NEWS: FAST (French Sci/Tech News) - Issue #124

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I got subscribed to this FAST newsletter after attending a conference in France. It is one of the few pieces of "UnsolicitiMail" I find useful. There are a number of topics of general interest in this issue, so I thought I would pass it along.

Robert

FAST is a free review of mainstream French press on issues of science and technology. It appears twice weekly, on Tuesdays and Fridays.

FAST is published by the Science and Technology Office of the Embassy of France to the United States, and by its CNRS Washington office.

Paris, November 9, 11, 1999, Issue #124

> GENETIC FUTURE WILL BE CONSENSUAL, OR WON'T BE AT ALL
> MOBILE CELLS
> BIOMASS AND BIODIVERSITY: A POSITIVE SLOPE
> DON'T COUNT YOUR COMPLEX PROTEINS BEFORE THEY'RE HATCHED
> WHEN YOUR BANDAID BECOMES YOU
> BRIEFLY

• GENETIC FUTURE WILL BE CONSENSUAL, OR WON'T BE AT ALL A recent report by the science and technology watchdog committee of the French Parliament on the state of biotechnology in France and future prospects focuses its advice to M.P.'s (deputies and senators) on how to get France into the race and the French into the loop. The Serusclat report begins with a catalog of the new technologies associated with genetic study, therapy, and engineering, enthusiastically presenting what biology will bring to the 21st century. The bulk of the text then goes on to outline the initiatives that will need to be undertaken if the vision is not to go awry. The number one concern for France manifested in the report is not lack of gray cells but rather overly constrained brains; France does not havether nearly enough of what will likely drive this brave new field: innovative new bio-tech firms. Citing a potential $7 billion market in 10 years, the report urges taking steps to encourage researcher-entrepreneurship in new firms and establish "biopoles" to boost idea-flow. More basic even than innovation and transfer, in the view of the report's authors, is the need for public information and debate on the scientific, ethical and philosophical issues looming around biotechnology. Some researchers fear a backlash when spectacular advances make headlines prior to any discussion of the stakes. Others point to public fears released by genetic modification of edible plants as a harbinger of potential reactions against medical applications of genetic engineering skills, up till now widely accepted in France. The report urges a series of initiatives from science theme parks or "Genoscopes" to "DNA graduate schools" for lawyers, police, politicians, and other decision-makers. The thrust of the recommendations assumes that if French society is to get fully behind a large-scale biotechnology program it will be because the great questions posed by this new frontier-what will a human being be? To what extent is human life inviolable, untouchable? What are the risks, and gains, associated with various advances? -Have been confronted openly. The report's authors also raise the potential danger of genetic discrimination and other abuses associated with genetic testing as well as individual and parental "rights not to know," and they express concern over the tendency to perceive the human genome as a patent field. All in all, there will be no bliss in ignorance here. (Le Figaro, November 4, p20, Catherine Petitnicolas)
• MOBILE CELLS French researchers have succeeded in reconstructing in vitro the mechanism by which cells move about. The principal dynamic element is the protein actin whose filaments extends in the direction of the movement and retract behind the cell as it gets rolling. Learning how to trigger cell movement artificially is giving biologists a better idea of how cells do it naturally, which will presumably pay off in therapeutic advances. For example it is well known that the listeriose bacteria infect human cells by borrowing their actin wheels; the better they move the more virulent the infection. As a result of cell mobility research the cell-wall molecules implicated in bacterial movement and entry into cells can be recognized. The team is also gaining insight into possible molecular strategies to be taken against unchecked proliferation of malignant cells. (Le Figaro, November 3, p14, Virginia Tournay)
• BIOMASS AND BIODIVERSITY: A POSITIVE SLOPE In what has been billed as the largest experimental field study in the history of the discipline of ecology, an EU funded program, Biodepth, employed dozens of researchers from 1996-1998 to carry out a continent-wide research project on the effects of plant diversity on total biomass production. 480 plots of land, each 4 square meters, located in 8 sites across Europe representing all of the European climates were sterilized of all preceding growth and sown with one of 5 different seed mixes, ranging from monoculture to a maximum of 32 plant varieties. Beginning with the harvest of 1997, results were unambiguous; by weighing total biomass from every plot, researchers found that cutting the number of varieties in half led to a drop of 80 grams of biomass per square meter. Moreover, leaving out one of 3 main families, legumes, grains, or grasses, led to a drop of 100 g/m2. Guesses as to why include complementary niches and/or mutually-positive interactions among varieties. The team now wants funds to explore another topic: whether and to what extent biodiversity can soften the blows from the vagaries of climate change such as drought, freezes, too much water, extra nitrogen and other shocks to an ecosystem. In any case, the conventional wisdom about the efficiency of monoculture in farming has been shaken by the study's findings. It may well be that the plant kingdom finds strength in numbers when absorbing the ravages of human activity. One, of which, it turns out, is monoculture. (Le Monde, November 6, p26, Pierre Barthelemy)
• DON'T COUNT YOUR COMPLEX PROTEINS BEFORE THEY'RE HATCHED About 11% of all pharmaceutical products sold worldwide contain complex protein molecules, or a market of $11 billion. A startup in Nantes is the only firm in Europe and one of the firsts in the world to be working on a novel way of producing these molecules, by getting hens to do the work. The technique, which is in a pre-production phase, consists of breeding hens to lay eggs in which the desired proteins are present. It is based on discoveries made by the joint CNRS/INRA/Ecole Normale Superieure-Lyons Laboratory for Cellular Differentiation on how to extract totipotent bird embryonic cells that can be cultivated for long periods of time. The lab and its longtime industrial partner Grimaud spawned Vivalis to develop a profit-making way of producing complex proteins for the pharmaceutical industry, with a scientist from the lab taking over scientific control of the new outfit. $5 million will be invested in Vivalis over 6 years, refining technical and commercial aspects of the business, at which point they expect to be breaking even. Cellular culture is the most common way to grow simple proteins, but when it comes to recombined ones eggs have several advantages; they are perfectly hygienic, and the method will cost a fraction of what cellular culture costs. (L'Usine Nouvelle, November 4, p59, Emmanuel Guimard)
• WHEN YOUR BANDAID BECOMES YOU The birthplace of the bio-reabsorbable surgical screw, in case you are asked, is the Artificial Biopolymer Research Center at Montpellier University's School of Pharmacology. Developed as a better way to fasten grafted ligaments together, the 7mm $250 screw is one of a number of medical uses being dreamed up for synthesized biopolymers by the Center's hybrid staff of chemists, biologists, pharmacologists and others. Bioreabsorbable materials are better than the older more well known biodegradable objects since the latter require an enzymatic digestion and therefore run the risk of triggering an immune system attack. Artificial polymers, on the other hand, are biomaterials synthesized from human protein and become the substance they are attached to: bone, ligament, skin, gums or artery. A biopolymer plate instead of a metal one for healing bone fractures promotes stronger reknitting since the bone cannot fall into the bad habit of demineralizing while it lets the steel do the work. Other biopolymer applications heal skin grafts or keep cleared arteries from clogging again. The Center's director is not stopping at that, however, as he depicts pharmaceutical uses for biopolymers as vehicles whose slow but steady absorption by the body would allow for much more efficient (95% of an aspirin is not absorbed, he points out)-and possibly more effective-drug treatment programs. Even techier, he envisions biopolymers constructed to penetrate certain types of cells while carrying a pharmaceutical payload. And why limit reabsorbable materials to medical uses? Garbage bags, yogurt containers and diapers could all be made to be assimilated by harmless bacteria or fungi, the Centers' scientists-clearly absorbed in their subject--point out. (Midi-Libre, October 22, p2)
• BRIEFLY

EUROPE... 60 eminent European biologists and geneticists have registered their strong disapproval of the decision by certain member nations to cut their contribution to Union sponsored collaborative research infrastructure in biology and genetics. If the European Commission allows this to happen, the European Bioinformatics Institute in Cambridge will see its operating budget cut in half. Directors of the Max Planck Institute, the European Molecular Biology Lab (Heidelberg) and other leading researchers are raising their voices to point out that European genetic research is in danger of falling badly behind and that Europe needs a more coherent common research policy. (Le Figaro, November 4, p20)

START UP HERE... The research ministry's fervent desire to get research results onto shop floors has apparently outstripped its means. The first annual innovative firm prizes sponsored by the Ministry were handed out with much ado last month, but ministerial glee was matched by disappointment from many of the recipients as they read the fine print. The impressive prize sums will be handed out in monthly checks for 18-24 months to help defray the "research costs" of new firms Second surprise: the funds are awarded on a matching basis since they are meant to cover no more than 50% of the firm's research budget. Meanwhile the CNRS has announced the inauguration of 3 enterprise incubators, to be located in Grenoble, Toulouse, and Gif-sur-Yvette (near Orsay, outside of Paris), where the CNRS hopes to midwive 50 new researcher-parented firms per year.

LA HAGUE... Recognizing that in France the nuclear industry could use as much good press as it can get, the new PDG of the leading nuclear energy firm Cogema-she herself the subject of a lot of press-moved quickly to launch a bold full-page ad campaign pushing the message "we have nothing to hide from you." The ads publicize Cogema's new web site devoted to public information on nuclear plant functioning, including webcams placed within their La Hague plant and detailed data on all aspects of plant operation. Transparency becomes virtual invisibility, however, when search engines cannot find the Cogema site, and when its home page forgets to provide a link or an address for the plant info page. Don't misplace this address: www.cogemalahague.fr. (Le Figaro, November 4, p20)

RHONE-ALPES... Possessing the densest research population of any region other than Ile-de-France (Paris), Rhone-Alpes has taken further steps to capitalize on the presence of 600 publicly funded labs and 12,000 scientists within its borders, mostly clustered around rival research twins Grenoble and Lyons. The new multi-year spending strategy is to promote not competition but cooperation as the two cities taken on specialized roles. Grenoble will head a regional network focusing on microphysics, digitalization, and multimedia while Lyons will do the same for biotechnology. Labs in each city will of course contribute to both initiatives. Lyons hopes to acquire an international position quickly in "after genome" research. (Les Echos, October 14, p1, Marie-Annick= Depagneux)

BUDGET... Funding for public non-military research and development will increase for 2000 by 1.3%, according to a report prepared by the administration for the Parliament. Within that figure, university labs will get 3.1% more than in 1999, while operating budgets for public (including university) labs will grow by 3.5%. The recently created (1999) National Science Fund, whose vocation is to sponsor high priority research, will have $200 million to spend in 2000. High priority areas include biotechnology especially labs and firms working on "after genome" projects. National strategies in this area can now be facilitated by the existence of a network of bio-incubators (the FFBI). (Le Quotidien du M=E9decin, November 4, p23-24, S.H.)

FAST is produced and written by Timothy Carlson.

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