Last week, scientists revealed that they were able to use human embryonic stem cells to repair damaged spinal cords in mice. They also were able to use stem cells to stall brain disease in mice. The findings lend strong support to the contention that human embryonic stem cell research may lead to cures for spinal cord injuries, as well as retard other diseases such as Parkinsons or Alzheimers.
These are all severe and rampant medical problems for which little else seems to be effective. But the current Republican-led administration in Washington has put severe clamps on stem cell research. That has opened up the field for forward-looking states like Connecticut.
The question is, how long can we maintain a lead in this area?
In 2005, Connecticut endorsed a $100 million plan, in which the state would dole money out over 10 years to incubate stem cell research here. Last fall, the first $20 million of that money was handed out to scientists. At the time the program was created, Connecticut was only the third state in the country to have embraced this area of medical research as a driver of future economic development.
But things have changed since then. As new affirmations of the benefits of stem cell work arrive with regularity, more states have looked at bolstering their involvement. Just last week, the trustees of the University of Massachusetts voted to pursue creating a $66.4 million stem cell institute. That plan includes building a new 30,000-square-foot research center in Worcester.
“If you try to rest on your laurels, you’re just going to be left behind. The other states are moving,” news reports quoted Dr. Robert P. Lanza, vice president of California biotechnology firm Advanced Cell Technology Inc.
Connecticut has a stem cell program, which came after New Jersey and California began theirs. Since then, Maryland, Indiana, Illinois, Massachusetts, Washington, Wisconsin and Virginia have all – with different degrees of enthusiasm — thrown their hats in the ring.
Moreover, with the ascendancy of Democrat control of Congress last fall, there is a strong likelihood that the Bush Administration’s choke-hold on federal research may be forcibly loosened.
If we are looking at this as an opportunity to put Connecticut at the forefront of scientific research – and biotech development – of the most promising medical advance in decades, we, too, must pay heed to Dr. Lanza’s advice. We cannot look at our original plan as a realistic strategy. There’s just too much competition coming, and too fast.
Let’s learn from “gazelle companies” – those whose growth leaps over the competition – about the advantages gleaned from nimbly reacting to changing market conditions. Our original plan was to dole money out over an extended period of time, which was a reasonable plan as long as researchers had difficulty finding funding and facilities elsewhere. Clearly, that’s no longer the case.
Also clear is that, personal morality aside, this research is continuing – either within the United States or in other nations. Major advances in medicine are going to be based on embryonic stem cell research. And with those advances will come jobs and companies to the areas that have made themselves centers of knowledge on the topic.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell ought to revisit her 10-year timeline. Revising this to a five-year plan and accelerating the outlay of research dollars is an initiative we can’t afford to let pass us by.
