Washington (Stem Cell) – what-when-how

WASHINGTON IS ONE of the states of the United States and is located in the northwestern corner of the continental part of the country. Named after President George Washington (1732-99; president, 1789-97), the state of Washington is bordered by Idaho to the east and Oregon to the south. To the west is the Pacific Ocean and to the north the Canadian state of British Columbia. The coastal location and the presence of excellent harbor facilities have meant that maritime trade with Canada and with Pacific Rim countries has been a major part of the states economy.

The eastern portions of the state have less rain and are mainly given over to agriculture, whereas industrial activities are mainly located in the western area, where most of the large urban centers are to be found; these cities house the bulk of the states population. Cities are mostly placed alongside Puget Sound, which is a deep inroad of the Pacific Ocean into the state.

The state has a territory in excess of 71,000 square miles and a population of nearly six million. The state capital is Olympia, but Seattle is a much larger city and is the modern economic center of the state. Located on Puget Sound, Seattle is the home of high-tech companies such as Microsoft and Amazon.com, as well as a cluster of leading biomedical organizations including ZymoGenetics, HeartStream, and Heart Technologies. The CellCyte Genetics Corporation, one of the leading stem cell research companies in the country, recently received a U.S. patent for its new procedure to deliver stem cells in the appropriate form to designated organs in the body. Seattle is also the home of the Starbucks coffee chain, which is one of the targets of antiglobalization protestors. This modern affluence is a contrast to certain periods in the past, when the poverty of Skid Row followed the earlier gold rush period and the ending of the Oregon Trail.

The confluence of so many leading scientifically based companies, together with a variety of educational institutes, has contributed to making Seattle, and indeed the state of Washington, among the most literate or well-educated parts of the United States, according to various measurements. This is reflected in the politics of the state, where Democrats are generally elected with substantial majorities because of votes they receive from the populous western region, which outnumber the right-wing sentiments of the less well-developed eastern region.

Washington is the first state in the country to have women filling all of its leading political positions at the same time, which are the governor and both senators. However, elections are not a procession, and both major parties are represented in public office. The painfully narrow and contested election of Governor Chris Gregoire is one example of the close races that do exist.

At the University of Washington, the Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine (ISCRM) is a center for research in stem cell technologies. The Institute was founded in 2006 and now has more than 70 faculty members engaged in relevant research. The ISCRM has a mission to be committed to the ethical pursuit of basic research to unleash the enormous potential of stem cells and thereby develop therapies and cures.

The university is affiliated with the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Childrens Hospital and through the integrative work of the ISCRM aims to produce innovative treatments for a range of different health conditions, including heart disease, cancers, and neurodegenerative diseases. The states approach to stem cell research is quite liberal, but federal regulations nevertheless affect the ability of researchers to pursue their work. Existing and legally harvested lines of cells can become degraded with excessive experimentation, and new techniques are required to produce the types of cells required within the various regulatory frameworks.

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Washington (Stem Cell) - what-when-how