If you want to ban fetal tissue research, sign a pledge to refuse its benefits – USA TODAY

Irving Weissman and Joseph McCune, Opinion contributors Published 7:00 a.m. ET Jan. 24, 2020

Severe Trump administration restrictions mean millions of Americans of all political and religious stripes won't benefit from fetal tissue research.

Last summer the Trump administration curtailed federal funding of medical research using human fetal tissue; the new rulestook effect Oct. 1. More recently, the administration addedrestrictions that are even more severe.

Immediately, important work at two NIH-supported labs in Montana and California that are fighting the AIDS epidemic stopped because they were testing new medications against HIV using mice with human immune systems derived from human fetal tissue. In the near term, all National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding of research using fetal tissuewill likely cease.

More than 30years ago, we invented SCID-hu mice for biomedical research on diseases affecting humans, by implanting human fetal blood-forming and immune system tissuesinto mice whose immune systems had been silenced. The implanted immune tissues came from an aborted fetus, and allowed our otherwise immune-deficient mice to exist and be vulnerable to viruses that infect humans.

Tissues from living infants would not have worked;they are too far along in development and nearly impossible to obtain. This mouse model (and later versions of it) became the only living system, outside of a human, in which advanced therapies for diseases like AIDS and other viral infections could be evaluated before they were given to people.

Our work with human fetal tissue proceeded with the highest level of caution and vigilance. We received advice from bioethicists, clergyand government officials, which led to the establishment of strict guidelines that are still used today. No woman was asked or paid to terminate a pregnancy, the termination process was unaltered, and the women were asked for donation of the organs only after they had decided to terminate the pregnancy. Thus, obtaining the fetal tissue for medical research had no impact on ending pregnancies.

Since then, mice with transplanted human fetal tissues have been successfully used by scientists to identify blood stem cells and to devise treatments now availableor in clinical trialsfor cancer, various viral infections, Alzheimers disease, spinal cord injuries, and other diseases of the nervous system. Such diseases kill or cripple many Americans including pregnant women, fetusesand newborn infants. Many of them have only a short window of opportunity wherein a new therapy can treat them, and a delay can be fatal.

National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, on Oct. 21, 2013.(Photo: *, Kyodo)

The Trump administration's new rules are tantamount to a funding ban. In academic labs, the experiments are done by students and fellows in training, and the new rules block any NIH-funded students or fellows from working with human fetal tissue. Those who imposed the banmust bear responsibility for the consequences: People will suffer and die for lack of adequate treatments.

Americans pay the price:Trump administration's 'scientific oppression' threatens US safety and innovation

At a December 2018 meeting at NIH,after hearing scientific evidence about alternative research methods such as the use of adult cells, experts concluded that the use of fetal tissue is uniquely valuable. Nonetheless, the administration severely restricted the use of fetal tissue, thereby denying millions of Americans the fruits of such research Americans of all political stripes, since deadly viruses and cancers do not care who you vote for.

These restrictions subvert the NIH mission, which is to advance medicine and protect the nations health. To the extent that it was motivated by the religious beliefs of those in charge, it bluntly transgresses the American principle of separation of church and state. As a result, both believers and non-believers will die.

Of course, all who take the Hippocratic Oathto "do no harm,"which includes all medical doctors, will always offer and deliver all types of therapies that are available.

Restricting science: Trump EPA's cynical 'transparency' ploy would set back pollution science and public health

However, we believe that thoseresponsible forthis de facto ban, and perhapsthose who agree with them, should personally accept its consequences. We challenge them tobe true to their beliefs. They should pledge to never accept any cancer therapy, any AIDS medication, any cardiac drug, any lung disease treatment, any Alzheimers therapy, or any other medical advance that was developed using fetal tissue including our mice. Its a long list, one that you can learn about from us here. Should this apply to you, be faithful and be bold: Take the pledge.

Irving Weissman is a Professor of Pathology and Developmental Biology and the Director of the Stanford Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine and Ludwig Center for Cancer Stem Cell at Stanford University School of Medicine. Joseph McCune is Professor Emeritus of Medicine from the Division of Experimental Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. The views expressed here are solely their own.

Autoplay

Show Thumbnails

Show Captions

Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2020/01/24/trump-fetal-tissue-research-ban-hurts-all-americans-column/4553379002/

See the original post:
If you want to ban fetal tissue research, sign a pledge to refuse its benefits - USA TODAY

Scots tot, 3, battling rare blood cancer to receive stem cell donations from anonymous American woman – The Scottish Sun

A TODDLER battling a rare form of blood cancer will receive life-changing stem cell, from a US donor.

Adeline Davidson, three, has been receiving weekly blood transfusions to keep her alive.

5

She has been diagnosed with myelodysplasia, an extremely rare form of blood cancer that affects only one in 250,000 children.

Doctors have now identified a donor assessed as a 9/10 match who is female and lives in the United States.

Under existing regulations, Adelines parents Stephanie and Jordan, from Alness, Easter Ross, will not be able to find out any more about the woman who could change their daughters life for at least two years after the transplant.

Mrs Davidson said news of the match, which came via the Anthony Nolan register she has personally encouraged many people to sign up to, was relayed to her by a consultant at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Glasgow.

She said: My mind was going crazy. All we know is that she is an American we know nothing more than that.

"You hear stories about people meeting their donors.

5

"The most mind-blowing thing for me is that this person who we dont know will pass on some of her DNA to Adeline.

Its good news but it does bring new anxieties.

"Our focus now is keeping Adeline away from bugs and infections. She needs to be healthy.

All being well Adeline, will be prepared for the transplant which can help restore the bodys ability to make blood cells next month and undergo the procedure in March.

5

Stephanie said: The support has been amazing. The messages we have got have been lovely and kept us going.

"It shows you there are good people out there. A lot of people say Im calm.

"It is what it is and you just need to keep a positive mind and be strong for her.

"Now its a waiting game.

There was another surprise for Adeline when she was invited aboard the Maersk Resilient oil rig, one of the giant landmarks dotting Invergordons shoreline.

5

Crew members seeking a worthy local cause for money they wished to donate had asked around on shore and been pointed in the Davidsons direction.

As well as the invitation for a tour of the rig capable of drilling to a depth of 30,000ft and sleeping 120 people Adeline was given a 1,000 donation on behalf of crew members.

The delighted youngster, who may be the youngest ever guest to have boarded the rig, relished the jaunt in the company of her mum and granny Lorraine, whose has also championed her cause on a number of fronts.

5

Stephanie Davidson said: It was brilliant, we got to see around the whole rig.

When they handed over a 1000 cheque, the family who face regular long overnight hospital trips to Glasgow were bowled over.

Ms Davidson said: We were not expecting that much."

NICE N STEAMY Moment randy Glasgow couple caught romping in flat above above Nice N Sleazy

TOT ATTACK Scots thug left baby with two broken arms because she wouldn't stop crying

Breaking

RUSH HOUR HORROR Man killed by 'machete-wielding' attacker in front of horrified commuters

Exclusive

THEY 'BROKE CODE' Furious gang crooks could grass on Cumbernauld gun killers who shot dog

VILE GANG Scots cops took down huge asylum seeker grooming gang - but kept it secret

ZOO SALE Scots safari park on market complete with five bed farmhouse and golf course

Adeline is also sister to nine-month-old twins, Josie and Jude.

Stephanie is charting Adelines journey on the Instagram feed @adelinebluesjourney_x and says messages of support there mean the world to the family.

We pay for your stories and videos! Do you have a story or video for The Scottish Sun? Email us at scoop@thesun.co.uk or call 0141 420 5300

Read the original:
Scots tot, 3, battling rare blood cancer to receive stem cell donations from anonymous American woman - The Scottish Sun

Scots toddler who needs weekly blood transfusions to receive life changing stem-cells from US donor – Daily Record

A young Scots tot battling a rare form of cancer is to receive life-changing stem cell, from a US donor.

Adeline Davidson, 3, suffers from myelodysplasia, an extremely rare form of blood cancer that affects only one in 250,000 children.

Since her diagnosis, Adeline has been receiving weekly blood transfusions to keep her alive.

A female who lives in the United States has been identified as donor and doctors have assessed as a 9/10 match.

Adeline's mum Stephanie, from Alness, Easter Ross welcomed the news of the match.

She said: My mind was going crazy. All we know is that she is an American we know nothing more than that. You hear stories about people meeting their donors.

"The most mind-blowing thing for me is that this person who we dont know will pass on some of her DNA to Adeline."

Its good news but it does bring new anxieties. Our focus now is keeping Adeline away from bugs and infections. She needs to be healthy.

Under existing regulations, Stephanie and Adeline's dad Jordan, will not be able to find out any more about the woman who could change their daughters life for at least two years after the transplant.

All being well Adeline, will be prepared for the transplant which can help restore the bodys ability to make blood cells next month and undergo the procedure in March.

Stephanie said: The support has been amazing. The messages we have got have been lovely and kept us going. It shows you there are good people out there.

"A lot of people say Im calm. It is what it is and you just need to keep a positive mind and be strong for her. Now its a waiting game.

There was another surprise for Adeline when she was invited aboard the Maersk Resilient oil rig, one of the giant landmarks dotting Invergordons shoreline.

Crew members seeking a worthy local cause for money they wished to donate had asked around on shore and been pointed in the Davidsons direction.

As well as the invitation for a tour of the rig capable of drilling to a depth of 30,000ft and sleeping 120 people Adeline was given a 1,000 donation on behalf of crew members.

The delighted youngster, who may be the youngest ever guest to have boarded the rig, relished the jaunt in the company of her mum and granny Lorraine, whose has also championed her cause on a number of fronts.

Stephanie Davidson said: It was brilliant, we got to see around the whole rig.

When they handed over a 1000 cheque, the family who face regular long overnight hospital trips to Glasgow were bowled over.

We were not expecting that much, said Mrs Davidson, who is also mum to nine-month-old twins, Josie and Jude.

She is charting Adelines journey on the Instagram feed @adelinebluesjourney_x and says messages of support there mean the world to the family.

Excerpt from:
Scots toddler who needs weekly blood transfusions to receive life changing stem-cells from US donor - Daily Record

Advancells Group & IFC Concluded their 3-Day Workshop on Regenerative Medicine – APN News

Published on January 23, 2020

New Delhi:On Saturday, January 18th, 2020, the Advancells Group & the International Fertility Center together ended their first workshop Sub-Specialty Training in Application of Regenerative Medicine (S.T.A.R. 2020). The three-day workshop had specialized doctors, medical practitioners, learned scientists of Advancells, the leaders in cell manufacturing & processes and IFC, one of Indias most prestigious Fertility institute who were joined by candidates with MBBS/BAMS/BHMS/BPharma & Masters degree in Life Sciences.

The key-note speaker of the workshop was Dr. Rita Bakshi, founder and chairperson of International Fertility Centre, the oldest fertility clinic and one of the most renowned IVF clinics in India, one of the organizers of the event. Participants also had a privilege to listen to Dr. Sachin Kadam, CTO, Advancellsand gain hands-on experience in the preparation of PRP; Liposuction method; and Bone Marrow aspiration. All these techniques were talked about at length and demonstrated in the form of manual & kit-based models to help the candidates gain exposure.

Dr. Punit Prabha, Head of Clinical Research and Dr. Shradha Singh Gautam, Head of Lab Operations at Advancells successfully set the base of stem cell biology for the participants who were experts in gynecology field, stem cell research and pain specialist. With the help of detailed analysis of Application of PRP for Skin rejuvenation; Preparation of Micro-fragmented Adipose Tissue and Nano Fat & SVF (Stromal Vascular Fraction) from Adipose Tissue; and Cell Culturing and Expansion in a Laboratory, applicants understood the application of stem cells in aesthetics, cosmetology, and anti-aging.

Vipul Jain, Founder & CEO of Advancells Groupsaid, Educating young scientists about stem cells is important for us. With this workshop we wanted to discuss and share the challenges and lessons we have learned in our journey of curing our customers. We wanted to establish more concrete knowledge base in the presence of subject matter experts and help our attendees in more possible ways. We are hopeful to have successfully achieved what we claimed with this workshop.

Given the resounding success of the Sub-Specialty Training in Application of Regenerative Medicine (S.T.A.R. 2020), its hoped that the future events shall offer even greater wisdom to the participants by helping them improve and the lead the community into the age of greater awareness.

Continued here:
Advancells Group & IFC Concluded their 3-Day Workshop on Regenerative Medicine - APN News

How to Improve on a Good Year for Global Health | by Melvin Sanicas – Project Syndicate

The discovery of new viruses, vaccines, and treatments in 2019 was the result of investments in global surveillance, cross-sector partnerships, and scientific advances. At a time when misinformation is calling into question the validity of facts, the world needs to support science more than ever.

ZURICH Measles went viral in 2018, infecting nearly ten million people worldwide and claiming 142,000 lives. Poor vaccination coverage and large pockets of unvaccinated children resulted in devastating outbreaks in many parts of the world, including in countries that had high vaccination rates or had previously eliminated the disease. Last year, the United States reported its highest number of cases in a quarter-century, while four European countries Albania, the Czech Republic, Greece, and the United Kingdom lost their measles-free status following protracted outbreaks.

Moreover, two studies demonstrated how a measles infection reduces the levels of pre-existing antibodies against other pathogens like flu or pneumonia. So, children who recover from measles become more vulnerable to other infectious diseases.

Fortunately, measles was not the only big global health story of 2019. The year also was full of exciting discoveries of new viruses, vaccines, and treatments that again proved the value of science.

Virus research made significant strides last year. For starters, scientists in Japan discovered the Medusavirus, so named because it can turn amoebae into stone-like cysts. Its genome is among the largest and most complex viral genomes ever found. Separately, researchers identified a new tick-borne illness the Alongshan virus in a group of patients in Inner Mongolia. For the first time, an insect RNA (ribonucleic acid) virus, the Providence virus, was found to have the ability to infect plants and mammalian cells suggesting that plants could act as reservoirs of human viruses. Meanwhile, the Spanish authorities reported the first case of dengue attributed to sexual transmission in an area without vector mosquitoes.

In addition, a mysterious polio-like disease known as acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM, has emerged in the US in recent years, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting over 600 cases since 2014. Immunological studies published last year linked this new disease to two enteroviruses. Researchers also associated a common human herpes virus (HHV-6) and the Epstein-Barr virus with multiple sclerosis, linked adenovirus C with type I diabetes, and found that a human papillomavirus infection increases the risk of breast cancer. Another study found that the brains of Alzheimers patients had higher levels of the HHV-6 and HHV-7 viruses than healthy brains, while levels of viral RNA tracked the severity of clinical symptoms. More research is needed to discover exactly what roles, if any, these viruses play in the progression of these diseases.

Vaccines also advanced in 2019. For starters, the European Medicines Agency and the US Food and Drug Administration approved Ervebo, the first Ebola vaccine. Trials had shown the vaccine to be 100% effective in preventing transmission of the disease to people who had been in close contact with those infected. Another Ebola vaccine, manufactured by Johnson & Johnson, was also tested during 2019 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the second-largest outbreak of the disease began in August 2018.

Subscribe today and get unlimited access to OnPoint, the Big Picture, the PS archive of more than 14,000 commentaries, and our annual magazine, for less than $2 a week.

SUBSCRIBE

Meanwhile, the Typhoid Vaccine Acceleration Consortium completed a large field study in Nepal which showed that the typhoid conjugate vaccine is safe, immunogenic, and effective, and could significantly reduce typhoid infection among high-risk groups. In addition, the World Health Organization prequalified a more affordable pneumococcal conjugate vaccine that could help to widen protection against a leading cause of deadly childhood pneumonia.

Finally, new and improved treatments provided some of the best global health news of the year. In particular, the final results of a study called Pamoja Tulinde Maisha (Together Save Lives) in the DRC showed that two experimental Ebola treatments based on monoclonal antibodies were nearly twice as effective as the standard treatment. When patients received the new treatments shortly after the onset of symptoms, deaths decreased by almost 90%. For the first time, therefore, Ebola ceased to be a death sentence.

Moreover, gene therapy staged a comeback in 2019, mainly featuring adeno-associated viral (AAV) vectors, and lentiviral vectors derived from HIV. Early last year, doctors in the US used lentiviral gene therapy to cure children afflicted with a severe immunodeficiency. And the previous December, a phase 1/2 human-based clinical trial of another lentiviral gene therapy stopped painful episodes of sickle cell disease, and relieved nearly 80% of patients of the need for therapeutic blood transfusions.

Also last year, the FDA approved the AAV-based Zolgensma gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy. Other AAV-based experimental therapies, including one for temporal lobe epilepsy and another for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, were tested on animals with promising results.

The discovery of many new viruses, vaccines, and treatments in 2019 was the result of investments in global surveillance, cross-sector partnerships, and scientific advances. But much more needs to be done. For example, we are only beginning to understand the impact of climate change on the emergence of infectious diseases and on the social and environmental determinants of health.

Science may have been successful last year, but it still needs support. This should include more high-quality education in the STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), increased funding of global research collaborations, and continued government support for innovation and research and development. At a time when misinformation is calling into question the validity of facts, the world also needs better science communication including higher-quality science reporting by the mass media.

This year started with a mysterious outbreak in Wuhan, China, involving individuals who have contracted a novel coronavirus. The coming weeks or months will, one hopes, bring answers to some key questions, including how the virus is acquired, whether those who have died or are critically ill have other medical conditions that explain the severity of illness, and many others. Science helped the world with the pandemic H1N1, SARS, and Ebola viruses, and science will once again help the world overcome this new threat.

The world is on the cusp of further, previously unimaginable medical discoveries and innovations. By supporting science and highlighting its positive impact, we can make 2020 an even better year for global health.

See the rest here:
How to Improve on a Good Year for Global Health | by Melvin Sanicas - Project Syndicate