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Advocates Express Concern About Embryonic Stem Cell Research Guidelines As Comment Period Closes
Supporters of embryonic stem cell research have expressed concern about the impact on existing research efforts under the Obama administration"s draft guidelines outlining criteria for federal funding of stem cell research, the Washington Post reports. The public comment period for the guidelines ends Tuesday and has generated more than 20,000 comments addressing nearly every element of the proposal. The guidelines, which NIH issued in April, propose limiting federal funding for the research to stem cells derived from unused embryos created for fertility treatments and willingly donated by patients who have given written consent. Former President George W. Bush in August 2001 enacted restrictions limiting federal funding for the research to the 21 stem cell lines existing at the time. Although President Obama in March signed an executive order lifting Bush"s restrictions, some proponents of embryonic stem cell research have suggested that Obama"s plan could actually jeopardize many existing research efforts. The Obama administration is expected to issue its final version of the guidelines by July 7, the Post reports.After Bush restricted federal funding to the embryonic stem cell lines already in existence, many researchers turned to private donors and state governments for the financial support to create hundreds of new lines. Although supporters of the research initially were pleased that the Obama administration"s guidelines would allow federal funding for research on these new existing lines, some are now concerned that certain stipulations in the new guidelines could actually disqualify these research efforts from receiving federal funding. For example, NIH"s proposal requires that couples who wish to donate unused embryos for research sign a consent form indicating that they were fully informed of their alternatives. Although many fertility clinics provide information for couples about their other options, few clinics note these details in written consent forms, according to the Post. Therefore, existing stem cell lines derived from embryos donated by couples who did not sign the required consent forms could be ineligible under NIH"s draft proposal, the Post reports. In addition, many stem cell research supporters also expressed disappointment that only unused embryos created for fertility treatments would be eligible for federal funding.George Daley of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute said that the Obama administration"s guidelines "take 2009 standards and attempt to apply them retroactively, which isn"t really a standard that would allow most of the pre-existing lines to be acceptable for NIH funding." Lawrence Goldstein, director of the University of California-San Diego"s stem cell program, said, "It"s not that past practices were shoddy. But they don"t necessarily meet every letter of the new guidelines moving forward." Goldstein added that researchers would "have to throw everything out and start all over again" under the new proposed guidelines. Amy Comstock Rick, CEO of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research, said that her group is "very concerned" about the funding prospects for existing research efforts, adding that if NIH officials do not modify the guidelines, "very little current research would be eligible" to receive federal funds. However, Raynard Kington, acting NIH director, said the agency is aware of the concerns and "will take them into consideration." He added that "it"s unambiguous that the intent of the president was to expand opportunities and research in this area," as long as such research is "scientifically worthy" and "ethically responsible" (Stein, Washington Post, 5/25).

Obama's Focus On Health Care Crucial To Reform
"After a week of international diplomacy, President Obama returns to Washington this week facing an even greater diplomatic challenge: nudging the large and controversial health-care reform package toward consensus on Capitol Hill," The Washington Post reports. Despite media reports of challenges including "the virtual wall of opposition among Republicans," "resistance among conservative Blue Dog Democrats over the potential cost," and "nervousness among progressives that the White House might compromise too much on a public insurance option," officials at the White House "remain publicly optimistic." White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel said that the issues are just part of "the nature of what we"re doing," and that "we"ve never, on universal coverage, been this close to the goal line."
News of the day
APIC Supports Automated Surveillance Technologies In Prevention Of Healthcare-Associated Infections
In response to the need for expanded monitoring and reporting of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) today announced its support for the use of automated surveillance technologies in the healthcare setting as an essential part of infection prevention and control activities. The recommendations are published in the APIC position paper, "The Importance of Surveillance Technologies in the Prevention of Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs)."
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Family History Predicts Presence And Course Of Psychiatric Disorders

A family history of depression, anxiety, alcohol dependence or drug dependence is associated with the presence of each condition and also may predict its course and prognosis, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Family history of a psychiatric condition is generally known to increase an individual"s risk of developing that condition, according to background information in the article. "However, there is a need to go further and test whether family history is also associated with clinical features of the disorder thought to represent a continuum of seriousness among individuals who meet criteria for diagnosis," the authors write. Barry J. Milne, Ph.D., of University of Auckland, New Zealand, and colleagues studied 981 residents of Dunedin, New Zealand, born in 1972 or 1973. Participants were enrolled in the Dunedin Study at age 3 and followed up through age 32. Between 2003 and 2005, family history data were collected about each individual"s biological parents, grandparents and siblings older than 10 years. Four psychiatric disorders were studied: major depressive episode, anxiety disorder, alcohol dependence and drug dependence. "In general, we found that associations showed a consistent direction of effect across all four disorders: (1) family history was associated with the presence vs. absence of disorder for all four disorder types; (2) family history was associated with a recurrent course for all four disorders (but not significantly for women with depression); (3) family history was associated with worse impairment for all four disorders (but not significantly for depression and drug dependence); and (4) family history was associated with greater service use for all four disorders (but not significantly for anxiety disorders)," the authors write. The results suggest implications for researchers who wish to study genetic forms of a disorder and also for clinicians treating psychiatric conditions, the authors note. From a public health perspective, family history may be useful for determining which patients will have the poorest prognosis," they conclude. "For example, among those with depression, anxiety disorder, alcohol dependence and drug dependence, a family history screen may help determine whose illness will recur, whose illness will cause the greatest impairment and who will be the most likely to use treatment res. Thus, family history may identify a subgroup in need of primary or early intervention, and for whom treatments appropriate for recurrent, highly disabling disorder may be needed." Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2009;66[7]:738-747. Archives of General Psychiatry


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