CHAMBER BACKS BOND FOR STEM CELL STUDY CHAIRMAN CITES POTENTIAL ECONOMIC BENEFIT TO STATE.Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce said Friday it would support a $300 million bond initiative to fund stem cell stem cell In living organisms, an undifferentiated cell that can produce other cells that eventually make up specialized tissues and organs. There are two major types of stem cells, embryonic and adult. research, assuming the measure would help generate more biomedical bi·o·med·i·cal adj. 1. Of or relating to biomedicine. 2. Of, relating to, or involving biological, medical, and physical sciences. jobs in Southern California. With 125,000 people employed in the estimated $10 billion industry, the chamber expects more jobs and ultimately lower health care expenses should the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative pass in November 2004. George Kieffer, chairman of the chamber, said the initiative makes good economic sense and urged businesses throughout the city to endorse the measure. Though the initiative does not dictate who will receive the funding, ``the entire state will likely benefit,'' Kieffer said. He was joined by California State Controller The State Controller is the Chief Financial Officer of the State of California in the United States. The post has broader responsibilities and authority than the California State Treasurer. Steve Westly at a chamber press conference Friday morning to further champion the cause. ``The initiative will be a job-producing machine for the state of California,'' said Westly, who also drew allusions to former first lady Nancy Reagan's push for stem cell research following her husband's bout with Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (ăls`hī'mərz, ôls–), degenerative disease of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex that leads to atrophy of the brain and senile dementia. . Stem cell research is a controversial topic because of the religious and moral implications of the issue. Proponents of such research say stem cells stem cells, unspecialized human or animal cells that can produce mature specialized body cells and at the same time replicate themselves. Embryonic stem cells are derived from a blastocyst (the blastula typical of placental mammals; see embryo), which is very young could lead to new treatments or even cures for heart disease, cancer, autoimmune diseases Autoimmune diseases A group of diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus, in which immune cells turn on the body, attacking various tissues and organs. Mentioned in: Complement Deficiencies, Premature Menopause , Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease or Parkinsonism, degenerative brain disorder first described by the English surgeon James Parkinson in 1817. When there is no known cause, the disease usually appears after age 40 and is referred to as Parkinson's disease. and Alzheimer's disease. Opponents are concerned about the use of embryonic stem cells for research, saying such an act violates human life. Stem cells are generally categorized as either embryonic or adult. The latter are supposedly less controversial because they are extracted from developed men or women rather than embryos. Denis Denis, king of Portugal: see Diniz. Rodgerson, chief executive officer NeoStem, an adult stem cell Adult stem cells are undifferentiated cells found throughout the body that divide to replenish dying cells and regenerate damaged tissues. Also known as somatic (from Greek Σωματικóς, of the body storage company, said the distinction is important. ``There is a tremendous amount of confusion right now. The development of adult stem cell therapy is being impeded by the focus on embryonic stem cells,'' he said. ``And adult stem cells could be the solution to everyone's moral, religious and ethical issues.'' Rodgerson, a former professor of pathology at the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA comprises the College of Letters and Science (the primary undergraduate college), seven professional schools, and five professional Health Science schools. Since 2001, UCLA has enrolled over 33,000 total students, and that number is steadily rising. , started the Agoura Hills-based company more than a year ago. Through a process much like the collection of plasma - the yellowish fluid portion of the blood - NeoStem extracts stem cells from adults and then stores them indefinitely. The idea is that NeoStem subscribers could then access their own healthy stem cells to assist in the treatment of disease or other ailments. Nancy Reagan has long been an advocate of embryonic stem cell research. Rodgerson said he supports this type of research, yet he believes adult stem cells could help treat diseases a lot sooner. ``All of us should understand the difference between embryonic and adult stem cells. But there will not be immediate therapies from embryonic,'' he said. Adult stem cells are already being used for cancer treatment, with heart disease next in line. As for the bond initiative, Rodgerson sees very little of it going toward adult stem cell therapy. ``Money should go to both. As scientists we should try to understand as much as possible on the topic,'' he said. ``But you can't just label a stem cell as something that is appalling, especially because adult stem cells have no stigma whatsoever.'' Evan Pondel, (818) 713-3662 evan.pondel(at)dailynews.com |
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