Green Light for Pig-Cell Testing

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Posted by Ellen on 17:27:17 2009/06/19

In Reply to: Re: 'Fix-it' mentality of heroic David Collinson posted by NZ Herald

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Green light for pig-cell testing | Stuff.co.nz var JavaScriptCSS = document.createElement('link'); JavaScriptCSS.setAttribute('href', '<a style="font-weight:normal" href="http://static.stuff.co.nz/css/javascript.min.css'">http://static.stuff.co.nz/css/javascript.min.css'</a>); JavaScriptCSS.setAttribute('rel', 'stylesheet'); JavaScriptCSS.setAttribute('type', 'text/css'); document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0].appendChild(JavaScriptCSS); function thickboxDone() { TB_remove(); location.reload(1); } // '); } } document.batch_ad_id = 0; document.batch_ads = []; function add_batch_ad(container, aamsz, pos) { var tag_id = document.batch_ad_id++; var tag = "AAMB" + tag_id; eval(tag + ' = 0;'); document.batch_ads.push({ 'tag': tag, 'pos': pos, 'container': container, 'code': "/" + tag + "/aamsz=" + aamsz + "/POS=" + pos }); } //]] Stuff | Trade Me | Travelbug | Find Someone | Old Friends add_batch_ad('adTOPPIXEL', '1x1','TOPPIXEL'); add_batch_ad('adTOPSTRIP', '275x23_TOPSTRIP','TOPSTRIP'); Ad Feedback loadAd('760x120','TOPBANNER',760,120); Stuff Home Southland Times News Kia ora, Guest [ Settings ] [ Logout ] [ sign in ] Queenstown Court 1984 Floods A&P Show results National News World News Green light for pig-cell testing By AMY MILNE - The Southland Times Last updated 05:00 20/06/2009 Share Print Text Size Relevant offers add_batch_ad('adRELEVANTOFFER1', '240x45_SPECIALOFFER','RELEVANTOFFER1'); Living Cell Technologies has received approval to begin clinical trials involving the transplanting of cells from Auckland Island pigs, which are housed in Southland, into eight people with type-1 diabetes. The pigs are housed at Awarua, near Invercargill, in a $2.5 million hi-tech breeding unit and the company has plans to build up to 80 more units in Southland within 10 years. Each will house up to 500 sows. Living Cell Technologies founding director David Collinson said the project could inject $1.9 billion into the region's economy in that time and create thousands of jobs. While clinical trials will be carried out at Auckland's Middlemore Hospital, Mr Collinson said the breeding and cell harvesting in Southland would employ at least 50 people per unit. The approval, confirmed by Health Minister Tony Ryall yesterday, brings the company closer to the end of its long bureaucratic battle to start trials in New Zealand. It has been waiting for more than two years, during which time the company threatened to take its technology overseas. Speaking from Melbourne yesterday, Living Cell Technologies' chief operating officer Paul Tan said the approval was great news. "Essentially the minister will allow us to do the trials under revised conditions. "And these revised conditions we totally accept." They included conducting trials only on severe diabetics and providing patients with more information on what was required of them, as requested by the minister, Mr Tan said. The revised protocol for the clinical trial would then need to go before the Government's ethics committee before final signoff. Mr Tan was confident the committee would not have any issues. "We don't see that as a problem." Mr Collinson expected the committee to make its decision within a month. Trials would start two months from the time patients had been selected. Mr Collinson congratulated Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt for his role. Mr Shadbolt saved the pigs a decade ago, housing and feeding them out of his own mayoral fund in the hope uses would be found for them. Last night he said the preliminary approval was great news for the region. It opened up huge opportunities, including the potential to develop courses at the Southern Institute of Technology to train the scientists and vets that would be needed to staff the pig-breeding units, Mr Shadbolt said. Diabetes is caused by having too much sugar in the blood because the pancreas cannot make enough insulin. The pancreas contains clusters of cells, known as islets, that produce hormones like insulin. People with "brittle" diabetes frequently experience large swings in blood-sugar levels. The bid for New Zealand approval was boosted in 2007 after researchers discovered pig cells injected into Matamata man Michael Helyer in 1996 were still producing insulin. Ad Feedback loadAd('300x250','STORYBODY',300,250); The idea was developed by New Zealander Bob Elliott, who had actually implanted cells in six Aucklanders more than a decade ago, before being shut down by health officials who were concerned about the potential for pig retroviruses to move into the human population. The new trials will be run by John Baker, clinical director at Middlemore, with four of the patients receiving a dose of 10,000 islet cells followed by four patients who will each have a higher dose of 15,000 implanted. Diabetes New Zealand estimates 15,000 Kiwis have type-1 diabetes, including 3500 children and teenagers. amy.milne@stl.co.nz Sponsored links add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK1', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK1'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK2', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK2'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK3', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK3'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK4', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK4'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK5', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK5'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK6', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK6'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK7', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK7'); add_batch_ad('adSPONSOREDLINK8', '310x16_SPONSOREDLINK','SPONSOREDLINK8'); Next News story: Remarkables, Snow Farm open today Southland Times Homepage Share this page Email Facebook Myspace Digg StumbleUpon Delicious Reddit News Headlines RSS Students encouraged to dob in taggers Bookings strong for ski season Drinking spurs action English rips into council over delays Man did not intend grievous harm: jury Man charged with arson denied bail Freedom camper rules sought Sick kids fly in for big party City residents spend more on pokies Green light for pig-cell testing Remarkables, Snow Farm open today Pledges broken, buyers to sue Pokie plan gets negative reception Goff: get used to it, I'll be coming back Ad Feedback loadAd('300x600','SECTIONTOPRIGHT',300,600); Southland Times Headlines RSS Green light for pig-cell testing Pledges broken, buyers to sue Remarkables, Snow Farm open today Pokie plan gets negative reception Sick kids fly in for big party Wilson tipped to replace Stewart Hutton calls for all-out effort Man charged with arson denied bail Students encouraged to dob in taggers English rips into council over delays Bookings strong for ski season Drinking spurs action Freedom camper rules sought Green light for pig-cell testing Central vineyard company in liquidation Special offers add_batch_ad('adSPECIALOFFER1', '240X45_SPECIALOFFER','SPECIALOFFER1'); add_batch_ad('adSPECIALOFFER2', '240X45_SPECIALOFFER','SPECIALOFFER2'); add_batch_ad('adSPECIALOFFER3', '240X45_SPECIALOFFER','SPECIALOFFER3'); Most popular Viewed Shared Commented Pledges broken, buyers to sue Wilson tipped to replace Stewart Pokie plan gets negative reception Drunk rugby trio 'get naked in bath' Man charged with arson denied bail Central vineyard company in liquidation English rips into council over delays Freedom camper rules sought Man did not intend grievous harm: jury Green light for pig-cell testing Kawau destined to lead Te Whare the one to beat Green light for pig-cell testing Featured Promotions add_batch_ad('adFEATUREDPROMOTION1', '120x180_FEATUREDPROMOTION','FEATUREDPROMOTION1'); add_batch_ad('adFEATUREDPROMOTION2', '120x180_FEATUREDPROMOTION','FEATUREDPROMOTION2'); News Sport Business Features Opinion Columns Photos|Multimedia About us Events Stuff.co.nz About Us | Contact Us | Sitemap | -- Facebook Page Subscribe Email | -- Text | RSS Feeds -- | Twitter | Digital Editions | -- Newspapers | Magazines Services Competitions | -- Newspapers in Education | A-Z Directories | Online Advertising | Print Advertising Classifieds Trade Me | Jobs | Property | Motors | Accommodation | Personals | Newspaper Classifieds Newspapers Dominion Post | The Press | Waikato Times | Auckland Stuff | Sunday News | Sunday Star-Times Marlborough Express | Manawatu Standard | Nelson Mail | Southland Times | Taranaki Daily News | Timaru Herald Other Sites Cuisine | NZ House & Garden | NZ Fishing News | NZ Life & Leisure | NZ Gardener | Network Sitemap -- Breaking news? 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