Your morning jolt: Company behind Atlanta study pulls plug on stem cell research
The California-based company behind a pioneering experiment at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta – studying whether human embryonic stem cells can be used to repair spinal injuries — announced Monday it would halt the research and focus on developing two cancer drugs.
Geron was the first company ever permitted to conduct embryonic stem cell tests on humans. From McClatchy-Tribune News Service:
Although the company has sufficient finances to cover its cancer-drug costs over the next 20 months without having to raise more money, it noted in a news release, “this would not be possible if we continue to fund the stem cell programs at the current levels.”
…Besides the spinal research, Geron had been studying human embryonic stem cells as possible treatments for such ailments as diabetes, heart disease and cartilage repair. The company said it would attempt to seek “partners” to continue the research and “will retain a core group of employees from its stem cell operations” through the first half of next year to “facilitate transfer of these programs” to someone else.
The experiment at the Shepherd Center involved 21-year-old nursing student Timothy Atchison, who was paralyzed from the chest down after a car crash.
***
Gloria Cain, wife of GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain, was interviewed by Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren last night. See all the clips here. The primary topic was sexual harassment, but some good biographic information is included as well. The Cains’ first date was a Charlton Heston movie at Lenox Square.
This was how the Gloria Cain interview ended:
VAN SUSTEREN: After the first woman — but after the second woman, rather, when the more graphic descriptions came out — did you confront him about that one and say, what’s up with that, or not?
G. CAIN: No.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did he say anything to you?
G. CAIN: No. I heard his comments with his news conference.
VAN SUSTEREN: You didn’t ask him — you didn’t, the two of you when you were together you didn’t ask him?
G. CAIN: No, because I listened to what she said. And I’m thinking, no, I’m sorry. That’s — some of the things that you’re saying about him, that’s not Herman. So, no, I didn’t ask him about that. And I’m not being naive.
***
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood should be on the ground now in Savannah, in the midst of a tour of the Port of Savannah with Gov. Nathan Deal and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. Both Georgians obviously will be pressing LaHood for several hundred million dollars for dredging the port – to allow it to take in larger cargo ships.
One topic unlikely to come up is U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss’ Monday declaration that Georgia might be willing to dicker about the federal government’s share in the project. From the Savannah Morning News:
U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss wants a second look at a formula calling for the federal government to pay 60 percent of Savannah harbor deepening costs.
“I think it’s incumbent … on the federal government to pay its fair share,” Chambliss told reporters Monday. “Now what is that … ? There might be a re-evaluation based on the financial climate we’re in.”
…A decade-old law calls for a 60 percent federal share of the estimated $625 million tab — or $372 million — and for the state to pay the rest, $253 million.
***
Jekyll Island Authority Chairman Bob Krueger doesn’t think much of the recent Georgia Lottery Corporation study of the money that might be generated from a casino on his island. From the Florida Times-Union:
“You’ve all seen the news about the Georgia Lottery Commission’s recommendation to have casino gambling on Jekyll Island,” Krueger said. “Well, the authority stands firm that there won’t be an increase in gambling beyond what currently exists — lottery tickets and maybe a few side bets on golf games.”
***
From an interview with convicted Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff by The Hill newspaper in D.C.:
Q: Do you continue to have relationships with Grover Norquist, Ralph Reed, Bob Ney, Tom DeLay, Mike Scanlon or any of the other people you worked closely with in the past?
Abramoff: Well, of that list, I’ve talked to Tom DeLay, and Scanlon’s in prison, so I can’t have any contact with him.
Bob Ney sent me a note on Facebook.
I haven’t had any contact with Grover, and Ralph Reed, I haven’t had any contact with.
***
The AJC’s Politifact Georgia today takes a look at this Sept. 15 statement from U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey, R-Marietta:
“With an extra 8 million Americans projected to join state Medicaid programs in the next few years, state governments need the flexibility to make cost-saving reforms to Medicaid in order to balance their budgets.”
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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196 comments Add your comment
td
November 15th, 2011
1:17 pm
honested
November 15th, 2011
12:46 pm
One simple question for you: Was it or was it not true that Iraq was threatening to attack Israel, SA and Kuwait again? If you answer yes then the war was justified. Our way of life would be ruined without the oil fro Kuwait(sp) and SA and our number one friend in the region and the one country we will protect at any and all cost was threatened.
td
November 15th, 2011
1:19 pm
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:08 pm
Td….learn how to spell Dick first
Sometimes you hit the submit button before you proof read. “It” happens.
liberalefty
November 15th, 2011
1:22 pm
the troops died for BUSHS lie. he couldnt keep america safe on 9/11 and he looked like a fool to the rest of the world.,thank god we have a president who has kept america safe.
td
November 15th, 2011
1:22 pm
Married for life
November 15th, 2011
1:05 pm
Donating money and time to chrches should not count as chartiable contributions?
gloria cain
November 15th, 2011
1:25 pm
after the GOP stop using my husband to pretend theyre not racist, i’m going to vote for OBAMA like i did in 2008, because we all know HERMAN wont be nominated.
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:25 pm
td,
Aside from innuendo in wrong wing press, I don’t recall any ‘threats’ to attack Saudi Arabia, Kuwait or the ’51st state’, therefore there was no justification whatsoever for invading Iraq……except ‘You will remember, he did try to kill my daddy’.
“Our way of life” would be better directed toward REDUCING the amount of petroleum we ignorantly consume. This could be achieved more quickly if the FEDERAL SUBSIDIES to the petroleum industry were eliminated and the FREE SECURITY we provide disappeared as well.
teleprompter
November 15th, 2011
1:26 pm
hey RICK “DUH DUH PERRY and HERMAN UGH UUUHH CAIN, i think u both need me!
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:26 pm
td….i know i know haha.
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:27 pm
Ladies and Gentlemen, this blog may be the last place in the universe where the opinion of dick cheney is regarded as one of authority.
td
November 15th, 2011
1:27 pm
Aquagirl
November 15th, 2011
11:50 am
If you main concern is children’s issues then why did the government fund aids research at 100 times the level of Childhood diabetes? Is not AIDS a disease caused by behavior the same as type II diabetes?
liberalefty
November 15th, 2011
1:28 pm
OSAMA maDE DUBYA look like a weak pathetic fool,lol. OBAMA made OSAMA his biatch,lol and conservatives hate it.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:29 pm
liberalefty….spoken like a true libtard…..great work.
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:29 pm
td,
Yes aids research was a waste…..why would we want to understand new, deadly communicable viruses or learn more ways to keep the blood supply safe.
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:32 pm
Back to the topic, will stem cell research move to Mississippi, where everything is cheaper, a plethora of test subjects abound and the people have spoken on the granting of citizenship to blastocytes!
td
November 15th, 2011
1:32 pm
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:27 pm
Ladies and Gentlemen, this blog may be the last place in the universe where the opinion of dick cheney is regarded as one of authority.
I shall remember this statement when you or other people quote Clinton, Gore or Obama as an authority in the future. BTW: Chaney’s resume (not only as VP) probably makes him one of the worlds most authorities when it comes to the military and security by anyone’s standards.
DICK CHENEY
November 15th, 2011
1:32 pm
I can walk on water, just ask td!
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:33 pm
td,
cheney might be an authority, when one is attempting to determine who helped create the most disastrous failures in American history.
Smoke
November 15th, 2011
1:34 pm
#1: I hope that Clarence Chambliss’ Monday declaration that Georgia might be willing to dicker about the federal government’s share in the project, is one of less dependency on taxpayer dollars.
DICK CHENEY
November 15th, 2011
1:34 pm
i was too chickenspit to serve during NAM but i’m very brave when it comes to sending others to shed their blood.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:35 pm
honested….are you referring to Barack?
Smoke
November 15th, 2011
1:36 pm
#2: Does Phi Gingrey even know why an extra 8 million Americans are projected to join state Medicaid programs in the next few years? Here’s a hint…It’s not about regulations.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:37 pm
Smoke…who is Phi Gingrey?
td
November 15th, 2011
1:38 pm
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:33 pm
So in your mind, freeing 30 million people from a brutal dictator was a failure?
Tracey
November 15th, 2011
1:39 pm
Aquagirl: I have no problem with stem cell research. Yes it has been politicized. However, there have not been any significant trials that give any treatment using Embryonic stem cells hope at this time.
That does not mean it cannot happen, but that right now the trials yielding results are ones using Adult Stem Cells since these have been studied for much longer.
In this economy, while I hate to see people lose their hope of a cure, companies simply choose to go with research that is further along. While this is sad, and I hate it, it’s also a fact of our lives.
I make no judgement of where the cells come from, I’m simply stating that right now the money goes to where the results show the most potential.
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:39 pm
uga,
Your handle would suggest a reading comprehension problem, but no, I was referring to the failed Vice President who opened his disastrous association with authority by meeting with numerous energy related executives and refusing to provide a list of participants, minutes of the meeting or agreed principles. Keeping it all a secret really made things work well for the American People didn’t it?
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:41 pm
td,
At the cost of American Lives, 3 trillion dollars and a couple of generations of Iraqi kids who will wake up hating us every day, yes I would call it an ABJECT FAILURE.
td
November 15th, 2011
1:41 pm
Smoke
November 15th, 2011
1:36 pm
How many of those 8 million are from single family homes where the parent has no education and is using drugs?
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:43 pm
Honested…it is hilarious that you continue to focus on the rear view mirror while trying to move forward. I am sorry but Barack has the wheel now and he has driven us into a ditch.
td
November 15th, 2011
1:47 pm
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:43 pm
I would say we were in a ditch when Obama took office and now we are over a cliff.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:48 pm
td…..good assessment.
honested
November 15th, 2011
1:48 pm
bobsey twins,
You must be unable to read economic reports and see that we have pulled out of the shrub ‘ditch’ and are beginning to accelerate down the road.
Facts are difficult for some to absorb.
Smoke
November 15th, 2011
1:48 pm
It doesn’t matter who the people are, the question to Gingrey is why will there be an increase? When someone finds out how many people are projected to go on Mediaid who have no education and are using drugs, let us know.
Smoke
November 15th, 2011
1:49 pm
Phi is Phil’s alter ego…
Married for life
November 15th, 2011
1:55 pm
What Kristof was saying in his analysis, td (who is racing so fast to get his opinions and criticisms online he can’t stop to check his spelling–which seems a tad obsessive to me) is that the figures given in the study shows that conservatives give more to religious institutions than secular charities and that liberals give more to secular charities than churches.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
1:56 pm
honested….really? 9% unemployment says otherwise…ever hear of a double dip recession?
DannyX
November 15th, 2011
1:59 pm
“ever hear of a double dip recession?”
What are the economic indicators that are predicting this? Lets see if you have anything other than “good post td.”
woodrow
November 15th, 2011
2:00 pm
Phil Gingrey says, ‘hey, let’s yank Medicare out from under 8 million people in the next few years’. Sounds like a plan Phil.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
2:01 pm
Dannyx….Can you read? Look at ever indicator you wish. Rising debt, increased spending, more jobs going overseas, unemployment at 9%…what else do you want to see?
DannyX
November 15th, 2011
2:05 pm
“Look at ever indicator you wish.”
Would you please post some real numbers to back up your prediction? Again, what are the economic indicators that are predicting a double dip recession. Do you even know what a recession is?
honested
November 15th, 2011
2:09 pm
uga,
Your misunderstanding of the current economic situation helps to explain why the wrong wing were shocked when the shrub depression ‘caught them by surprise’.
Little details like consistent (but slow) growth in employment, 5 consecutive months of increased (non-military) sales, to name two indicators reported today fly in the face of repug doomsaying.
I did get my super secret communique from REPUG HQ today, “It is suggested in order to maintain the pretense of continuing economic stagnation that all good republicans quit their jobs, stop paying their mortgages and encourage their children to do poorly at school”
The limits to which these people will go to avoid admitting defeat knows no bottom.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
2:12 pm
DannyX….www.gallup.com
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
2:13 pm
Honested….defeat occurred two years ago with Barack was nominated. The American people lost. Thank God we have another election next year.
DannyX
November 15th, 2011
2:14 pm
“.www.gallup.com”
LMAO!!!!
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
2:15 pm
Dannyx….yep i figured that is all you could muster was a laugh. Thank you for conceeding defeat.
honested
November 15th, 2011
2:16 pm
uga,
A little confused about time as well as economics I see.
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
2:18 pm
honested…nope not at all. I dont think the 9% that are unemployed are wrong either. Great work.
honested
November 15th, 2011
2:18 pm
uga,
Gallup is involved in polling, not collection and dissemination of economic activity related data.
Polling is little more than what a tiny group ‘thinks’ or ‘feels’ about a subject extrapolated to impose significance of the public at large.
Do you comprehend the difference?
Charles
November 15th, 2011
2:20 pm
I feel sorry for Gloria Cain. It’s obvious that their 43 year marriage is due in part to the fact that she has a see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil approach to her husband. How can you possibly hear the same things that all other Americans have about your husband and not even question him or discuss it. I don’t even think Hilary did that. She stood by her man, but I bet he caught hell in the process.
td
November 15th, 2011
2:20 pm
honested
November 15th, 2011
2:16 pm
If you think the economy is going to be a success for the President then why is he not running on his record?
UGA 1999
November 15th, 2011
2:20 pm
Honested…Oh I understand. Part of my business degree was understanding polling and debating. Out of the 1000 people surveyed each day by Gallup….69% say our economy is getting worse….>Great job Obama.