After focusing on cancer, the brain, and personalized medicine, the Obama Administration is now zooming in on the bustling microbial communities within us, on us, and all around us in our built and natural environments.
On Friday, the White House revealed the Microbiome Initiative, a nationwide project to coordinate and fund microbiome research. The federal government is investing $121 million into the program. Several agencies will chip into that number, including NASA, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the US Department of Agriculture. Additionally, more than 100 external organizations will add more money and projects to the pot, including $100 million in funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The initiative has three main goals: to fund interdisciplinary microbiome research, develop technologies that can be used across different research projects, and support a microbiome research workforce.
ArsTechnica is calling it a "moonshot." Does $121 million rate that comparison?
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U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has released another cancer progress report/wish list:
Vice President Joe Biden today released his vision for doubling progress against cancer over 5 years. It includes numerous policy recommendations and a laundry list of projects by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and other federal agencies that would require additional funding. Biden and his wife, Jill, have met with thousands of experts and patient advocates, they explain in a 17-page strategic plan submitted to President Barack Obama, who asked Biden in January to lead the effort. "We sought to better understand and break down the silos and stovepipes that prevent sharing of information and impede advances in cancer research and treatment, while building a focused and coordinated effort at home and abroad," they explain.
The Bidens' wish list ranges from giving patients more control over their medical data to launching "a national conversation" about cancer drug pricing. They also want to see more high-risk research funding at NCI and changes to the institute's intramural research program to focus more on emerging science and major public health challenges.
An accompanying 29-page report from Biden's federal moonshot task force lists what agencies have done so far and their plans to address five strategic goals. The first goal, "catalyze new scientific breakthroughs," contains several items that "align with" the 10 research areas recommended last month by an NCI blue ribbon panel, the report says. For example, it describes Department of Defense (DOD) efforts to develop new imaging technologies for detecting early molecular changes in cells that may lead to cancer.
The Cancer Moonshot is part of the War on Cancer:
The mission of this Cancer Moonshot is not to start another war on cancer, but to win the one President Nixon declared in 1971. At that time, we didn't have the army organized, didn't have the military intelligence to know the enemy well, and therefore didn't have the comprehensive strategy needed to launch a successful attack—now we do. Because of the progress over the last 45 years we have an army of researchers and oncologists, the powerful technologies and weapons, and immense public support and commitment to action.
Related:
Biomedicine Facing a Worse Replication Crisis Than the One Plaguing Psychology
The White House Announces $121 Million Microbiome Initiative
"Cancer Moonshot" Releases Blue Ribbon Panel Report
Microsoft to "Solve the Problem of Cancer" Within Ten Years - Scientists are Skeptical
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 14 2016, @01:02AM
Well, my gut reaction is...
OW! I should've passed up the Chinese food for lunch.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 14 2016, @01:59AM
$120,999,999.99 will go to an oversight committee, $0.01 will be spent on actual research.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by JoeMerchant on Saturday May 14 2016, @03:52AM
$121 million, in 2017 US dollars, that makes it a 5 year mission for about 100 people, with ~$30 million worth of exotic toys to play with.
In 2017, you could probably "hit the moon" with that level of funding... don't know if you could do any useful science with the lander you could afford, but you should at least be able to set off an explosion on the surface and get a nice video of it.
🌻🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 3, Touché) by devlux on Saturday May 14 2016, @02:05AM
Ugh, everyone knows it's macrobiome, not microbiome.
A better explanation of the difference is here...
https://xkcd.com/1471/ [xkcd.com]