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WIRE: 07/16/2001 8:10 am ET U.S. Stem Cell Researcher Defects to Britain By Ben Hirschler, European Pharmaceuticals Correspondent LONDON (Reuters) - A leading U.S. stem-cell scientist has defected from California to Britain in a reverse "brain drain" that highlights a transatlantic gulf over the controversial area of medical research. The University of Cambridge, in eastern England, said on Monday that Roger Pedersen, from the University of California, San Francisco, would take up a lecturing post in the department of surgery in September. "We anticipate that he will play a significant academic role and participate in bringing stem cells into use for the treatment of human diseases," a spokeswoman said. Stem cells are master cells that can transform themselves into other types of cells in the body. They could one day be used to regenerate organs and repair damage caused by disorders such as Alzheimer's, diabetes, heart disease and stroke. But the fact they are sourced from human embryos makes them highly controversial. Britain earlier this year became the first country in the world explicitly to legalese cloning of human embryos for stem-cell and other research purposes. The United States, by contrast, prohibits federal money for research in which a human embryo would be destroyed or placed at risk, and President Bush is due to decide shortly whether to tighten restrictions on federally funded research. British academics and biotechnology entrepreneurs said Pederson's move to Cambridge -- where the original work on deriving embryonic stem cells from mice was done -- showed how research could move from the U.S. if obstacles became too great. "If the climate continues to deteriorate in the U.S. and remains stable in the UK, there may be several more high-profile defections which will put the UK in a very competitive position," said Martin Edwards, chief executive of Europe's first listed stem-cell company, ReNeuron Holdings Plc. U.S. DOMINATES...FOR NOW At the moment U.S. scientists and corporations still dominate in the emerging field. James Thomson of the University of Wisconsin and John Gearhart of Johns Hopkins University pioneered the isolation of human embryonic stem cells while Menlo Park, California-based Geron Corp is the world's leading stem-cell company. But U.S researchers are worried a tougher government stance could undermine that lead, since many projects -- even if they are mainly privately funded -- rely on some federal money. Meanwhile, other groups in Israel, Australia and Britain are chasing hard, according to Professor Richard Gardner of the University of Oxford, who chairs the British Royal Society's working group on therapeutic cloning. Crispin Kirkman, chief executive of Britain's Bioindustry Association, said legislation approved in January to ease curbs on embryo research would help keep Britain ahead in the race. Simon Best, chief executive of unlisted Ardana Biosciences in Edinburgh, who sits on biotechnology trade bodies on both sides of the Atlantic, said some U.S. firms were already looking at setting up programs in Britain. "The UK is going to be a more secure environment in which to conduct most areas of embryo research. I've had calls from four U.S. companies wanting advice on how they might go about conducting research here," he said. "There is quite a serious look by both the academic and business community in the States into whether to conduct further research on this side of the Atlantic." SOURCE: Reuters http://www.abcnews.go.com/wire/US/reuters20010716_68.html * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn