U.K. OKs contentious stem cell research
Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:53:04 GMTBy DANICA KIRKA, Associated Press Writer
LONDON - British authorities decided Wednesday to permit research that uses animal eggs to create human stem cells — studies experts say are critical to unlocking treatments for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other diseases.
The research has raised objections from right-to-life advocates, who fear it could ultimately lead to genetically modified babies, even though the research under consideration will allow the eggs to develop for no more than two weeks.
The Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority agreed, in principle, to permit the research, which involves placing human DNA into cow or rabbit eggs that have had their genetic material removed. Under the decision, proposals would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
"Having looked at all the evidence, the authority has decided that there is no fundamental reason to prevent ... research," the agency said. "However, public opinion is very finely divided, with people generally opposed to this research unless it is tightly regulated and it is likely to lead to scientific or medical advancements."
Scientists want to use animal eggs because the supply of human eggs is limited. Such research is currently under way in the United States and China, and scientists in Britain flatly rejected criticism the researchers were attempting to play God.
"We're not creating humans with rabbit ears, as much as Playboy magazine might like that," said Dr. Robin Lovell-Badge, the head of the stem cell biology division at the National Institute for Medical Research in London. "What we are trying to do, the intention of this whole enterprise, is to understand the cause of diseases and the cures for it."
The use of material from animals has caused some public concern. Dr. David King, the director of the independent watchdog group Human Genetics Alert, said supporters of the research distorted scientific facts to defuse criticism.
"The has ignored the strong and clear public opposition to these experiments, " King wrote in a statement, referring to a public comment period on the issue ahead of Wednesday's decision.
"People's objections to violating the integrity of nature in this way are perfectly rational, and the science establishment ignores and ridicules them at its own peril," he said.
Britain's government had earlier proposed outlawing the research, though former Prime Minister Tony Blair said he did not flatly oppose it. Advocacy groups wrote the prime minister urging him to reconsider a ban.
Dr. Sophie Petit-Zeman, a spokeswoman for the Association of Medical Research Charities, said that while opponents raise ethical issues, the rights of patients suffering from genetic-based diseases should also be respected.
" know what the sharp end of the condition is like," Petit-Zeman said. "You have to ask if it's ethical not to do it."
Several scientists have submitted applications for a license to the authority.
The studies involve taking a cow or rabbit egg which no longer has its own DNA and injecting human genetic material. The egg is induced to divide, becoming a very early embryo from which stem cells could be extracted.
The resulting egg contains 13 animal genes compared with some 20,000-25,000 human genes.
But the mixing of human and animal — even on a cellular level — has prompted much debate. John Harris, a professor of bioethics at the University of Manchester, said the issue has been misunderstood.
"The fear is that are trying to breed a human with some other creature," Harris said. "But when you eat a bacon sandwich you take animal cells into your body."
Scientists to study pollution particles
Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:46:30 GMTMORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Scientists at West Virginia University will study thick black diesel smoke and other air pollution particles over the next five years to determine how they might be affecting cardiovascular health.
Researcher Timothy R. Nurkiewicz has received a $2.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the school said Wednesday.
Nurkiewicz, who studies tiny blood vessels, says pollution from combustion sources like truck engines may impair the vascular and immune systems, compromising blood flow throughout the body.
"We're focusing primarily on diesel particles because they're environmentally relevant and one of the most prolific components of ambient air pollution," he said. "Everyone has been stuck behind that ominous large truck spewing out black soot. But we are exposed to particulate matter from more sources than exhaust from semi tractor trailers."
School buses and construction vehicles also emit such particles, he said.
Without a full understanding of the health effects, Nurkiewicz said, government cannot be expected to appropriately regulate air quality and set limits for acceptable human exposure.
It's clear that air pollution can worsen cardiovascular disease, said Matthew A. Boegehold, director of WVU's Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Cardiovascular Sciences.
"But we are still a long way from understanding the mechanisms by which these changes arise," he said. "Dr. Nurkiewicz's project, along with similar studies, could serve as an important foundation for developing better clinical treatments for this problem."
Panel HIV drug merits quick approval
Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:42:03 GMTWASHINGTON - An experimental HIV drug from Merck & Co. Inc. should be quickly approved for use by patients running out of treatment options, federal advisers recommended Wednesday.
The panel of outside experts agreed unanimously that available data support accelerated approval of Isentress, also known as raltegravir, by the Food and Drug Administration.
The FDA isn't required to follow the advice of its outside advisory panels but does so most of the time. Merck expects an agency decision by mid-October. If approved, Isentress would be the first in a new class of anti-retroviral drugs called integrase inhibitors.
The Merck drug targets integrase, one of three enzymes used by the virus to replicate and infect cells. The FDA previously has approved drugs that target the two other enzymes, protease and reverse transcriptase.
Isentress is meant to be used as part of a "cocktail" of drugs to fight HIV in patients who have developed a resistance to older medications. HIV — the human immunodeficiency virus — causes AIDS.
Last month, the FDA approved another novel HIV drug, Pfizer Inc.'s Selzentry. That drug is the first that works by blocking a crucial doorway, called the CCR5 receptor, that HIV often uses to enter white blood cells.
Researchers in S.C. receive 3610.7M grant
Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:51:04 GMTCOLUMBIA, S.C. - Researchers studying colorectal cancer at the University of South Carolina have been awarded a $10.7 million grant, school officials said Wednesday.
The five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health will bring together scientists who work in biology, pharmacy, public health and medicine, said Frank Berger, director of the university's Center for Colon Cancer Research.
Individual researchers at the center have received nearly $20 million in grants to examine the origin and development of cancer tumors, DNA's role in preventing tumor formation, anticancer drugs and new methods of screening and diagnosis. The center was established in 2002 with an $11.2 million grant.
Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer and the second most common cause of cancer deaths in the nation, according to the American Cancer Society. The disease accounts for about 12 percent of all cancer cases in South Carolina and kills about 900 residents a year.
"We have created an environment in which academic discovery flourishes and is shared with a larger community interested in the prevention and treatment of this deadly disease," said Berger, who is also the lead researcher for the grant.
