title: Strengthening protections for human subjects: proposed restrictions on the publication of transplant research involving prisoners.
abstract: Publication is one of the primary rewards in the academic research community and is the first step in the dissemination of a new discovery that could lead to recognition and opportunity. Because of this, the publication of research can serve as a tacit endorsement of the methodology behind the science. This becomes a problem when vulnerable populations that are incapable of giving legitimate informed consent, such as prisoners, are used in research. The problem is especially critical in the field of transplant research, in which unverified consent can enable research that exploits the vulnerabilities of prisoners, especially those awaiting execution. Because the doctrine of informed consent is central to the protection of vulnerable populations, we have performed a historical analysis of the standards of informed consent in codes of international human subject protections to form the foundation for our limit and ban recommendations: (1) limit the publication of transplant research involving prisoners in general and (2) ban the publication of transplant research involving executed prisoners in particular.
authors: Center for Bioethics and, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA. valap001@umn.edu
authors: Maryam
authors: M
authors: Valapour
authors: Kristin M
authors: KM
authors: Paulson
authors: Alisha
authors: A
authors: Hilde
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000941:ethics / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000592:standards; D002203:Capital Punishment / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D035081:Editorial Policies; D033161:Government Regulation; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000592:standards; D016377:Organ Transplantation / Q000941:ethics / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000592:standards; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000941:ethics / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000592:standards; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011329:Prisoners / Q000266:history / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D035842:Research Subjects / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014019:Tissue Donors / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000600:supply & distribution; D035862:Vulnerable Populations / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence