So you've probably already heard the news yesterday that some scientists have figured out a way to make usable stem cells from regular cells, rather than embrionic cells.
Here is an article about how NOT excited most big pharmaceutical companies are about this news:
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h8TnqCueFyTt_lXVnDgHwhPzB WKQD8T1O83O0
I guess if stem cell cures become more prevalent there would be a lot
less need for pharmaceuticals. It makes you wonder about all the
resistance stem cell technology has met so far, and if it hasn't been
at least partially spearheaded by these interests.
Anyway, this is a quite hopeful development, although as ususal it may be years before anyone sees the benefit of it.
I guess there is one huge obstacle with this and that is the potential for
cancer to develop. They have to work this bug out of the equation. I guess anybody would be somewhat concerned if their business was maybe going to tank.Well, although they may lose life long customers like us, people will
still need drugs for less serious conditions or conditions stem cell
technology can't help, so I predict they won't tank but will just
become slightly less obscenely profitable,
A couple of things.
Getting adult skin cells to "behave like stem cells" is not the same thing as actually having stem cells. It's kinda like using margarine instead of butter. Very similar, but there are definite differences. Not totally interchangeable.
Other companies whose business model is to make traditional small-molecule drugs of course will probably not invest time and money into this technology, just as my auto mechanic probably isn't going to go to the local airport to fix airplane engines.
Genentech says they don't currently use stem cells; not surprising that they are not interested in this new development. Even the most profitable drug companies have limits as to what they can research. Most choose to stay close to their area of expertise.
it's not always a conspiracy.
JasmineRain, I'm not sure you can definatively say you could NEVER get adult
stem cells to behave like embrionic stem cells. You could say you can't get
them to do that YET. The scientific community seems to think this
breakthrough has brought that into a lot closer of a possibility, if not a
probability.
Many stem cell procedures already do not use embrionic stem cells. For
example, StemCell4me's procedure which cured her of RA used her own
stem cells drawn from her neck.
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