Re: 'Fix-it' mentality of heroic David Collinson

[ Follow-Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Islet Foundation Public Message Forum ]

Posted by NZ Herald on 13:20:43 2009/06/19

In Reply to: Re: Trials on pig cells 'in weeks' posted by NZ Herald

Your browser does not support inline frames, or it has been configured incorrectly. If page does not display on your browser, please <a href="http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10579568">CLICK HERE</a>. 'Fix-it' mentality behind drive to beat diabetes - National - NZ Herald News .css-trouble {display:block;font:bold 1.6em Arial, sans-serif;line-height:2em;} .css-trouble a {text-decoration:none;color:#FF0000;} .css-trouble a:hover {text-decoration:underline;} #adSpace1 {width:160px !important; height:600px !important; overflow:hidden !important;} #adSpace2 {width:760px !important; height:120px !important; overflow:hidden !important;} #adSpace3 {width:300px !important; overflow:hidden !important;} storyheadlines = ''; var xmlhttp,alerted if (!xmlhttp && !alerted) { try {xmlhttp = new XMLHttpRequest();} catch (e) { // Internet Explorer try {xmlhttp=new ActiveXObject("Msxml2.XMLHTTP");} catch (e) { try {xmlhttp=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");} catch (e) { // Doing nothing failing gracefully. } } } } function RSchange() { if (xmlhttp.readyState==4) { if (xmlhttp.status==200) {// 200 = OK storyheadlines=xmlhttp.responseText; } } } function get_headlines() { if (xmlhttp) { d=document xmlhttp.open("GET", "/modules/storyheadlines-1.cfm?c_id=1",true); xmlhttp.onreadystatechange=RSchange xmlhttp.send(null) } } get_headlines(); var NewLayout = false; // get the base url of the page var pageUrl = new String(document.location); var aUrl = pageUrl.split('?'); var ABDomain = aUrl[0].substring(7,aUrl[0].length - 1); var DomainRegEx = new RegExp("^.+\.nz","i"); var BaseDomain = ABDomain.match(DomainRegEx); var cssrandomnumber=Math.floor(Math.random()*11) var cssdatesting='0420Jun2009'; function cssupdate() { var headID = document.getElementsByTagName("head")[0]; var cssNode = document.createElement('link'); cssNode.type = 'text/css'; cssNode.rel = 'stylesheet'; cssNode.href = 'http:\/\/css.nzherald.co.nz/2008/styles/css.cfm?'+cssdatesting; headID.appendChild(cssNode); } /* --- Start regional weather forecast page codes */ var wQueryString = document.location.search; var cLocationCookie = $.cookie('nzh_weatherlocation'); var RegionalFCPageRegExp = new RegExp("forecast.cfm","gi"); var isRegionalFCPage = pageUrl.match(RegionalFCPageRegExp); var WeatherItemRegExp = new RegExp("weatheritem=[0-9]{1,5}","gi"); var aWeatherItemTemp = wQueryString.match(WeatherItemRegExp); var sTemp = ""; var aWeatherItemVar = new Array(); if(aWeatherItemTemp != 'null' && aWeatherItemTemp != null){ sTemp = aWeatherItemTemp[0]; aWeatherItemVar = sTemp.split('='); } if(aWeatherItemVar.length == 2){ $.cookie('nzh_weatherlocation', aWeatherItemVar[1], {path:'/', expires:365, domain:BaseDomain}); } /* --- End regional weather forecast page codes */ If you are not seeing this page correctly please click here to refresh layout nzherald.co.nz Web var datefield = ''; var timefield = ''; var timepart = ''; var newsflash = ''; var newsflashid = ''; var newsflashurl = "false"; var newsflashbartype = ''; var daytype = ""; var dayofweek = ""; var partofday = ""; var snackmodule = ""; document.write(datefield); document.write(timefield); Make us your homepage Mr Collinson was diagnosed with the skin cancer melanoma four years ago. It had already spread. He has had surgery, radiotherapy and an experimental immunotherapy from the Malaghan Institute in Wellington which he credits with keeping him alive "against all odds". But now tumours have spread to his lungs and his brain and he faces a bleak outlook, although his verve, his sparkle, remains undimmed. From his chequebook, millions of dollars have poured into the business he founded with diabetes specialist Professor Bob Elliott. It is not only money that he has brought to Diatranz and its successor Living Cell Technologies, but also his ability to promote the company's concept of transplanting, into human diabetics, coated insulin-producing cells from pigs, and to enthuse others enough to contribute their own capital. Professor Elliott recalls how quickly Mr Collinson grasped type 1 diabetes and the death of the cells that make insulin. He asked why new cells couldn't be put in and they discussed the poor progress of US trials to treat the disease with insulin-producing cells from human cadavers. "I said I was mainly interested in trying to prevent the disease. He said, 'Couldn't you put some new cells in and use some of these things you have been trying, to prevent the cells being destroyed, give them at the same time', which was amazing for a guy with no biology background whatsoever. I hadn't really thought about it, but I said, 'Well yes I suppose that would be not unreasonable'." Mr Collinson persuaded him to resume research he had done 30 years earlier which involved transplanting pig cells into diabetic mice within a barrier to protect them from the immune system. After "a sniff of success", Mr Collinson persuaded Professor Elliott, who was initially reluctant, to leave his job at Auckland University. Mr Collinson quit importing. Together they started Diatranz. Two decades later - after a rocky regulatory road, improvements in encapsulating the cells, animal and human studies, listing on the Australian stock exchange, and clear success in a Russian trial, in which two people are now free of insulin injections - the company is awaiting only the approval of the Minister of Health, Tony Ryall, before starting a trial at Middlemore Hospital in South Auckland. Mr Collinson believes that with possibly 30 million type 1 diabetics worldwide, New Zealand is on the edge of a technological revolution based on animal-to-human transplants. And this could be just the start of a whole new industry. Living Cell is developing pig-cell treatments for Parkinson's and Mr Collinson says many more diseases could be treated in this way. The university's vice-chancellor, Stuart McCutcheon, acknowledged Mr Collinson's "very significant role" in supporting diabetes research and its commercialisation. In a letter to Mr Collinson, whom he describes as an extraordinarily positive influence on the development of the pig-cell treatment, he says many in New Zealand do not appreciate the single-minded dedication required to convert basic research into a clinical, commercial therapy. $(document).ready(function() { setTimeout(function() { $.get("/modules/marketplace-1.cfm", function(data) { $('#ajax-module-marketplace').html(data); }); }, 1000); }); function ImThis(ImThisUrl) { try { //SaveCookie('imthis_page', ImThisUrl, 1);//cookie will expire in 1 day var obj = new ActiveXObject("MSNMessenger.P4QuickLaunch"); } catch(e) { obj=null; } if(obj!=null) { SaveCookie('imthis_page', ImThisUrl, 1);//cookie will expire in 1 day obj.LaunchApp('99995952', '');//nzh appid //obj.LaunchApp('99995227', ''); } else { alert('Your browser and/or Messenger version does not support messenger activities.\r\nYou need to have IE 5 or later and MSN messenger 6.2 or later version to proceed.'); } } function SaveCookie(name, value, expirationTime) { var expirationDate=new Date(); expirationDate.setDate(expirationDate.getDate()+expirationTime); document.cookie = name + "=" + escape(value) + ((expirationTime==null) ? "" : "; expires="+expirationDate.toGMTString()) + ";path=/"; } IM this story Email this story Print this story More by Martin Johnston Email Martin Johnston $(document).ready(function() { setTimeout(function() { $.get("/modules/next-article-1.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10579568", function(data) { $('#ajax-module-nextarticles').html(data); }); }, 1000); }); if(sSearchStr.length){ $(document).ready(function() { setTimeout(function() { $.get("/modules/interestedin-1.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10579568" + sSearchStr, function(data) { $('#ajax-module-interestedin-referred').html(data); }); }, 1100); }); } Loading Headlines... var storyheadline_count = 0; if (storyheadlines.length) { document.getElementById('ajax-module-storyheadlines').innerHTML=storyheadlines; } else { statuscheck = setInterval("storyheadlinestatus()",50); } function storyheadlinestatus() { storyheadline_count++; if (storyheadline_count if(sSearchStr.length == 0){ $(document).ready(function() { setTimeout(function() { $.get("/modules/interestedin-1.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10579568", function(data) { $('#ajax-module-interestedin').html(data); }); }, 1100); }); } Assembled by: (static) on akl_v4 at 20 Jun 2009 04:17:02 Processing Time: 747ms

Click here to visit inline page

Follow Ups:

Green Light for Pig-Cell Testing - Ellen 17:27:17 2009/06/19 (0)

Post a Followup

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Islet Foundation Public Message Forum ]

Name:
E-Mail: (Optional)
Subject:
Comments:
Link URL: (Optional)
Link Title:
Image URL: (Optional)