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Text of the Nobel Laureate's statement follows article: NOTE: Senator Brownback's bill would not "only" ban therapeutic cloning research in the U.S., it would also " prevent the importation into the United States of medical treatments developed in other parts of the world using nuclear transplantation." Linda FROM: U.S. Newswire April 10, 2002 Wednesday HEADLINE: Forty Nobel Laureates Announce Support For Therapeutic Cloning'; Rare Public Statement Opposes Brownback Bill DATELINE: WASHINGTON, April 10 Forty American Nobel Laureates, including pioneers in research on cancer and other life-threatening diseases, today released a joint statement strongly supporting nuclear transplantation technology for research and therapeutic purposes (more commonly known as therapeutic cloning.) The statement cites the critical role this research could play in the fight against "the most debilitating diseases known to man," and strongly opposes legislation proposed by Sen. Brownback (R-Kan.) that would ban nuclear transplantation technology. "Senator Brownback's legislation, if it becomes law, would have a chilling effect on all scientific research in the United States," the Nobel Laureates say. "We decided to speak out to clear up the confusion that has arisen about this issue. Cloning humans and therapeutic cloning' (or nuclear transplantation technology) are fundamentally different," said Paul Berg, who won the Nobel Prize in 1980. "The cloning of a human being should be prohibited. Nuclear transplantation technology, on the other hand, is meant to produce stem cells, not babies." "This impressive statement underlines what advocates for the 100 million Americans with life-threatening diseases have been saying: this really is a matter of life and death," said Michael Manganiello, president of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research. "Nuclear transplantation technology means hope. The Brownback bill would deny it." "It's discouraging that there are some who oppose nuclear transplantation technology when it could mean improved approaches for treating spinal cord injury and degenerative conditions including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, which together affect millions of Americans and their families every day." said David Baltimore, Ph.D., president of California Institute of Technology and winner of Nobel Prize in 1975 for physiology. Added Manganiello, "The Nobel statement comes at a critical time when the Senate is considering a ban on all forms of cloning and we are so grateful that Nobel laureates across the nation have shown their strong support for this critical area of medical research." EDITOR'S NOTE: The statement will be published tomorrow in a full-page advertisement in Roll Call and is being presented to Senators' offices today. The letter was coordinated by the American Society for Cell Biology. A full copy of the text is below. --- Two National Academy of Sciences expert committees, as well as noted national and international organizations, have evaluated current scientific and medical information and have concluded that cloning a human being using the method of nuclear transplantation cannot be achieved safely. Such attempts in other mammals often have catastrophic outcomes. Furthermore, virtually nothing is known about the potential safety of such procedures in humans. Consequently, there is widespread and strong agreement that an attempt to clone a human being would constitute unwarranted experimentation on human subjects and should be prohibited by legislation that imposes criminal and civil penalties on those who would implant the product of nuclear transplantation into a woman's uterus. Unfortunately, some legislation, such as that introduced by Senator Brownback (R-KS) would foreclose the legitimate use of nuclear transplantation technology for research and therapeutic purposes. This would impede progress against some of the most debilitating diseases known to man. For example, it may be possible to use nuclear transplantation technology to produce patient-specific embryonic stem cells that could overcome the rejection normally associated with tissue and organ transplantation. Nuclear transplantation technology might also permit the creation of embryonic stem cells with defined genetic constitution, permitting a new and powerful approach to understanding how inherited predispositions lead to a variety of cancers and neurological diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. A critical element of the Brownback bill would prevent the importation into the United States of medical treatments developed in other parts of the world using nuclear transplantation. It seems unbelievable that the United States Senate would deny advanced medical treatment to hundreds of millions of suffering Americans because of an aversion to a technology that was used in its development. By declaring scientifically valuable biomedical research illegal, Senator Brownback's legislation, if it becomes law, would have a chilling effect on all scientific research in the United States. Such legal restrictions on scientific investigation would also send a strong signal to the next generation of researchers that unfettered and responsible scientific investigation is not welcome in the United States. We, the undersigned, urge that legislation to impose criminal and civil sanctions against attempts to create a cloned human being be enacted. We also oppose strongly any legislation that would prohibit or impede the scientifically legitimate, responsible use of nuclear transplantation technology for research and therapeutic purposes. Similarly, any attempt to prohibit the use of therapies in the United States that were developed with the aid of nuclear transplantation technology overseas denies hope for those seeking new therapies for the most debilitating diseases known to man. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn