The Ministry of Science and Technology said on Friday that several people had been detained or punished since the National Audit Office found that seven professors in five universities were involved in academic corruption in April 2012.
The seven professors were accused of committing academic fraud and embezzling research funds of 25 million yuan ($4.08 million).
Among them, the fall of young academician Li Ning attracted attention and triggered heated discussion.
Li, born in 1962, was the first person in China to clone swine, using somatic-cell nuclear transfer. A somatic cell is any biological cell forming the body of an organism.
Li used to be a leading figure in the SCNT and cloning fields and was dubbed "the youngest academician in China".
In August, Li was detained and investigated on suspicion of embezzling research funds.
The Ministry of Science and Technology also gave details about four of the other professors guilty of embezzlement.
Former Zhejiang University professor Chen Yingxu and Song Maoqiang, a professor from Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, were also detained and punished.
Chen, a researcher in the control and treatment of water pollution together with the Ministry of Environmental Protection, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for embezzling research funds of nearly 10 million yuan. Song also faces a 10-year prison sentence for embezzlement and corruption.
Li Pengtao and Wang Xinyue, both professors at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, were arrested on a charge of embezzling research funds. They were engaged in the development of a new medicine with the National Health and Family Planning Commission and were accused of embezzling money from the project.
To prevent college instructors from behaving immorally or illegally, the Ministry of Education made clear last week that college teachers and professors are not allowed to take bribes from students and parents; plagiarize or copy other's academic achievements; or misuse research funds or academic resources in exchange for money.
The Ministry of Education said violators of the regulations face a warning, a demerit on their employment records, demotion, suspension, termination or the possibility of being handed over to the public security or judicial authorities, depending on the severity of their violations.
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