Impact of BREXIT on Gene and Cell Therapy in the UK

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. - Sept. 27, 2016 - PRLog -- The recent BREXIT vote in the UK threatens to disrupt scientific progress and clinical advances in the development of innovative gene and cell therapies. Leading UK researchers have called for proactive solutions to ensure continued access to critical funding and ongoing collaborative opportunities with the broader scientific community in the European Union in an Editorial in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/). The article is available free on the Human Gene Therapy (http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/hum.2016.29033.ahb)website until October 31, 2016.

In the article "Impact of BREXIT on UK Gene and Cell Therapy: The Need for Continued Pan-European Collaboration (http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/hum.2016.29033.ahb),"coauthors Andrew Baker, University of Edinburgh, Robin Ali, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, London, and Adrian Thrasher, University College London, emphasize the need for a rapid response to alleviate the current uncertainty, which is "potentially harmful, for both building and maintaining scientific interactions," and "to avoid loss of momentum in a rapidly developing field."

The UK is a leading force in both the basic science and clinical translation of gene and cell therapies. Over the past years, the EU has invested substantially in broad-based consortia to drive advances in the field, and continued progress will depend on ongoing collaboration and mobility across national borders for research, training, and clinical studies.

"Gene therapy scientists live and work in the context of a broader society and may be affected by political changes beyond their control," says Editor-in-Chief Terence R. Flotte, MD, Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor of Medical Education and Dean, Provost, and Executive Deputy Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA. "Members of the British Society of Gene Therapy have been outspoken leaders in advocating for preserving the benefits of EU funding for the scientific community and for patients and families who benefit from their innovations. Human Gene Therapy is proud to provide a forum for this advocacy."

About the Journal
Human Gene Therapy (http://www.liebertpub.com/hgt), the Official Journal of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy, British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy, French Society of Cell and Gene Therapy, German Society of Gene Therapy, and five other gene therapy societies, is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly in print and online. Led by Editor-in-Chief Terence R. Flotte, MD, Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor of Medical Education and Dean, Provost, and Executive Deputy Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Human Gene Therapy presents reports on the transfer and expression of genes in mammals, including humans. Related topics include improvements in vector development, delivery systems, and animal models, particularly in the areas of cancer, heart disease, viral disease, genetic disease, and neurological disease, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory issues related to the gene transfer in humans. Its companion journals, Human Gene Therapy Methods, published bimonthly, focuses on the application of gene therapy to product testing and development, and Human Gene Therapy Clinical Development, published quarterly, features data relevant to the regulatory review and commercial development of cell and gene therapy products. Tables of contents for all three publications and a free sample issue may be viewed on the Human Gene Therapy (http://www.liebertpub.com/hgt) website.

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/)  is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Nucleic Acid Therapeutics, Tissue Engineering, Stem Cells and Development, and Cellular Reprogramming. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/)  website.