Via Art Caplan comes this item from Mary Ann Akers’ WaPo blog “The Sleuth” in which she highlights Elias Zerhouni’s statements of support for embryonic stem cell research in a recent NIH magazine. Here’s a clip from the issue of NIH Medline Plus (pdf):
(emphasis added)
Klose: How difficult is the challenge?
Dr. Zerhouni: It is extraordinarily complex. Picture the embryonic cell (and its DNA) as a very complex keyboard, with thousands of keys. With the human genome, weve identified the size of the keyboard, the number of keys, and the notes each plays. What we havent figured out is how they end up playing Bach and Beethoven, so to speakhow becoming a neuron is one symphony, a skin cell another.
There are billions of cells, all with their own music. As the brain develops, it turns out theyre pretty harmoniousan orchestra of keyboards. So signaling among them becomes important. But who is the conductor? How is an adult cell that only plays neuron music conducted, why does it stop, and how can you make it play heart or skin music? And for the embryonic stem cella keyboard that has never playedhow is it directed to play neuron music and not muscle or liver music, even though all of our cells contain the same instruction books?
This is what stem cell science is all about.
Klose: All in search of a conductor?
Dr. Zerhouni: Yes. Weve made great progress, but people still suffer. With stroke, as with all conditions, we must be able to predict them earlier so we can act at the personal levelthrough changes in lifestyle, diet, exercise, etc.to preempt it from striking, if possible. Fundamentally, however, we need to understand how things are organized.
Therefore, all avenues of research need to be pursued.
Klose: Despite the controversy over stem cells?
Dr. Zerhouni: Yes. Unfortunately, the scientific foundation of stem cell research is sometimes lost in the societal, moral, and ethical battle between hype and hope. But our job at NIH is to push the science forward to serve our patients.
Klose: When can we expect results?
Dr. Zerhouni: The research is advancing at an incredible pace, but as we move forward were finding more complexity. When I became director of the NIH we only knew of one gene that had anything to do with diabetes. Then, last June, we discovered 10 more that are clearly associated; we must accelerate our research into how these notes play.
Klose: And thats the issue of supporting basic research, isnt it?
Dr. Zerhouni: Thats right. We must continue the research at all levels, or there will be no progress. We need to understand these fundamental facts of life: how and why the young brain adapts, why the old does not. If we can know how a disease occurs, we can prevent it. So I think its a multi-pronged attack, both from the point of basic understanding and continually improving what we do. Finally, its important to emphasize that science evolves with strong ethics.
Good science is good ethics.
Akers talked with spokesmen from both Zerhouni’s office and the White House and she reports that both seemed to think the director’s comments were no big deal.