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Bush OKs limited research funds Stem-cell research stocks gain on Wall Street By Ted Griffith, CBS.MarketWatch.com Last Update: 9:08 PM ET Aug. 9, 2001 NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - President Bush on Thursday night announced the government would allow some funding for limited medical research on cells from human embryos, ending months of anguish over a moral, scientific and political dilemma confronting his administration. FRONT PAGE NEWS U.S. shares end well off session lows Bush OKs funding for limited stem-cell study Nikkei firms; DoCoMo rebounds Pixar gains after results beat expectations Market news and more! Sign up to receive FREE email newsletters Get the latest news 24 hours a day from our 100-person news team. Bush, speaking in a prime-time address from his Texas ranch, said he would allow funding for research only on existing lines of embryonic stem cells. That would rule out funding for new lines, which scientists say are needed to fully exploit the potential for combating disease. Polls show a majority of Americans support the funding, and advocates for a variety of patients groups and scientists had lobbied equally hard for it. Compromises suggested by Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., a close ally of Bush, and Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson would allow for research on a limited number of stem cell lines, provided there was strict federal oversight and specific consent from the parents who created them. Bush said he would name a presidential council to oversee and monitor the development and research. In a process he called "unusually deliberative,`` Bush weighed a compromise that would balance the views of those who believe the research destroys a life, with those who believe it holds the promise of lifesaving medical breakthroughs. In reaching his decision, Bush sorted through conflicting advice from ethicists, anti-abortionists, advocates for the ill, researchers and Pope John Paul II. Bush`s decision would allow support for research on stem cells removed from embryos that are left over from fertility treatments. Supporters of such research see great potential for medical treatments. Growing interest Thursday on Wall Street, shares of companies involved with stem-cell research moved sharply higher ahead of Bush`s announcement regarding federal funding for stem-cell research. Some investors, betting Bush`s decision would be favorable to the emerging field, scooped up shares of companies with any ties to stem cell research. Shares of StemCells Inc. (STEM: news, chart, profile) surged $1.72, or 36 percent, to $6.45, shares of Geron (GERN: news, chart, profile) rose $2.04, or 16 percent, to $14.94 and shares of Aastrom Biosciences (ASTM: news, chart, profile) rose 46 cents, or 26 percent, to $2.25. Bennett Weintraub, vice president with Btech Investor, a biotech investment and consulting firm, said investors should realize that stem cell research will not immediately yield breakthroughs in the treatment of disease. He called the field "promising" but said the medical benefits are years away. Weintraub also noted that there are questions about how the stem cell companies will earn profits from their work. "It`s a different kind of business model," he said. "It`s untested." Weintraub said investors may want to spread out their buying among several stem cell stocks, but he warned against betting heavily on any one company in the field. "It`s not clear which company is going to be the winner," Weintraub said. Ted Griffith is a reporter for CBS.MarketWatch.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. |
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| aus der Diskussion: | SUPERKURSCHANCE NOCH HEUTE UND MORGEN BEI AASTROM |
| Autor (Datum des Eintrages): | Mattek (10.08.01 07:25:27) |
| Beitrag: | 10 von 20 (ID:4172138) |
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