Wendy,
I agree with you that people only hear and see what supports their own point of view. I
responded because the article you couldn't pull up (also posted on the list Aug. 11) -- Revelation
of the Nerds. The Religion of Stem-Cell Research and the opinion Dr. Bob posted on the 16th that was
'worthy of repetition' quoting Ron McKay made it appear that Dr. McKay was saying researching
embryonic stem cells was a "fairy tale"...wouldn't work....when in fact he states on his NIH website
(not opinion articles) :
"We have also shown that embryonic stem cells can be manipulated to generate both CNS stem cells
and the terminal neuronal/glial fates of the CNS. This opens up an exciting field where we are using
the power of genomics and genetics to analyze the development and function of cells in the mouse and
human nervous systems"
Does McKay's description of what he is doing and "This opens up an exciting field" sound as if
it should be linked with a story stating...
"This is nonsense. Cynical nonsense. Or as Ronald D.G. McKay, a stem-cell researcher at the
National Institutes of Health, admitted candidly to the Washington Post, a fiction: "People need a
fairy tale."
McKay's quote came from his reply about people believing that Alzheimer's could be helped. I
didn't copy the entire web page for the sake of brevity for the list and relevance to the
subject....which was not stem cells, but the use of quotes to suit one's own end
And no one is saying we should not work on adult stem cells, only that both should be explored.
Nina
"Circumstances determine our lives, but we shape
our lives by what we make of our circumstances."
Sir John Wheeler Bennett, a British historian
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Parkinson's Information Exchange Network [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
> Behalf Of Wendy Siegel
> Sent: Sunday, August 22, 2004 12:39 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: "People need a fairy tale." and appendix question
>
> Your right, it is frustrating. I couldn't get to the first article, but
> when I read the second article, I found that it was about BOTH types of
> stem cells. Only the middle paragraph refers to ESC only.
>
> "The identification of stem cells in the fetal and adult mammalian brain
> has many scientific and clinical consequences. We have evidence for a
> common stem cell generating the central and peripheral nervous system
> (CNS + PNS). This cell can be obtained in large numbers and provides an
> ideal system to analyze the pathways that control fate choice. We are
> working on contact dependent and soluble signals that control the
> proliferation and differentiation of stem cells. Similar mechanisms
> regulate differentiation in fetal and adult stem cells. It is important
> to determine if stem cells give rise to functional neurons. We have
> shown that stem cells can generate synaptically active neurons.
> We have also shown that embryonic stem cells can be manipulated to
> generate both CNS stem cells and the terminal neuronal/glial fates of
> the CNS. This opens up an exciting field where we are using the power of
> genomics and genetics to analyze the development and function of cells
> in the mouse and human nervous systems.
>
> The clinical potential for stem cell technology is increasingly
> recognized. In our group we have focussed on clinical models of
> neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and
> demyelinating disease. Work from our group may also have important
> consequences in other areas of medicine including diabetes, heart
> disease and cancer."
>
> It seems to me that people only hear and see what supports their own
> point of view. If everyone would try to become aware of both sides and
> listen to everything, not just what supports their "side", I think that
> we would be farther along, both in terms of getting along, and in
> finding a cure.
>
> Now, totally unrelated, how many people with PD on this list have had
> their appendix taken out?
>
> Wendy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Parkinson's Information Exchange Network
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of nina p. brown
> Sent: Saturday, August 21, 2004 11:57 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: "People need a fairy tale."
>
> It is frustrating when a quote is picked up out
> of context and used to suit the purposes of the
> writer. Numerous editorials have picked up on the
> quote from Ronald D.G. McKay, a stem-cell
> researcher at the National Institutes of Health,
> who was quoted in the Washington Post "People
> need a fairy tale."
>
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A295
> 61-2004Jun9.html
> He was speaking about Alzheimer's not about ESC
> research in general. If you go to his NIH website
>
> http://www.ninds.nih.gov/about_ninds/labs/25.htm
> you will find the following:
> "We have also shown that embryonic stem cells
> can be manipulated to generate both CNS stem cells
> and the terminal neuronal/glial fates of the CNS.
> This opens up an exciting field where we are using
> the power of genomics and genetics to analyze the
> development and function of cells in the mouse and
> human nervous systems.
> The clinical potential for stem cell technology
> is increasingly recognized. In our group we have
> focused on clinical models of neurodegenerative
> diseases including Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and
> demyelinating disease. Work from our group may
> also have important consequences in other areas of
> medicine including diabetes, heart disease and
> cancer. "
>
>
> Nina
> "Circumstances determine our lives, but we
> shape
> our lives by what we make of our
> circumstances."
> Sir John Wheeler
> Bennett, a British historian
>
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