Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta breast cancer. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta breast cancer. Mostrar todas las entradas
sábado, 14 de septiembre de 2019
miércoles, 12 de diciembre de 2012
US SUPREME COURT TO DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT HUMAN DNA CAN BE PATENTED
By Daniel Fisher
Forbes staff
10/30/12
Myriad technicians at work. (Image credit: AFP/Getty
Images via @daylife)
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear, for a second time, a lawsuit
challenging patents held by Myriad Genetics on
human genes implicated in breast cancer.
The court, in an order today, said it would consider only the question of
whether human genes can be patented, meaning it plans to dive straight into one
of the most contentious — and elusive — questions in patent law, which is the
difference between an invention and a natural phenomena. Opponents of the
patents say they prevent researchers from even examining naturally occurring
genetic material that companies have patented. Supporters say the law allows
patents on any process that isolates a valuable substance, even if it’s
naturally occurring, citing industrial processes to create useful products out
of hydrocarbons and plant material.
This will be the second trip to the Supreme Court for the Myriad case, which
the high court sent back to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington in March for
reconsideration after it issued a decision narrowing the scope of allowable
patents. The D.C. Circuit upheld
the patent again in August, in what might be seen as a direct challenge to
the high court’s interpretation of patent law. In its order accepting the case
again, the court said it would limit both sides to the simple, but confounding,
question of whether human genes can be patented.
The case pits Salt
Lake City-based Myriad against researchers and critics who said Myriad’s
patented on the BRCA genes found in breast tumors hindered research into the
deadly disease. Myriad lawyers have sent threatening letters to the University of
Pennsylvania and others, urging researchers isolating those genes to desist
or pay royalties. The ACLU joined with the Association for Molecular Pathology
and other groups in urging the court to declare such purified snippets of DNA as
unpatentable.
Some patent lawyers — and two of the three judges on the D.C. Circuit —
believe the case presents nothing more than an old dispute over whether “laws of
nature” can be patented. Given the amount of work involved in actually isolating
genes from the much larger DNA molecule transforms them into something useful,
the majority said, just like any other industrial process based on naturally
occurring compounds. The refining industry has thousands of patents on processes
that revolve around extracting naturally occurring hydrocarbon molecules, for
example; it’s the difficulty of creating hydrocarbons any other way that makes
crude oil so valuable.
Opponents of human genes say such patents hinder research. They seem to have
support on the Supreme Court, which has taken a skeptical view of overbroad
patents in recent decisions.
Source: Forbes
Link:
lunes, 3 de septiembre de 2012
SCOTLAND´S TOXIC SLUDGE LAGOONS
Source: Rob Edwards
Tens of thousands of cubic metres of sludge contaminated with aluminium and other pollutants are being stored at sites near Wigtown, Barrhead, Coatbridge, Falkirk, Cupar and Inverness, as well as across Argyll, Aberdeenshire, Sutherland, Orkney and elsewhere (see table below).
An investigation into the safety of the sludge lagoons has been launched by the government company, Scottish Water, while environmentalists are demanding that the sites be cleaned up.
According to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), 18 of the sites are left over from when drinking water was treated with an aluminium compound to remove impurities. The resultant sludges have been contaminated with aluminium, which has been linked to breast cancer, Alzheimer's disease and other health problems.
“There is a possible risk of such aluminium leaching,” Sepa said, though its “binding nature” meant that it was likely to stay in the sludge. Other lagoons contained old sludges from sewage treatment that were “relatively benign”.
"Many people will be shocked to learn of these potentially toxic lagoons
dotted around Scotland,” said the Green MSP, Alison Johnstone. “They
are an unfortunate legacy and it's vital Scottish Water and Sepa properly assess
them and figure out what to do with them.”
She called for assurances that the sites posing the greatest risk would be safely cleaned up as soon as possible. “These lagoons are proof that we need sustainable infrastructure systems to minimise our impact on the environment and prevent future generations being left to clear up the mess we leave behind.”
She was backed by Dr Richard Dixon, the director of WWF Scotland. “Aluminium is certainly not something we want leaching out of these lagoons because it represents a danger to human health and to wildlife,” he said. “This is a large and potentially nasty legacy that Scotland needs to deal with.”
He added: “The public needs to be assured first of all that all these sites are currently in good condition, and that, at the least, there is a detailed plan in place to make sure they stay that way. But we need to go further and look for permanent ways to remove this threat to the environment.”
It is uncertain exactly how much sludge is in the lagoons, but Sepa said that the “middle-sized” one at Cupar in Fife could contain up to 2,000 cubic metres. “Almost all of these sites are still within the curtilage of existing Scottish Water works and are being maintained and managed to some extent,” said Sepa manager, Colin Anderson.
“To develop greater understanding, Scottish Water is commissioning an extensive study to assess these sites and any potential risks they pose, including leaching. Sepa will continue to work closely with Scottish Water to ensure suitable remediation is undertaken where required.”
Scottish Water pointed out that the sludge lagoons dated back to when local authorities provided water and waste treatment. It had inherited them when it was formed in 2002.
“Our focus is always to ensure we manage the material in a sustainable way,” stressed a Scottish Water spokesman. For the sewage sludge, this meant recycling it to land to use its nutrients.
The aluminium-contaminated sludge was “predominantly inert” and was mostly disposed of as landfill. “It is not believed these sites present a particular risk,” he said.
“We are delivering a project to undertake environmental surveys to understand the extent and nature of them, and to confirm any environmental issues. This will help us determine the most appropriate means to manage them, in agreement with Sepa.”
26 toxic sludge sites
Bareagle, Wigtown, Dumfries and Galloway
Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire
Orbiston, North Lanarkshire
Barrhead, East Renfrewshire
Giffnock, East Renfrewshire
Kinneil Kerse, Falkirk
Dalderse, Falkirk
Cupar, Fife
Furnace, Argyll
Loch Eck, Argyll
Tiree, Argyll
Torra, Isle of Islay
Craignure, Isle of Mull
Turret, Perthshire
Assynt, 15 miles north of Inverness
Clunas, Nairn
Invercannie, Banchory
Glendye, Aberdeenshire
Golspie, Sutherland
Londornoch, Sutherland
Savalbeg, Sutherland
Old Calder Works, Caithness
Sanday, Orkney
Big Breck Quarry, Orkney
Westray, Orkney
Wideford, Orkney
source: Scottish Environment Protection Agency
Source link:
http://www.robedwards.com/2012/08/revealed-scotlands-nasty-legacy-of-toxic-sludge-lagoons.html
She called for assurances that the sites posing the greatest risk would be safely cleaned up as soon as possible. “These lagoons are proof that we need sustainable infrastructure systems to minimise our impact on the environment and prevent future generations being left to clear up the mess we leave behind.”
She was backed by Dr Richard Dixon, the director of WWF Scotland. “Aluminium is certainly not something we want leaching out of these lagoons because it represents a danger to human health and to wildlife,” he said. “This is a large and potentially nasty legacy that Scotland needs to deal with.”
He added: “The public needs to be assured first of all that all these sites are currently in good condition, and that, at the least, there is a detailed plan in place to make sure they stay that way. But we need to go further and look for permanent ways to remove this threat to the environment.”
It is uncertain exactly how much sludge is in the lagoons, but Sepa said that the “middle-sized” one at Cupar in Fife could contain up to 2,000 cubic metres. “Almost all of these sites are still within the curtilage of existing Scottish Water works and are being maintained and managed to some extent,” said Sepa manager, Colin Anderson.
“To develop greater understanding, Scottish Water is commissioning an extensive study to assess these sites and any potential risks they pose, including leaching. Sepa will continue to work closely with Scottish Water to ensure suitable remediation is undertaken where required.”
Scottish Water pointed out that the sludge lagoons dated back to when local authorities provided water and waste treatment. It had inherited them when it was formed in 2002.
“Our focus is always to ensure we manage the material in a sustainable way,” stressed a Scottish Water spokesman. For the sewage sludge, this meant recycling it to land to use its nutrients.
The aluminium-contaminated sludge was “predominantly inert” and was mostly disposed of as landfill. “It is not believed these sites present a particular risk,” he said.
“We are delivering a project to undertake environmental surveys to understand the extent and nature of them, and to confirm any environmental issues. This will help us determine the most appropriate means to manage them, in agreement with Sepa.”
26 toxic sludge sites
Bareagle, Wigtown, Dumfries and Galloway
Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire
Orbiston, North Lanarkshire
Barrhead, East Renfrewshire
Giffnock, East Renfrewshire
Kinneil Kerse, Falkirk
Dalderse, Falkirk
Cupar, Fife
Furnace, Argyll
Loch Eck, Argyll
Tiree, Argyll
Torra, Isle of Islay
Craignure, Isle of Mull
Turret, Perthshire
Assynt, 15 miles north of Inverness
Clunas, Nairn
Invercannie, Banchory
Glendye, Aberdeenshire
Golspie, Sutherland
Londornoch, Sutherland
Savalbeg, Sutherland
Old Calder Works, Caithness
Sanday, Orkney
Big Breck Quarry, Orkney
Westray, Orkney
Wideford, Orkney
source: Scottish Environment Protection Agency
Source link:
http://www.robedwards.com/2012/08/revealed-scotlands-nasty-legacy-of-toxic-sludge-lagoons.html
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