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Skriven 2006-07-17 23:33:38 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0607175) for Mon, 2006 Jul 17
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Setting the Record Straight: President Bush's Stem Cell Policy Is Working
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For Immediate Release
July 17, 2006

Setting the Record Straight: President Bush's Stem Cell Policy Is Working


˙˙˙˙˙ Setting the Record Straight

TIME Magazine: "The 'presidential lines' were of limited value; there were
not nearly as many as scientists initially thought would be available -
more like 21 than 62, and they were old, in some cases damaged and most
likely contaminated with the mouse feeder cells and calf serum used to grow
them." (Nancy Gibbs, Alice Park, Mike Allen, and Massimo Calabresi, "What A
Bush Veto Would Mean For Stem Cells," TIME, 7/24/06)

The Washington Post: "When Mr. Bush announced that he would permit the use
of existing stem cell lines almost five years ago, that compromise made
sense. But instead of the 78 lines originally foreseen by the
administration, only 22 are available, and some of those are deteriorating
or contaminated." (Editorial, "Stem Cell Showdown," The Washington Post,
7/17/06)

President Bush's Stem Cell Policy Is Significantly Advancing Research In An
Ethical Way

President Bush Is The First President To Ever Fund Embryonic Stem Cell
Research. Over $90 million in Federal funding has been devoted to research
on approved lines since 2001.

President Bush's Stem Cell Policy Has Made Federally Funded Stem Cell Lines
Widely Available To Scientists. The NIH has sent more than 700 shipments of
cells to researchers, and has thousands more available upon request.

85 Percent Of All The Human Embryonic Stem Cell Science Done In The World
Has Been Done With The Lines Now Approved For Funding By The NIH. (Jason
Owen-Smith and Jennifer McCormick, "An International Gap In Human ES Cell
Research," Nature Biotechnology, April 2006)
  ū The Vast Majority Of This Work Has Been In The Past Five Years.

The Eligible Lines Are Not Contaminated, And Are Very Widely Used By
Researchers. The use of mouse cells is standard scientific practice. As the
FDA has indicated, the resulting stem cell lines can be carefully screened
to ensure they are safe for use in any future clinical trials. Drug and
biological products are routinely co-cultured with animal cells with no
adverse consequences for the millions of people who have benefited from
them. The FDA has proven itself time and again to be fully capable of
ensuring the safety and efficacy of such products.
  ū Tom Okarma, CEO Of The Stem Cell Company Geron: "So the stuff you hear
    published that all of those lines are irrevocably contaminated with
    mouse materials and could never be used in people - hogwash. If you
    know how to grow them, they're fine." (Steven Edwards, "Scrutinizing A
    Stem Cell Trial," Wired News, 3/29/06)

Several Scientific Publications Have Now Demonstrated Techniques For
Removing All Animal Materials From The Existing Cell Cultures. This helps
further alleviate concerns about animal material issues. (James Thomson et
al., "Derivation Of Human Embryonic Stem Cells In Defined Conditions,"
Nature Biotechnology, February 2006)

Even TIME Magazine Says The "Science Has Outrun The Politics" And Adult
Stem Cells May Be More Valuable Than Previously Thought. "The good news for
all sides is that over the course of this long argument, researchers have
learned more about how stem cells work, and the science has outrun the
politics. Adult cells, such as those found in bone marrow, were thought to
be less valuable than embryonic cells, which are 'pluripotent' master cells
that can turn into anything from a brain cell to a toenail. But adult cells
may be more elastic than scientists thought, and could offer shortcuts to
treatment that embryonic cells can't match." (Nancy Gibbs, Alice Park, Mike
Allen, and Massimo Calabresi, "What A Bush Veto Would Mean For Stem Cells,"
TIME, 7/24/06)
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