Vol. 112, No. 14 PerspectivesOpen AccessConflicts of Interest: Ayotte’s Responseis accompanied byStudy on Failures to Disclose Conflicts of Interest in Environmental Health Perspectives Pierre Ayotte Pierre Ayotte Search for more papers by this author Published:1 October 2004https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.112-a796aAboutSectionsPDF ToolsDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InReddit Goozner contacted me by e-mail on 24 June 2004, and I promptly, honestly, and to the best of my knowledge answered questions regarding his claim that I did not disclose a conflict of interest while publishing our article (Bilrha et al. 2003) in EHP. Although I thought I made it clear that he was wrong in his allegations, he nevertheless chose to go ahead and include my name in a report published on the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s (CSPI) website (CSPI 2004) and in his letter to EHP. Here are the facts.In our 2003 manuscript (Bilrha et al. 2003), we acknowledged funding from the Canadian Network of Toxicology Centers (CNTC). As the corresponding author, I read the conflict of interest statement and indicated that I had nothing to declare, neither for me nor for the coauthors. I did not know at that time that the Canadian Chemical Producer Association was partly funding the CNTC. On their website (CNTC 2004), the CNTC indicates being funded mostly by public sources (90%) and does not mention the identity of private sources. In any case, had I known this at the time of publication, it would not have changed anything, because I never personally received any funds (or compensation of any sort, or stood to gain financially) from the Canadian Chemical Producer Association or the Canadian Chlorine Coordinating Committee. Goozner is wrong when he mentions that several of my previous studies were funded by these interest groups. I was a coauthor on two articles published previously in EHP, in which funding from these interest groups was acknowledged, along with other sources of funding (Sandau et al. 2000, 2002). I collaborated in the work, but I was not the recipient of funds obtained from the Canadian Chemical Producer Association or the Canadian Chlorine Coordinating Committee. Funds from these organizations went to the principal investigator at Carleton University, and not a penny was transferred to me.I truly believe that the authors of scientific manuscripts should disclose relevant conflicts of interest, and I support enforcing disclosure by appropriate means. However, because Goozner elected to choose the easy way by conducting an Internet-based research, without actually talking to me, he wrongly associated my name with scientific misconduct. I am presently seeking legal advice on this matter.ReferencesBilrha H, Roy R, Moreau B, Belles-Isles M, Dewailly É, Ayotte P. 2003. In vitro activation of cord blood mononuclear cells and cytokine production in a remote coastal population exposed to organochlorines and methyl mercury. Environ Health Perspect 111:1952-195714644672. Link, Google ScholarCNTC 2004. Canadian Network of Toxicology Centres. Available: http://www.uoguelph.ca/cntc/ [accessed21 July 2004]. Google ScholarCSPI 2004. Unrevealed: Non-Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest in Four Leading Medical and Scientific Journals. Washington, DC:Center for Science in the Public Interest. Available: http://cspinet.org/new/pdf/unrevealed_final.pdf [accessed 15 July 2004]. Google ScholarSandau CD, Ayotte P, Dewailly É, Duffe J, Norstrom RJ. 2000. Analysis of hydroxylated metabolites of PCBs (OH-PCBs) and other chlorinated phenolic compounds in whole blood from Canadian Inuit. Environ Health Perspect 108:611-61610903613. Link, Google ScholarSandau CD, Ayotte P, Dewailly É, Duffe J, Norstrom RJ. 2002. Pentachlorophenol and hydroxylated polychlorinated biphenyl metabolites in umbilical cord plasma of neonates from coastal populations in Québec. Environ Health Perspect 110:411-41711940460. Link, Google ScholarFiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsRelated articlesStudy on Failures to Disclose Conflicts of Interest in Environmental Health PerspectivesOct 1, 2004, 12:00:00 AMEnvironmental Health Perspectives Vol. 112, No. 14 October 2004Metrics About Article Metrics Publication History Originally published1 October 2004Published in print1 October 2004 Financial disclosuresPDF download License information EHP is an open-access journal published with support from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health. All content is public domain unless otherwise noted. Note to readers with disabilities EHP strives to ensure that all journal content is accessible to all readers. 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