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Hi Jacob and Group - I couldn't disagree with you more. This "conspiracy theory" has the same ring to it as those involved with the so-called "100 miles-per-gallon" carburetor or the "free electricity" schemes. In these situations the oil and power companies supposedly have squashed the development of technologies that would hurt their businesses. Hog wash! The truth of the matter is that each of the drug companies spend millions on research every year. Only after they've spent some big bucks can they apply for Government approval just to put the new therapy into Phase 1 trials. In most studies Phase 1 is just designed to test the safety aspects. After that, Phase 2 will begin to look at efficacy issues. As you might imagine, none of this is cheap in terms of finance, resources, or time. Most of you know that I am part of the porcine fetal cell xenotransplantation project. Let me assure you; the scientists who are with this experiment are with it in earnest. I also met with the company's CEO about a year after the operation. Part of this personal conversation was to determine whether or not the company was going to commit an ADDITIONAL $50 Million to the basic research. Does this sound like they're NOT looking for a cure? I don't think so. While we might not like the way drug and biotech companies run their firms (and price their products), it is wrong to accuse them of undermining their own scientists and researchers. For them money is the name of the game and it would be foolish to allocate funds to dead-end projects. The shareholders would simply not put up with this sort of nonsense. But they realize that many dollars have to be spent first to determine what has potential and what does not. Parkinson's disease is considered to be the most curable of the neurological maladies. While horrible enough, I'm grateful that it's not MS or Huntington's or worse. At least a lot of money is being spent on finding the cure and public awareness of PD has never been as high as it is now. Regards - Jim Finn ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn