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This week in European sciences -- week 49 |
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Overview
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Profiling Philippe Busquin, EU research commissioner After missing
a decision or compromise on stem cell research European papers profile
EU research commissioner Philippe Busquin to find the red thread in his
European science policy and decision making. Cornelia Bolesch writes in
Süddeutsche Zeitung (December
5, 2003) that none of the people involved in stem cell research actually
know about the criteria to receive funding by the EU. This situation is
harmful for Busquin's image because he started to back strongly the position
of researchers and to develop a competitive European research area. Bolesch
stressed that the 62-year old physicist from Belgium started from the
2nd row in the Prodi commission. Soon, he promoted effectively the value
of research for a prospering EU. But it's not easy to focus the interests
of 15 member states to common research priorities. Michael Stabenow adds
in FAZ (December 3, 2003)
that Busquin is a pronounced advocate of European research and its allocated
17 billion euros budget in the 6th framework programme (2002-2006). Only
a prospering economy may guarantee welfare in the European community -
the advancement of science is therefore a precondition. |
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Süddeutsche
Zeitung |
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And the loser is: German education In the German
weekly Die Zeit (December
4, 2003), Rheinhard Kahl discusses the results of a study by the OECD.
The paper deals with the situation of the education in German schools.
The result: Bad, bad, bad. "The recent system of German schools is part
of an economical and social system which belongs to history". The teachers
are paralyzed by a inflexible practice of administration and salary, the
paper concludes. Who (the hell) is going to be a teacher in Germany? |
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Die
Zeit |
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Trials Will Test Whether AIDS Drug Can Also Prevent HIV Three studies
will be started next year to test a pill, which scientists hope can prevent
HIV infection in people, Marily Chase reports in the Wall Street Journal
(December 4, 2003). "The
pill, Viread by Gilead Sciences Inc., is already widely used to treat
AIDS. But now it is sparking hope that it can act as a shield against
HIV, the virus that causes AIDS," Chase writes. Trials of the pill in
animals have shown success and some doctors already prescribe Viread as
a "morning-after pill." The planned trials testing Viread are sponsored
by: The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which pledged $6.5 million
to test 2,000 people in countries including Cambodia and Ghana; The National
Institutes of Health, which has given $2.1 million to the University of
California to test Viread in 960 Cambodian women, many are at-risk prostitutes;
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which awarded a $3.5-million
four-year grant to test the drug's safety in 400 uninfected gay and bisexual
men. |
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Wall
Street Journal |
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The Nobel Factor: Discovery or Invention The award
ceremony for the Nobel Prizes is approaching and Raymond Damadian and
his supporters continue their vocal campaign against the Nobel committee
with another one-page advert in Dagens Nyheter (December
3, 2003). The advert claims, that Damadian is the "discoverer" of
magnetic resonance imaging, whereas Lauterbur and Mansfield allegedly
are only "inventors". Alfred Nobel's testament stipulates that in physics
"discoveries and inventions" can be rewarded, whereas in physiology and
medicine only discoveries qualify. |
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Dagens
Nyheter |
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A Delicate Relationship in Pharma Business Their aims
go into the same direction: curing diseases, improving the lifes of suffering
patients. But when money and big business come into play the relationship
between patient interest groups and pharma firms gets delicate. Klaus
Koch reports in Süddeutsche Zeitung (December
2, 2003) about the dependencies of some patient interest groups on
corporate marketing. You get the impression that in the same way as Roche
et al. finance continuing education, conferences and meetings for doctors
to promote their drugs, the pharma business also uses a tight connection
to patients' interest groups to push their products on the market or to
prepare a market for a forthcoming drug. Most interest groups know about
the problems and have established strict guidelines on how to cooperate
with the sponsors. Otherwise, a lack in transparency may effect the credibility
of all participants in a groups campaign, as Koch points out: In some
cases it has been uncovered that they were heavily funded by corporate
pharma to advertise their products. Bad luck for the politicians and others
supporting the campaign not knowing about the delicate relationship. |
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Süddeutsche
Zeitung |
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The Flu as a Demographic Factor in Sweden Every year
one thousand people die of the flu in Sweden. The flu is thus one of the
few factors, which leave a repeated noticeable trace in demographic statistics.
Per Snaprud reports in Dagens Nyheter (November
30, 2003) about the Fujian strain of the flu, which now sweeps through
Europe. Fujian does not belong to the three strains against which the
most current vaccine was designed to protect. However, as Fujian is related
to these strains, a vaccination still can give some protection. |
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Dagens
Nyheter |
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Profiling Breast Cancer Gene Expression Agneta Lagercrantz
describes in Svenska Dagbladet (November
30, 2003) ongoing Swedish research on breast cancer diagnostics and
therapy. The study, the results of which will be published early next
year, is concerned with so-called locally advanced breast cancer. This
type makes up approximately 5 percent of all breast cancers and is usually
treated in a quite unspecific manner with antracyclines or taxanes. Using
micro array technology the researchers analyse the gene expression profiles
of individual cancers and attempt to divide locally advanced breast cancers
into subtypes, which then may be treated more specifically. The technology
is apparently also able to distinguish hereditary from sporadic forms. |
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Svenska
Dagbladet |
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Despite
all programmes of the German federal government to prevent the brain drain
of top researchers to the U.S. nothing really changed. Felix Strautmann
describes some aspects of the problem in FAZ on Sunday (November
30, 2003). The U.S. is by far the most attractive employee for people
seeking their career in research: top institutes, top funding, top career
opportunities. The situation in Germany: the government reduced funding
this year, programmes aimed at getting people back have no impact, career
concepts like the so-called junior professorship (comparable to the assistant
professor in the U.S.) fail. After some obligatory post doctoral phase
abroad, for most German researchers in the U.S., they have to decide whether
to go back or to stay with a U.S. institution. The point is that after
a while some 'soft factors' make people consider returning to Germany:
Their children should go to a German school, the relatives, the way of
living, the food. In the end they don't go back because of the inflexibility
of German career opportunities in research, and they stay in the U.S.
watching from the distance whether the situation may improve over the
years. |
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Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung |
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