Repairing the Engines of Life

摘要

David ames was paddling out to sea on his surfboard in Cabo San Lucas in 2002, hoping to catch a huge wave when he realized that something was terribly wrong. The hardcore surfer, cyclist, and weight lifter, who was then 40, didn't have tile muscle to even get out to the wave. Several months later, he was handed a cruel diagnosis: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The illness destroys motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, gradually robbing victims of their ability to move-and ultimately to swallow or breathe. There is no cure, and patients are unlikely to survive more than five years. Since receiving the news, Ames has tried everything from anti-inflammatory drugs to Chinese herbs. Still, he knows his best hope lies in something that has yet to be discovered: a way to regrow the lost nerve cells in his brain. Scientists are certain if s possible. But the ef- fort to turn conviction into therapy has been stymied by research setbacks, funding shortages, and a political storm surrounding stem cells. These cells can be a universal source for growing the body's many tissues, and the most versatile ones are harvested from human embryos, drawing censure from some religious groups. "If s frustrating when you have a disease with a fast clock on it," says Ames, a San Francisco lawyer. "We'll get there. If s just a matter of when."