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Entrepreneurial Spirit: Meddlers Jeopardize Stem Cell Possibilities By Sarah Botham March 17, 2004 Discovered in 1929 by the English bacteriologist Alexander Fleming, penicillin didn't become widely used until the early 1940s. But it was instrumental in saving the lives of thousands of soldiers during WWII and was the precursor to today's broad spectrum of powerful antibiotics that treat everything from ear infections to tuberculosis. It is medicine we very nearly take for granted. So imagine where we'd be today if Fleming and the Oxford University scientists Howard Florey and Ernst Chain had been told there would be no support for the furthering of their research. Fast forward to 2004. Nearly six years after UW-Madison developmental biologist James Thomson first grew and sustained human embryonic stem cells in the lab, our nation's president and countless politicians at all levels of government continue to effectively snub their noses at the possibilities this research provides. How can we have learned so little? In 2001, President Bush attempted to limit stem cell research by imposing federal funding restrictions on further study. Without additional federal support the vital progression of this science has been drastically delayed, and with it, the research into possible cures for a broad spectrum of diseases including Alzheimer's, diabetes and Parkinson's. Sometimes I just have to shake my head. We're not drafting new chemical reactions to build bigger, more powerful bombs, and we're not destroying the sanctity of human life on any level. Indeed this science is about preserving and sustaining human life; its reach and potential for doing good is so exponential it's difficult for even researchers to fully comprehend. Undeterred by the Bush administration's limits, scientists at UW and Harvard have temporarily sidestepped this funding phobia by turning to private resources. In so doing, several new stem cell strains, by some counts as many as 17, have been identified and made available to U.S. researchers. This comes in addition to the 78 stem cell lines originally approved for research by the federal government. So yes, it seems we are making headway in spite of ourselves. But not quickly enough. In November 2003 "Biopolis," a $287 million government funded biotech center opened in Singapore. Its core focus? Stem cell research. In mid-February a team of South Korean researchers announced it had successfully harvested stem cells from a cloned embryo, something U.S. researchers have purportedly been trying to do for years. The Chinese government is building a stem cell research center. England and Israel also have stem cell research programs that are more advanced than our own. But work here has been stymied by a lack of funding and a charged political climate. Technology created in the wealthiest nation in the world and pioneered right here in Madison now enjoys greater support across the big pond. Even our science is being shipped overseas, it seems. The politicians and the contingent of fundamentalist pro-lifers who oppose stem cell research in the U.S. should be ashamed. I wish I knew how much money has been spent in the last 12 months instead to build bombs, to design more accurate enemy detection systems, to build walls between the nations of the world instead of working to tear them down. The thing is, science, especially this kind of science, can level the playing field. It can bring people together, it can cure disease, it can open doors and answer questions and prompt dialogue. It can generate revenue and jobs. Indeed, there is an entirely new kind of manufacturing sector to be built from within the realm of the study of these life sciences. It can save lives. Certainly there will be stumbling blocks, there will be setbacks, there will be questions. No great advancement, scientific or otherwise comes without them. But experience tells us that there is also great hope. Penicillin brought possibilities. Embryonic stem cell research brings opportunities. And this is just the beginning. I know we must proceed. I know the answers are there. The challenge then is to craft a balance, somewhere. Somewhere between hope and experience. Sarah Botham is the owner of Botham, ink., a Madison-area marketing and public relations firm. She is also a senior lecturer at the University of Wisconsin in the School of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Department of Life Sciences Communication. She can be reached at 608-924-2625 or [log in to unmask] Published: 9:12 AM 3/17/04 SOURCE: The Capital Times, WI http://www.madison.com/captimes/business/stories/70360.php * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn