Recently, the Sunday New York Times ran cover story on efforts to combat the obesity epidemic and the role of animal research in this battle. It's not surprising that those opposed to animal studies reacted. What is surprising is what they said. The organization which conducted the studies - the OHSU Oregon National Primate Research … Continue reading Loving Animals…While Throwing Humans Under the Bus
“Successes of Antivivisection Activists” are delusions, at best
The North American Animal Liberation Press Office drew upon the recent profile of UCLA researchers by the Chronicle of Higher Education in a recent post (warning: extremist website), boasting that information in the article: validates activists' tactics and achievements in making the abuse of animals more costly and dangerous for the evil men and women … Continue reading “Successes of Antivivisection Activists” are delusions, at best
Spider silk used to repair nerve damage in sheep
On Friday I discussed some recent developments in use of stem cells to repair spinal cord damage, but central nervous system damage is not the only cause of paralysis; every year many thousands of people become paralysed in a limb due to peripheral nerve damage. A difference between peripheral nerve damage and central nervous system damage is … Continue reading Spider silk used to repair nerve damage in sheep
Transplanted astrocytes repair spinal cord damage in rat
A couple of weeks ago I discussed the launch of two clinical trials of brain machine interfaces designed to allow quadriplegic patients to control a newly designed prosthetic limb, during which I mentioned that scientists are also studying techniques that attempt to repair damage to spinal cords using stem cells. Several approaches have already shown … Continue reading Transplanted astrocytes repair spinal cord damage in rat
Highlights from Nature’s Q&A
Today (about 5 minutes ago), Nature ran an online Q&A session on the subject of animal research to fit in with its latest special editorial on the topic. There was a lot of interesting background to the Q&A session in the latest issue including a the results of a poll of around 1,000 scientists. Over … Continue reading Highlights from Nature’s Q&A
The Animal Researcher who Refused to Hide
A recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education (subscription required) highlights a recurring theme in the struggle between researchers engaged in responsible, legitimate scientific study of animal subjects and critics of that research. That is, an open willingness of a few fanatical elements within the animal rights movement to embrace violent acts and an … Continue reading The Animal Researcher who Refused to Hide
Overcoming paralysis: From Monkey to Man at the University of Pittsburgh
On Friday the New York Times reported that scientists at the University of Pittsburgh are ready to start clinical trials of two different brain implant systems, known as brain machine interfaces, that aim to give quadriplegic patients control over a prosthetic limb. In the main project a team led by Professor Andrew Schwartz and Professor … Continue reading Overcoming paralysis: From Monkey to Man at the University of Pittsburgh
Advancing gene therapy, debunking AR propaganda.
The promise of curing genetic diseases by replacing damaged genes with healthy ones is slowly becoming a reality. One recent story is the development of therapy in humans to reverse a form of childhood blindness called Leber congenital amaurosis, or LCA. OregonLive reports on the story of Alexe Webb who, soon after birth, was diagnosed … Continue reading Advancing gene therapy, debunking AR propaganda.
Speaking of Research 