Discovery to Delivery BioVision Alexandria 2004 Discovery to Delivery BioVision Alexandria 2004 Editors: Ismail Serageldin Gabrielle J. Persley The Doyle Foundation Bibliotheca Alexandrina Cataloging-in-Publication Data Discovery to delivery : BioVision Alexandria 2004 / editors, Ismail Serageldin, Gabrielle J. Persley. – Alexandria : Bibliotheca Alexandrina, 2005. p. cm. ISBN 1. Biotechnology – Congresses. 2. Crops – Genetic engineering. I. Serageldin, Ismail, 1944- II. Persley, G. J. 660.6--dc21 2005236017 ISBN 977-6163-01-7 Dar El Kotob Depository Number 5240/2005 Cover, text design and layout: Mohammad Maher © Bibliotheca Alexandrina, 2005 All rights are reserved by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. However, for non-commercial purposes, this publication may be freely reviewed, abstracted, reproduced or translated in part or in whole, stored or introduced in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanic, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior permission of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina provided that the source is acknowledged/credited. The information in this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors. Printed in EGYPT 1000 copies Bibliotheca Alexandrina www.bibalex.org The Doyle Foundation www.doylefoundation.org Suggested Citation: Serageldin, I., and G.J. Persley (eds.) 2005. Discovery to Delivery: BioVision Alexandria 2004. Bibliotheca Alexandrina, El-Shatby-Alexandria 21526, Egypt. www.bibalex.org/bioalex2004conf Contents Preface xiii Acknowledgments xv Contributors xvii Acronyms and Abbreviations xxi Forewords: H.E. Atef Ebeid, Arab Republic of Egypt xxiii Ibrahim Badran, Arab Republic of Egypt xxv Philippe Desmarescaux, BioVision France xxvi Massimo Garzelli, UNIDO xxviii François Gros, Academy of Sciences, France xxxi Mohamed H.A. Hassan, Third World Academy of xxxii Science Koji Omi, Japanese House of Representatives xxxiv Mamphela Ramphele, The World Bank xxxv Section 1: Nobel Laureates: Perceptions and Insights 1. Introduction to Nobel Laureates at BioVision 3 Alexandria 2004 Ismail Serageldin 2. Time’s Mysteries and Miracles: Consonance with Physical 9 and Life Sciences Ahmed Zewail viii Contents 3. Science and Society: Some Reflections 25 Jean-Marie Lehn 4. Asymmetric Catalysis: Roles in Biomedical Science and 29 Technology Ryoji Noyori 5. The Changing Atmosphere in 2004 39 F. Sherwood Rowland Section 2: Overview 6. The Getting of Wisdom: The Meaning of the New Life 59 Sciences I. Serageldin and G.J. Persley Section 3: Agricultural Biotechnology 7. Evergreen Revolution: Shifting to an Era of Precision 71 Farming in Rice-Based Systems M.S. Swaminathan 8. Harnessing New Science for Sustainable Agriculture in Dry 85 Areas Adel El-Beltagy 9. Plant Biotechnology in Developing Countries: 95 Opportunities and Constraints Malcolm Elliott, Leila G. Rubia, Latha Rangan, Miroslav Kaminek, and Anatole Krattiger 10. Can Developing Countries Benefit from Agricultural 111 Biotechnology? Gregory Conko and C.S. Prakash 11. Biotechnology in Agriculture: Paratnerships for Success 119 James Peacock Contents ix 12. Is Biosafety Only a First Step Toward More Sustainable 125 Cropping systems? Brian R. Johnson and Anna Hope 13. Precautionary Regulation Prevents Use of Green 135 Biotechnology in Public Projects Ingo Potrykus 14. Diversity Arrays Technology: A Novel Tool for Harnessing 145 the Genetic Potential of Orphan Crops Eric Huttner, Peter Wenzl, Mona Akbari, Vanessa Caig, Jason Carling, Cyril Cayla, Margaret Evers, Damian Jaccoud, Kaiman Peng, Sujin Patarapuwadol, Grzegorz Uszynski, Ling Xia, Shiying Yang, and Andrzej Kilian Section 4: Agrobiodiversity and the Enrironment 15. Agrobiodiversity, People, and the Environment 159 Mahmoud Solh, Peter Kenmore, and Jasmine Hyman 16. Agricultural Biodiversity for Sustainable Development: 175 Strengthening the Knowledge Base J. Thompson, C. Hoogendoorn, and T. Hodgkin 17. Exploiting Biodiversity and Protecting the Environment 189 Klaus Ammann 18. Preventing Agrobiodiversity Loss and Land Degradation in 201 the Drylands of West Asia Ahmed Amri, Mohamed Ajlouni, Younis Sbeih, Raghed Assi, Adnan Saad, and Jan Valcoun Section 5: Human Health 19. Gene Manipulation Technology and Human Health: Ethical 211 and Social Considerations Effat A. Badr x Contents 20. Infectious Disease: An Enduring Threat 219 Peter Lachmann 21. Tuberculosis Research: The Promise of Genetics and 227 Biotechnology—Scientific and Ethical Issues Stefan Ehlers and Sahar Aly 22. Vaccine Security: Ensuring the Uninterrupted Sustainable 253 Supply of Affordable Vaccine to Children in Developing Countries Steve Jarrett 23. Computational Chemistry: A Powerful and Inexpensive 261 Tool for Basic and Applied Research in the Life Sciences Chérif F. Matta 24. Impact of Chemical and Screening Technologies in Drug 273 Discovery Magid Abou-Gharbia 25. Losing Life to Cancer: From Science to Ethics 281 Claude Jasmin 26. Female and Male Human Brains: Different, but 285 Complementary, in Intellectual Profile Annica Dahlström 27. Global Partnership of Scientists, Doctors, and Patient 295 Organizations Ysbrand Poortman Section 6: Ethics, Patents, and the Poor 28. Institutional Landscape, Legal Issues and Policy Setting, and 303 Funding Research Alexander von der Osten 29. Creating, Protecting, and Using Crop Biotechnologies 313 Worldwide in an Era of Intellectual Property Philip G. Pardey, Bonwoo Koo, and Carol Nottenburg Contents xi 30. IPRs: Must There be a Conflict Between Commercial Need 345 and Humanitarian Benefits? Anatole Krattiger and Malcolm Elliott 31. Patents, Pharmaceuticals, and Health in Developing 357 Countries Børge Diderichsen 32. Intellectual Property Rights and the Controversy Between 363 Industrial and Developing Countries Over Animal Rights and the Needs of People Carlos María Romeo-Casabona 33. Venture Capital, Patents, and the Market: Case Study of 373 Biotechnology in Italy Claudio Carlone 34. International Contribution of the Japanese 381 Biotech/Pharmaceutical Industry Osamu Nagayama Section 7: Capacity Building in Life Sciences 35 Capacity Building in Science and Technology 387 Mamphela Ramphele 36. Filling the South-North Gap in Life Sciences and 395 Biotechnology Through Capacity Building, Innovation, and Benefit Sharing Chen Zhu 37. Humanitarian Challenges and Global Responsibility and 403 Strategies for Biotechnology Huanming Yang 38. European Action in Global Life Sciences 407 Børge Diderichsen, David McConnell, Huanming Yang, and Marc van Montagu xii Contents Section 8. BioVision Alexandria 2004 39. An Overview of BioVision Alexandria 2004 419 Rafik Nakhla, Cynthia Schneider, Salah Soliman, and Frederic H. Erbisch Preface BioVision Alexandria and the World Life Sciences Forum, BioVision, are important gatherings of opinion leaders and prominent scientists who encourage constructive dialogue among key players in the development of life sciences. They include members of academia, industry, research, institutions, media, and society. The ultimate goal is to provide a platform of exchange and information to meet the challenges facing the 21st century in life sciences, a vital step for economic development leading to global improvement of quality of life for all. BioVision Alexandria 2004 addressed the needs and capabilities in the new life sciences in the lesser developed nations of the world. The main goal was to promote the active exchange of ideas and innovative pathways to benefit the global community. A special section was dedicated to the issues of Ethics, Patents, and the Poor. The overall theme of this volume is “Discovery to Delivery.” This reflects the exciting new discoveries in genomics and other aspects of gene technology that are finding applications in human health care, food and agriculture, and conserving biodiversity and the environment. However, the pathway from these exciting scientific discoveries to delivery of products to those who need them is at times a rocky road, and the pitfalls are many. Contributors to this volume have analyzed some of the constraints that hinder the delivery of new biotechnologies, with safety assurance and at affordable prices. These issues are analyzed for the sectors of food and agriculture and human healthcare, where there are some common issues, but also some differing perspectives. An overarching concern is the need for fostering more capacity in science and technology in developing countries, so as to encourage local innovations based on mobilizing the best of global science. Centers of excellence that bring together a critical mass of people, resources, and physical facilities can play an important role in accelerating capacity building. This has proved to be the case in China and India, and is likely to be an important development in African science policy in the future. The final word for the future invokes the tradition of the Library of Alexandria—Be Bold–Dare to Dream Ismail Serageldin Gabrielle Persley Director Chair Bibliotheca Alexandrina The Doyle Foundation, Scotland Acknowledgments The support of the Government of Egypt in sponsoring BioVision Alexandria 2004 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina is gratefully acknowledged. The conference was held under the auspices of H.E. Mohamed Hosni Mubarak, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and H.E. Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, Chair, Board of Trustees, Bibliotheca Alexandrina. We thank H.E. Atef Ebeid, Former Prime Minister of Egypt, for his strong support and interest in the preparations for the conference and its outcomes. We also extend our thanks