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ACTIP
Bulletin 35 |
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Next meeting Please note that the next ACTIP meeting will take place in December 11-12, 2003 in Montreux, Switzerland, hosted by company Serono.
The central themes of the meeting will be:
We hope to see many of our
members and SMEs working on these themes in
Montreux.
In this issue Fewer new pharmaceuticals registered in 2003
Environmental impact of antibiotics EMBO Award for Communication in the Life Sciences 2003
ACTIP websiteIn the months of May, June and July, the ACTIP website received respectively 19,350, 12,565 and 10,448 requests for access. The numbers for downloaded pages were 5,282 (May), 2,860 (June) and 2,663 (July). The majority of requests originate from addresses with a .com ending (between 20-30%). Most visitors come directly to the ACTIP home page (70%), and not through a search machine such as Google or Yahoo. This indicates that the majority of visitors either types in the address of the ACTIP website directly or has the address bookmarked. The most popular pages are links, members, bulletins and publications, with the monographs on animal cell technology in general and monoclonal antibodies favorites.
Fewer new pharmaceuticals registered in 2003Since 1998, there is a trend that fewer pharmaceuticals have been registered for marketing. In 2002, only 30 new drugs were approved in the US and 20 in the EU. One reason is the mergers into mega-companies, resulting in a selecting of potential drug candidates with a concentration on potential blockbuster drugs. Despite the recent trends, larger companies expect the tide to turn in the future. In 2003, 6,994 new active substances and projects were being researched (a 9% increase compared to 2002). The European Commission will start this fall a study trying to determine whether there is a worldwide innovation crisis in the pharmaceutical industry and what might be its causes. The FDA has already started an action plan to decrease the time and costs involved in the registration process. For detailed information,
see: http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/2003/beyond2002/execsumm.html
Top 10 companies for R&D products (source: SCRIP may 14, 2003)
US biotech versus EU biotech Here are some interesting data concerning biotechnology companies in the US versus Europe (source: Ernst & Young, 2002). Number of biotech companies: 1,457 US 1,879 EU Turnover (Mil USD) 25,319 US 7,533 EU R&D (in mil USD) 11,532 US 4,244 EU Employees 141,000 US 34, 180 EU
News from the Commission
Commission proposes disease prevention centre To be able to respond faster to health threats, such as SARS, and to increase preparedness for a possible bio-terrorist attack, the Commission has proposed the creation of a new agency, the European Centre for Disease prevention and Control (ECDC). With a small core staff, the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control would draw together the expertise of hundreds of scientists around Europe. The Centre would improve upon Europe's communicable disease network already in place and would take over the work on monitoring and preparedness planning against bioterrorist attack so far pursued by the EU's Health Security Task Force. The main tasks of the ECDC would be: Epidemiological surveillance and laboratory networking across the EU - to increase the comparability and compatibility of the surveillance data collected and to maintain networks of reference laboratories; Early warning and response - 24 hour availability of disease experts; Scientific opinions - the ECDC would provide scientific assessments and technical support based on its in-house expertise and that of its networks in the Member States; Technical assistance - the ECDC could provide such assistance to the countries in the European Economic Area, candidate countries, as well as to third countries, to investigate an outbreak of an unknown human disease; Forward planning against health crises; Communicating on health threats - the ECDC would make accessible essential information on health threats to the general public as well as for decision-makers. The proposal will be forwarded to the European Parliament and the Council for consideration under the codecision procedure. If all goes as expected, the new Centre could be operational in 2005. Source: Euractive July 24, see also the Commission documents Strengthening Europe's
defences against health threats: Commission
proposes European Centre for Disease Prevention and
Control European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)
Research and innovation key to growth in Europe A report prepared by an independent high level study group at the request of Commission President Romano Prodi has outlined a path for growth in Europe, which sees an emphasis on innovation, research and higher education. "The Group views Europe's unsatisfactory growth performance during the last decades as a symptom of its failure to transform into an innovation-based economy," states the report. This change has become necessary in the context of globalisation and because Europe no longer needs to concentrate on reproducing what is done in the US, but on doing it better, according to the report. "Europe suffers from a lack of private sector investment in R&D, substantial although diminishing levels of public investment in R&D and poor efficiency in the distribution of available public funds," according to the high level group. It is proposed that these weaknesses are addressed through tax credits for R&D and innovative investments, and additional public research spending at both national and EU level. The report questions the models used for the allocation of research funding across Europe. It criticises the 'juste retour' principle, whereby each party gets back the equivalent of what it has paid in, for not paying enough attention to prioritisation or excellence. Centrally directed research programmes, such as the European Commission's Framework Programmes for research, are also questioned. The high level group claims that, in general, the funding system can be lengthy and bureaucratic, and the projects selected for funding tend to be large and 'can quickly turn in to white elephants.' The report also recommends the creation of an independent European agency for science and research (EASR), based on the US National Science Foundation, as well as the Nordic and British research councils. To access the report in full, visit http://europa.eu.int/comm/commissioners/prodi/pdf/agenda_for_growing_europe_en.pdf .
Model for innovation The European Commission's Enterprise DG has published a book entitled 'entrepreneurial innovation in Europe', which summarises 11 recent reports on innovation policies, and outlines a European model for 'smart' innovation policy. The book is designed to help regional, national and EU policy makers strengthening Europe's innovation capacity through the introduction of effective, targeted legislation and support measures. The impact of industrial relations policies on innovation is the focus of the fourth chapter. The study outlines a generic model of innovation friendly industrial policies, which include direct and indirect forms of employee consultation. The final section assesses corporate taxation as a means of encouraging companies to make innovation related investments. It concludes that well designed tax incentives, adapted to local circumstances, can encourage additional business investment in research and development. See the publication at http://www.cordis.lu/innovation-policy/studies/ca_study4.htm .
Busquin wants more brain research European Commissioner Philippe Busquin has called for more investment on research into brain disease. He spoke this at the launch of the European Brain Council (EBC) at the EP late June. Busquin found it ìsurprising that more funds are not devoted to this area of scienceî. Brain diseases account for 30% of the financial cost of treating diseases worldwide. Source: European Voice, June 19-25, 2003
More money, careers, space and bioethics At the Lisbon Council in March 2000, the Heads of States and Government agreed to make the EU the most competitive and dynamic, knowledge-based economy by 2010 In line with this aim, the overarching objective of the Research Commissioner Busquin during the Italian presidency will be to continue the efforts to create a more favorable overall framework for research in Europe to realize the vision of a genuine integrated European Research Area (ERA). To achieve this, the Commission is planning to focus on six broad policy areas: The 3% objective: meeting the target of increasing research investment from the current 1.9% to 3% of its GDP per year, with two thirds financed by the private sector, as called for by the 2002 Barcelona European Council; this would mean a necessary increase of 500,000 jobs. Attractiveness of researchers' careers: providing researchers with support and incentives to stop the so-called "brain drain", i.e. researchers leaving the EU to work in other countries such as the US or Japan; the Commission will present a Communication on this issue International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER): progressing on the ITER nuclear fusion energy research project to build a new experimental reactor producing a high level of energy through the fusion of hydrogen nuclei at very high temperatures in order to provide the EU with another important alternative energy source to fossil fuels; agreement on the location of ITER is expected at the September Council meeting (candidates are Vandellos, Spain, and Cadarache, France). European Space Policy: defining and implementing a coherent set of rules for collaboration between the European Commission and the European Space Agency (ESA) to give the EU a political rule in the field of space; the Council should conclude a frameword agreement between the EU and the ESA at its November meeting and discuss a White Paper on European Space Policy, which will be drafted by the Commission in co-operation with ESA and should be published before the end of 2003. Bio-ethics: research involving human embryonic stem cells and human embryos: the key challenge for the Italian presidency will be to reach an agreement on a Commission proposal for establishing criteria for EU funding of research projects involving the use of human embryonic stem cells; ministers are expected to adopt a Decision at the Competitiveness Council in November 2003. Research infrastructures: the Italian Presidency will organize a conference in Trieste on 21 November to assess progress of European cooperation in the field of research infrastructure and stimulate further initiatives; research infrastructure is also expected to be a formal agenda item at the Competitiveness Council in November 2003. Source: Euractive, July 17, 2002
Stop the brain drain: how to improve research careers The Commission's Third Report on Science and Technology indicators revealed a growing trend of "brain drain" in the EU. Although the EU produces the highest amount of science graduates, it loses an increasing number of highly qualified researchers to the US, where their employment prospects are better . To address this problem, the Commission on 18 July 2003 presented a Communication on improving the careers of researchers in the EU. This paper proposes concrete actions to improve the image of researchers, to attract more people to scientific careers and to foster researchers' mobility across Europe. These initiatives are designed to provide a basis for cooperation with the EU Member States and the research community, while respecting the subsidiarity principle, and they include:
The Commission has already launched a number of initiatives in this area, including EU training and mobility schemes for researchers, such as the Marie Curie Actions, and a EU mobility portal. It will also soon complete the creation of the European network of mobility centres (ERA-MORE) and a legal initiative. Sources: Commission Press Release: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/597727-561?714&1015=8&1014=EUROPAEUINTNKSHPACTIONGETTXTGTDOCIP0310510RAPIDLGENDISPLAY" \t "OTHR Taking action to stop EU brain drain: Commission proposes measures to improve researchers' careers (18 Juli 2003) Commission: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/597727-561?714&1015=8&1014=EUROPAEUINTESEARCHPRESS2003PDFINDICATORS20032MOBILITYENPDF" \t "OTHR Brain Drain and Brain Gain in Europe: Science and Technology Indicators 2003 (March 2003) Commission: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/597727-561?714&1015=8&1014=EUROPAEUINTCOMMRESEARCHFP6MARIECURIEACTIONSHOMEENHTML" \t "OTHR Marie Curie Actions Commission: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/597727-561?714&1015=8&1014=EUROPAEUINTERACAREERSINDEXENCFM" \t "OTHR The Researcher's Mobility Portal
European Research Council
The debate on the European Research Council is progressing. The meeting held in Paris in February 2003 succeeded in moving the debate on the ERC from informed circles to grass-root life scientists, the primary potential users of the ERC. The users send out a loud and clear message of support. However, as one of the participants said, 'we cannot sell ideas'. More work is now required to present politicians and others with clear plans for possible ERC structures, programmes and working mechanisms based on the perspectives highlighted during the meeting. There was consensus on the ERC having a lean administration, decisions to be based on scientific excellence, and a structure covering all scientific disciplines. EMBO was repeatedly mentioned as a role model".
The ACTIP Steering Committee is drafting a position paper on the ERC. Here are some quotes that me help is in our assessment of the issues: "European research must act as a counterweight to that of the US, and particularly to that of US corporations". Prof John Sulston, Sanger Centre Cambridge. "The Howard Huges Scheme (a large amount of money to researchers with the freedom of doing research) is an example of how you can achieve a lot with relatively little money". Prof Christiane Nusslein-Volhard. "What is needed is the support of science in the long term, with independence for the ERC and not more than 5-10% of the money invested on political directives". Prof Rolf Zinkernagel "DG Research welcomes the move towards an ERC, but not with unconditional support: the ERC should not duplicate or compete with EC Framework Programmes or national programmes; it should provide European added value and help to improve the quality of science; it should raise new money for research". Peter Kind, EC "National systems should not suffer form the existence of an ERC". Heidi Diggelman. "To have a significant impact, the budget needs to be 20-40 billion EURO/year". Prof Rolf Zinkernagel.
Source: EuroBiotechNews, no 1, vol 2, 2003, pp 33-35
On the web
EU tenders and subsidies Free of charge: Tenders Electronic Daily, covering public tenders of the EU http://ted.publications.eu.int" http://ted.publications.eu.int
Innovation Relay Centres Local contact point (53 in Europe) to address for help regarding technology transfer to and from the rest of Europe http://www.cordis.lu/irc/home.html" www.cordis.lu/irc/home.html
National focal points National contact points for FP6 in member states to provide help with finding partners and assisting in procedural or administrative matters http://www.cordis.lu/fp6/ncp.htm" http://www.cordis.lu/fp6/ncp.htm
Research online Europan Research Gateways On Line. National information on R&D projects, coordinated by the EC. EU national and European funded research in the EU member states www.cordis.lu/national_service EU funded TSE research Europa.eu.int/comm./research/quality-of-life/tse/index_en.html Developments in European science in the on-line European Research News Centre http://europa.eu.int/comm/research/news-centre/index_en.html Who's who in the EU: http://europa.eu.int/idea/idea.html Who's who in European research support How to register as an expert evaluator: www.cordis.lu/expert-candidature/home.html IFAH International Federation for Animal Health:
Business News
Solvay to build new cell culture facility In the future, it will be possible to quicker realize large quantities of vaccines for new flu variants thanks to the construction of a new animal cell culture facility of Solvay Pharmaceuticals in Weesp, the Netherlands. Construction has started this spring. The facility should be operational before the flu vaccination season of 2005. The use of animal cell technology for the production of flu vaccines is new; formerly, flu vaccines were obtained by culturing viruses in chicken eggs. At Solvay Pharmaceuticals the cell line will be Madin Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK). Competitor Baxter is also building a cell culture facility for the production of flu vaccine; this facility will be located in Austria. Both Solvay and Baxter have obtained marketing approval for their cell technology based flu vaccines in the Netherlands. Source: Bionieuws June 2003
Jena heads shortlist of sites for new Merck plant Germanyís Merch KGaA will focus its planning efforts for a new largeóscale production plant for therapeutic proteins in Jena in the Eastern German state of Thuringia. Also on the short list of potential locations are Durham in North Carolina, US and Boston, Massachusetts, US. The investment will be the largest single investment in the companyís 335 year history. However, the basic decision to build the plant has yet to be made. The investment would be near 300 million EURO and provide 260 new jobs and 20 trainee positions. Source: EuroBiotechNews No 1, vol 2, 2003
FDA approval for API facility Diosource Akzo Nobelsí Diosynth in Oss, the Netherlands, has built a new facility for cell culture and fermentation, called Diosource. Recently, the facility received FDA approval for the production of APIs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients). The facility can handle animal cell cultures as well as microbial fermentations. Diosource will produce for Akzo Nobel company Organon, as well as for third parties such as Pfizer. With 18,000 L, Diosource has Europeís largest animal cell culture facility. At present, all equipment and procedures are being validated. Production is expected to start in 2004. Source: Bionieuws June 4, 2003
Research News
'Omics' centre in London Modern scientific advances have led to a new generation of ëomicí sciences. Now, for the first time, all those sciences have become integrated under one roof in a ëBiomics Research Centreí at St Georges Hospital Medical School in London UK. The Biomics Centre brings together genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and transcriptomics capabilities to conduct medical research into cancer, infectious and cardiovascular diseases and transplantation. The Centre is partly funded by a Science Research Investment Grant (SRIF) of the Higher Education Funding Council for England. Source: Bioventure View, April 2003
Boost for prion research in the US In 2002, the Department of Defense (DOD) launched the US National Prion research Program, with a budget of 42,5 million USD for research grants in this area. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has been asked by the DOD to prepare a research agenda for the first round of grants. Research on TSEs in the US has been hampered by a lack of funding and a shortage of research investigators with a wide range of expertise. One of the incentives of the program will be for achieving a rapid diagnostic test that is sensitive and specific enough to detect minute amounts of prions without producing false positives. Other objectives are funding of basic research into the structural features of prion replication, the mechanisms of TSE pathogenesis, the epidemiology and natural history of TSEs, and the physiologic function of normal prion proteins. For more information, see www.iom.edu
Test on RNA marker for BSE in live cattle US company Chronix Biomedical, together with the University of Gottingen, recently developed a blood test able to detect BSE in live bovines. The test does not measure the presence of prions, but an RNA-marker that is indicative of the physiological reaction on the prion. So far, only 5 animals have been tested with it. It would take at least 4-5 years before the test will have been fully validated. Source: Bionieuws 10, May 23, 2003
Powerful genomics test for West Nile virus Bio-ID Diagnostic Inc., a diagnostic genomics company based in Saskatoon, Canada, has developed a DNA sequence based test for the West Nile Virus that has distinct features compared to any other tests on the market. The test can be used to diagnose the condition in symptomatic patients and animals, and also to detect the virus in blood donations from otherwise healthy individuals. The test can detect the difference between the various strains of West Nile virus, as well as identify related viruses, such as Yellow fever, Dengue fever, and encephalitis. The test can also be effective in epidemic situations to track spread, identify source, and detect changes that may affect virulence and pathogenicity. Source: www.bio-id-diagnostic.com
Proactive prevention plan for blood supply At the end of June, a hearing was held in the European Parliament on ëemerging virusesí. Prompted by the SARS epidemic, the members of parliament were told that emerging viruses such as SARS pose an ëenormous potential threatí to the safety of blood supplies in the EU. Since 1976, at least 19 new infectious diseases have emerged, including SARS and new variant CJD, with international travel and increased mobility all contributing to them spreading. An EU Commission official told the hearing that the EU Executive was pushing through new policies aimed at protecting blood supplies and patients needing blood transfusions. However, some deputies said that, despite such assurances, the EU needed to ërevisit existing legislation intended to ensure a uniformly high level of safety of all blood components for member states. ëOur goal is to develop a proactive prevention plan implemented across Europe that will allow us to be prepared for the next emerging virus outbreak and not wait until it is too lateí. Source: European Voice, June 26-July 2, 2003
EU to fund SARS research and prevention programme On 3 July, Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin announced that 9 million euro will be allocated in a special call to SARS research under the Sixth Framework Programme for Research. Although the immediate dangers from the current SARS outbreaks seem to have lessened and no death cases have been reported in the EU, there are still concerns about the possible resurgence of the virus. The reappearance of SARS can be worrying as much information is still lacking concerning its transmission, reservoirs, stability and origin. This special call aims at addressing this knowledge gap, covering surveillance and control; clinical manifestations, including disease transmission; infection control procedures; interventions and vaccines; as well as risk assessment. The SARS research will be funded by the Sixth Research Framework Programme thanks to the inclusion of a new flexible mechanism called "Policy Oriented research", which allows a rapid response to urgent scientific support needs. Source: Euractive July 4, 2003 Commission: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/523119-367?714&1015=8&1014=WWWEUROPAEUINTUESTENKSHPACTIONGETTXTGTDOCIP039400RAPIDLGEN" \t "OTHR Commission to invest EUR 9 million into research for SARS prevention (3 July 2003) Sixth Framework Programme: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/523119-367?714&1015=8&1014=FP6CORDISLUFP6CALLDETAILSCFMCALLID84" \t "OTHR Policy-orientated research ó Special Call on Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)
R&D in US budget for 2004 On February 2003, the US federal plans for the R&D budget for the year 2004 were announced. Subject to discussions in the US senate, these plans give a good idea of research directions and choices made. Here some key data: total budget 122.7 billion USD. A record, 6,7% higher than the proposed budget for 2003 and 13.8% higher than the 2002 budget; 9.1% increase in the budget of the Department of defense (DOD), which will absorb 2/3 of the total federal R&D budget 31.5% increase in the budget of the new Department of Homeland Security. Emphasis on defense technologies against chemical, biological and nuclear weapons, but also biometrics; 10% budget increase for the National Science Foundation, to counteract the strong focus on biomedical research of the past few years. Now more budget for physics, mathematics, chemistry and material sciences High priority for the three multiagency initiatives: 847 milUSD for nanotechnology (9.4 % increase), 2.2 bilUSD for information technology (5.9% increase); no increase (1.7 bilUSD) for the Global Change Research Program; Only 2% budget increase for the national Institute of Health (NIH), signaling that the doubling trajectory of the past years truly will be finished in 2004. But following the doubling efforts of the past few years, NIH is now a rich and powerful institute; Priority within NIH budget will be given to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (increase 8.9% to 4.3 bilUSD) Decrease of 9% for the Department of Commerce (but for years congress has been able to torpedo such proposed decreases).
Source: Technieuws vol 41, no 2, 2003
Stem cell news
Academics challenge politicians on stem cells In the US, the debate on stem cell research received a new impetus with a publication in the New England Journal of Medicine by academics unhappy with the current political debate. Several national bills have been proposed aimed at curtailing stem cell research; in some states bills take the form of a total ban on nuclear transplants (thus prohibiting both reproductive as well as therapeutic cloning); in other it is proposed to introduce a limited ban on research with embryonal stem cells. In addition, the various states have their own laws. There is a total ban in the states of Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan and North Dakota, a ban on reproductive cloning in Louisiana and Missouri and in California the reverse has happened: there a law has been passed aimed at stimulating stem cell research.Ý In their article, the academics argue that research into reprogramming adult stem cells would benefit substantially if research with current methods is allowed, including nuclear transplants to create new embryonal stem cell lines. Laws that would prohibit such research would ultimately hamper research into reprogramming of adult stem cells. Source: Daley George Q., Cloning and Stem Cells - Handicapping the Political and Scientific Debates, New England Journal for Medicine 349:3 p. 265-266, July 17, 2003 Rosenthal Nadia, Prometheus's Vulture and the Stem-Cell Promise, New England Journal for Medicine 349:3, p. 267-274, July 17, 2003
Stem cells to heal heart attacks? Several articles in Nature have been addressing the issue whether bone marrow stem cells are able to repair heart damage. Two years ago, researchers claimed to have been able to repair damaged heart tissue in mice using mouse bone marrow stem cells. Apart from repair, also the heart function improved. In other research rats with an induced heart attack were injected with angiogenic stem cells. In these rats, new blood vessels were formed, further dying of heart muscle cells was stopped and the pump function improved.ÝHowever, many of the injected stem cells poorly survived. Recently, Victor Dzau of the Bringham and Women's Hospital in Boston (USA) genetically modified bone marrow stem cells to survive better (they introduced a ëcell survival gene). These cells were injected into rats with a previously induced heart attack. More than 60% of the cells survived 48 hours and thereby prevented a further deterioration of the heart. Some researchers now speculate that repair of human hearts following a heart attack will be possible in the short term.
Long-lived stem cells heal heart attacks, Nature, 11 August 2003, www.nature.com/nsu/030804/030804-15.html Hope stems for broken hearts, Nature, 31 March 2001, www.nature.com/nsu/010404/010404-4.html
Council adopts human tissues and cells proposal The Council has formally adopted its common position on the proposed new law setting quality and safety standards for the handling of human tissues and cells. This legislation will introduce more stringent requirements on the suitability of donors, screening of donated substances, as well as the traceability from donor to patient and vice versa. Rules for third country imports will also be established ensuring equivalent standards of quality and safety. The legislative proposal will now be forwarded to the European Parliament for a second reading. Source: Euractive portal, July 24: www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/615349-701?714&1015=9&1014=ld_humantissue Legislation on human tissues and cells
Proposal for strict ethical guidelines on EU funding of human embryonic stem cell research On July 9, 2003, the Commission adopted a proposal for guidelines on EU funded human embryonic stem cell research. The proposal presents a coherent set of strict ethical guidelines that will apply to the EU funding of research projects involving the derivation of stem cells from human supernumerary embryos. In parallel, the Commission is publishing a call for proposals for the set-up of a European registry of stem cells and for contributing to the establishment of public stem cell banks. In this way, the EU will contribute to an optimal access to and use of stem cells, ensuring that the results of research ultimately become more quickly available to all patients across Europe. The Commission proposal does not aim to set universal ethical principles, nor does it aim to provide guidelines for EU Member States, since every Member State must decide for itself on this issue. The proposal is fully in line with the various opinions of the European Group on Ethics (EGE), in particular opinion n15 of November 14, 2000, "Ethical aspects of human stem cell research and use". The Framework Programme respects national rules and values as no funding is made available for a specific research activity in a Member State where that research is forbidden. It proposes the following guidelines: The EU will not fund human embryonic stem cell research where it is forbidden by a Member State; Human embryonic stem cells can only be derived from supernumerary embryos that are donated for research by parents and that were created before 27 June 2002, the date of the adoption of the Framework Programme. These embryos are destined to be destroyed at some point in time; Potential research project partners applying for EU funding must seek ethical advice at national or local level in Member States where the research will take place, even in countries where obtaining such ethical advice is not mandatory; Research will be funded only when it is demonstrated that it meets particularly important research objectives; Research will be funded only when there is no adequate alternative available. In particular, it must demonstrated that one cannot use existing embryonic or adult stem cell lines; Supernumerary embryos will be used only if informed consent has been given by the donor(s); Embryo donor(s) will not be permitted to make any financial gain; Data and privacy protection of donors must be guaranteed; Traceability of stem cells will be required; Research consortia will be required to engage in making available new human embryonic stem cells to other researchers. The Commission intends to fund the creation of a European registry, an initiative advocated by nearly all Member States. Such a registry at European level should reduce the need for derivation of stem cells from human supernumerary embryos in the future. Collaborative research at EU level should contribute to a reduction of the use of human embryos. By sharing resources and results within a European project, duplication of research activities will be reduced. Furthermore, more rapid scientific progress can be achieved by bringing together multidisciplinary teams.
Approved stem cell lines In the year 2002, a total of 78 stem cell lines had been approved for federal funded research in the US:
Useful web sites: Human embryonic stem cell registry: http://escr.nih.gov" http://escr.nih.gov AAAS stem cell policy brief www.aaas.org/spp/cstc/issues/stemcells.htm AAAS human cloning policy brief: www.aas.org/spp/cstc/issues/cloning.htm"
Environmental impact of antibioticsThe results of three European research projects (ERAVMIS, REMPHARMAWATER and POSEIDON) covering 13 European countries and establishing the environmental impact of human and veterinary antibiotics and possible solutions,was presented to the press for the first time on 27 June in Gryaab, Gˆteborg (Sweden), at Scandinaviaís Swedenís largest waste-water processing treatment plant. Antibiotics can find their way into our environment, with harmful and worrying consequences. In the last decade 12,500 billion tons of antibiotics per year were consumed and consumption continues to increase. These compounds are partly degraded by the body but thousands of tons of antibiotics still enter the environment each year by excretion. Recent findings confirm that antibiotics can now be found in municipal sewage waste water and agricultural waste. If nothing is done, these antibiotics will contaminate our water resources and soils. "The knowledge of what happens with antibiotics after their use, once they are released into the environment, has been very limited until now," said Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin. "Research in this field started in mid 1980s in Europe, and since then we have been leaders on this issue world-wide, discovering not only the impacts on the environment, but proposing solutions to avoid or minimize it. The residues of various drugs, painkillers, birth control pills and medicines used to treat cardiovascular and heart diseases, have been detected in sewage treatment plants and raw water resources in many European countries. The removal rates of individual compounds through the wastewater treatment are variable, and some standard removal techniques are not capable of eliminating all of these compounds. As a consequence of this incomplete removal, rivers and even ground waters in some countries are also contaminated. The three European projects have studied the behavior and impact of antibiotics in the environment, as well as the most effective techniques to eliminate these compounds, both at waste-water and drinking water treatment processes. ERAVMIS: Addressing the behaviors and effects of veterinary antibiotics in the environment. Eravmis: www.cranfield.ac.uk/ecochemistry/eravmis REMPHARMAWATER: Eco-toxicological assessment and removal technologies of antibiotics in waste-waters. Rempharmawater: www.unina.it/~rmarotta POSEIDON: A "solution - world first": antibiotics can be eliminated during the treatment process in order to prevent its release into the environment, as proved in the pilot demonstration in Braunschweig waste water treatment plant (DE). Poseidon: www.eu-poseidon.com/ Source: Euractiv news, June 2003
EMBO Award for Communication in the Life Sciences 2003
Last year the European Molecular Biology Organisation launched the EMBO Award for Communication in the Life Sciences, which was awarded to Ronald Plasterk from the Netherlands. Such was the success of this initiative, that it was decided to continue it in 2003. The award is intended for a life scientist who, while remaining active in research, has succeeded in making an outstanding contribution to the communication of science to the public. The award consists of a silver and gold medal, and the sum of Euro 5.000, which the winner may dispose of as she/he sees fit. Apart from the condition that candidates must be in active research, the scope of activities that are eligible is broad. Whether the communication be via the media, books, public outreach projects, or special initiatives (for example schools projects), particular emphasis is placed on originality and imagination. The closing date for applications is 31 August 2003, and the award will be presented on 15 November during the EMBL/EMBO joint conference on Science & Society in Heidelberg.
More information at: www.embo.org/projects/scisoc/com_medal.html
AGENDAA number of interesting conferences and workshops is coming up. Of all the events mentioned here, the detailed programmes and registration/application forms are available from the ACTIP secretariat.
11th European
Congress on Biotechnology, 25th anniversary of
EFB: EuroScience
Open Forum 2004 (ESOF2004) 6th
Conference on
Protein
Expression in Animal Cells Strategic
Resource management 3rd meeting
of the European Life Sciences Organization Biotech
Nantes 2003: Health and
Wealth, economic and social dimensions of
health BioTechnica
Hannover, 2003 The
pharmaceutical discovery
congress Following
chemical genomics diversity-oriented
synthesis RNAi in
target validation BioPartnering
Europe BioValley
Life Sciences Week Epidos Annual
Conference 11th Annual
Meeting of the European Society of Gene
Therapy Advances in
Cell Culture Processing CORDIA-EuropaBio
Convention 2003 BioSquare
2004
ACTIP bulletin no. 35, August 2003
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