes the center's work will ultimately help keep young scientists from leaving Arkansas". head of UALR's Nanotechnology Center. No. 2009. arkansasonline.com. the Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  10. ^ Biris, Alexandru. "Dr. Alexandru Biris Director/Chief Scientist". Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  11. ^ Biris, Alexandru. "Faculty Excellence: Alexandu Biris". Youtube. UALR. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  12. ^ Biris, Alexandru S.; Schmitt, Thomas C.; Little, Reginald B.; Li, Zhongrui; Xu, Yang; Biris, Alexandru R.; Lupu, Dan; Dervishi, Enkeleda; Trigwell, Steve; Miller, Dwight W.; Rahman, Zia (December 2007). "Retraction Notice for "Influence of the RF Excitation of the Catalyst System on the Morphology of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes"". The Journal of Physical Chemistry C. 111 (48): 17970–17975. doi:10.1021/jp0740346.
  13. ^ Dervishi, E.; Li, Z.; Biris, A. R.; Lupu, D.; Trigwell, S.; Biris, A. S. (January 2007). "Correction to Morphology of Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes Affected by the Thermal Stability of the Catalyst System". Chemistry of Materials. 19 (2): 179–184. doi:10.1021/cm062237l.
  14. ^ Khodakovskaya, Mariya; Dervishi, Enkeleda; Mahmood, Meena; Xu, Yang; Li, Zhongrui; Watanabe, Fumiya; Biris, Alexandru S. (2012). "Retraction Notice for Carbon Nanotubes Are Able To Penetrate Plant Seed Coat and Dramatically Affect Seed Germination and Plant Growth". ACS Nano. 6 (8): 7541. doi:10.1021/nn302965w. PMID 22901075.
  15. ^ Biris, A.R.; Biris, A.S.; Lupu, D.; Trigwell, S.; Dervishi, E.; Rahman, Z.; Marginean, P. (2006). "Catalyst excitation by radio frequency for improved carbon nanotubes synthesis". Chemical Physics Letters. 429 (1–3): 204–208. Bibcode:2006CPL...429..204B. doi:10.1016/j.cplett.2006.08.007.
  16. ^ Biris, Alexandru (18 September 2009). "Graphitic Materials for RF Thermal Ablation of Tumors". IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications. 45 (6): 2162–2169. doi:10.1109/TIA.2009.2031918. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  17. ^ Xu, Y.; Mahmood, M.; Li, Z.; Dervishi, E.; Trigwell, S.; Zharov, V. P.; Ali, N; Saini, V; Biris, Alexandru R; Lupu, D; Boldor, D; Biris, Alexandru S (22 September 2008). "Cobalt nanoparticles coated with graphitic shells as localized radio frequency absorbers for cancer therapy". Nanotechnology. 19 (43): 435102. Bibcode:2008Nanot..19Q5102X. doi:10.1088/0957-4484/19/43/435102. PMID 21832683. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  18. ^ Pandanaboina, Sahitya Chetan; Alghazali, Karrer M.; Nima, Zeid A.; Alawajji, Raad A.; Sharma, Krishna Deo; Watanabe, Fumiya; Saini, Viney; Biris, Alexandru S. (2019). "Plasmonic nano surface for neuronal differentiation and manipulation". Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine. 21: 102048. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2019.102048. PMID 31271878.
  19. ^ Darrigues, Emilie; Nima, Zeid A.; Nedosekin, Dmitry A.; Watanabe, Fumiya; Alghazali, Karrer M.; Zharov, Vladimir P.; Biris, Alexandru S. (2020). "Tracking Gold Nanorods' Interaction with Large 3D Pancreatic-Stromal Tumor Spheroids by Multimodal Imaging: Fluorescence, Photoacoustic, and Photothermal Microscopies". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 3362. Bibcode:2020NatSR..10.3362D. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-59226-6. PMC 7042370. PMID 32099027.
  20. ^ Jawad, Hind J.; Yadem, Aayire C.; Menyaev, Yulian A.; Sarimollaoglu, Mustafa; Armstrong, Jillian N.; Watanabe, Fumiya; Biris, Alexandru S.; Stumhofer, Jason S.; Nedosekin, Dmitry (2022). "Towards rainbow portable Cytophone with laser diodes for global disease diagnostics". Scientific Reports. 12 (1): 8671. Bibcode:2022NatSR..12.8671J. doi:10.1038/s41598-022-11452-w. PMC 9126638. PMID 35606373.
  21. ^ Biris, Alexandru. "Alexandru Biris' CV for faculty application". Google Docs. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  22. ^ "University of Arkansas at Little Rock ranking". usnews.com. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  23. ^ Biris, Alexandru (18 April 2018). "NuShores Biosciences, LLC (NuShores)". NuShores Biosciences, LLC (NuShores). Retrieved 31 March 2024.
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