Stem cell debate coming to Cadillac Friday

CADILLAC — A leading stem cell researcher and advocate for the advancement of stem cell research are scheduled to be in Cadillac Friday to discuss the controversial topic.

As part of the ongoing Lecture Luncheon Series presented by Baker College and the Cadillac Area Chamber of Commerce, the event will cover the research and its potential for medical breakthroughs.

It is scheduled to begin around noon at Baker College, 9600 E. 13th St. in Cadillac.

The speakers are Dr. Gary Dunbar and Marcia Baum.

Baum is executive director of Michigan Citizens for Stem Cell Research and Cures. Dunbar, who is a Cadillac native, conducts research on experimental treatments for Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Dunbar is director of Central Michigan University’s Brain Research and Integrative Neuroscience Center.

The visit comes at a time when some legislators are beginning a movement to change the state’s laws, which are considered to be some of the most restrictive in the country.

“There will undoubtedly be a great deal of public discussion on this issue as it goes through the democratic process,” Baum said. “This is a complicated issue and it is crucial Michigan residents and public officials are presented with the facts about embryonic stem cell research.”

The pair plan to discuss legislation introduced by state Rep. Andrew Meisner, D-Ferndale, and Rep. Mark Meadows, D-East Lansing. The legislation is designed to ease Michigan’s restrictions on embryonic stem cell research and strengthen the state’s ban on human cloning.

Under Michigan law, researchers can be fined up to $10 million and imprisoned for up to 10 years if they conduct certain types of embryonic stem cell research that is permissible in other states.

The legislation would ease the restrictions by allowing embryos left over from fertility treatments to be used for ethical scientific research with the written consent of donors. The bill also would increase penalties for anyone attempting to clone a human being.

“We need to make sure the public and our state’s public officials understand the restrictive stem cell laws on Michigan’s books, what this legislation would do to reduce those restrictions and what safeguards are in the bill, as well as the hope scientists and patients share for cures through embryonic stem cell research,” Dunbar said.