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Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office questioned Hwang to discover whether he knew that DNA test results of stem cell no. 1 documented in a 2004 paper were fabricated and whether he himself was involved. The stem cell, labeled NT-1, was used as evidence in the discredited paper published in the U.S. journal Science that Hwang and his team succeeded in growing stem cells from cloned embryos. Prosecutors said they also wanted to know if Hwang was aware that embryonic stem cells nos. 2 and 3 documented in another fraudulent paper published the following year were in fact fertilized stem cells left over at the MizMedi fertility clinic.

In questioning Kim Sun-jong, prosecutors focused on Hwang’s allegations that Kim swapped stem cells from cloned embryos Hwang claims to have made with the MizMedi cells. They reportedly have evidence that Kim had a key role in fabricating data.

Yoon Hyun-soo and Lee Yang-han were grilled over their part in manipulating the DNA test results for the 2004 paper.

Disgraced cloning scientist Hwang Woo-suk reports to the Seoul Central Prosecutor’s Office to be questioned on Thursday morning.

The four presented themselves at the prosecutor’s office from 8:00 a.m. in 20-minute intervals. Hwang briefly greeted reporters before facing his interrogators.

Prosecutors will reportedly announce interim investigation results next week.

(englishnews@chosun.com )