Right wing policies continue to hamper stem cell research

[Neil D]

Critics: Stem cell bill would hurt Ga. business

By SHANNON McCAFFREY

updated 2:29 p.m. PT, Fri., March. 13, 2009

ATLANTA - In recent years, Gov. Sonny Perdue has sought to make Georgia a hub for the biotech and life sciences industry.

Now a push in the state Legislature to restrict embryonic stem cell research could put that economic development initiative in jeopardy. Critics of a stem cell bill that passed the state Senate this week said it would brand the state as anti-technology even as it's set to host the world's largest biotech conference this spring.

"It's a huge black eye," said Charles Craig, president of Georgia Bio, which represents life sciences companies in the state.

"What science company is going to want to come to Georgia after it has sent a signal that is trying to set limits on research that are far more restrictive than the federal government or other states?"

Perdue disputes that, arguing the state will still be able to recruit and keep cutting-edge science companies even as it adheres to a conservative moral code.

"I can't in my conscience fathom that we would create human embryos to be used in scientific research," Perdue told reporters Friday.

"That's where Georgia draws the line."

Legislation approved by senators Thursday would ban new embryos for research in Georgia. The bill was scaled back from an earlier version that would have outlawed the destruction of any fertilized embryo after companies complained it would create obstacles for women wanting to get pregnant by in vitro fertilization. It also bans therapeutic cloning, which supporters said holds promise for those who suffer from juvenile diabetes.

Daniel Becker, president of the group Georgia Right to Life, praised the Senate measure as "a tremendous advance for the sanctity of life movement."

"Science is advancing at an exponential rate. It's outstripping our ability to provide ethical restraints," Becker said. "This does, in fact, draw the right type of business to Georgia, the kind that is ethical and sound."

The bill comes as the recession has Georgia shedding jobs at a record-breaking pace.

Georgia has seen a surge in bioscience jobs. According to the state Department of Economic Development, 270 multinational and emerging bioscience companies call the state home. From 2001 to 2005, the number of companies in the bioscience industry grew by 38 percent, compared with the average growth of 14 percent for industries as a whole, state officials said.

Employment in the bioscience industry shot up 11 percent, compared with 2 percent average employment growth for all industries.

The jobs tend to pay well and have not been hit as hard by the economic downturn as sectors like manufacturing.

In Georgia, the growing industry is mainly based in metro Atlanta, home to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Perdue has said he wants to capitalize on the state's thriving research universities as well as its renowned hospitals to attract even more investment. The state made a strong — although unsuccessful — bid to land a federal biodefense research facility in Athens.

University of Georgia officials have come out against the stem cell bill, saying it could harm their ability to attract top researchers.

"Research and business will go where they can do the most with the least regulation," said Board of Regents spokesman John Millsaps.

The University of Georgia has spent millions of dollars on labs for renowned stem cell researcher Steve Stice, who has access to one of 21 coveted embryonic stem cell lines that still received federal under President George W. Bush.

On Monday, President Barack Obama lifted the Bush-era ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. The Georgia bill was hurried through committee that same day.

In May, Atlanta is set to host the Biotechnology Industry Organizations BIO 2009 Annual International Convention, which could attract more than 20,000 professionals from 70 nations.

"If we pass this bill with the convention coming, that will just be an embarrassment," Craig said.

And in the fall, the American Society of Reproductive Medicine is set to host its annual conference in Atlanta.

ASRM has moved meetings in the past because of legislation it opposes, though a spokesman said there were no plans to relocate.