Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission appoints new chairwoman
Posted: 2:58 pm Fri, July 9, 2010
By Danielle Ulman
Daily Record Business Writer
The Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission named patient advocate Margaret Conn Himelfarb its new chairwoman Friday.
Himelfarb, appointed to the commission in 2008 by Gov. Martin O’Malley, has pushed for research on juvenile diabetes since her son was diagnosed with the disease in 1981. She is credited with organizing the grassroots campaign supporting legislation to fund stem cell research in Maryland.
Himelfarb also founded the Maryland chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, where she is an honorary lifetime board member.
She replaces Karen Rothenberg, former dean of the University of Maryland School of Law, who served the customary two-year term as chair of the commission. Bowen P. Weisheit Jr., a member of the commission since its inception and a lawyer with the Law Office of Bowen Weisheit Jr., has been elected vice chair.
“I am honored to serve as chair of the Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission and will make every effort to adhere to the high standards of oversight and advocacy set by my predecessors, Linda Powers and Karen Rothenberg,” Himelfarb said in a news release.
“I look forward to working…to maximize the economic impact of the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund and further its mission to promote the most scientifically meritorious stem cell research in Maryland focused on understanding, preventing, treating, and eradicating devastating human diseases and disabilities.”
Established in 2006, the commission oversees the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund. The fund has provided $68.4 million in research grants over the past four years.
It has an operating budget of $10.4 million for fiscal 2011, which began July 1.
Himelfarb successfully directed the campaign for a U.S. postage stamp for diabetes awareness. The Genetics Policy Institute honored her with its Inspiration Award at last year’s World Stem Cell Summit in Baltimore.
Himelfarb sits on the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Institutional Review Board and Health Advisory Board and is a member of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Institutional Stem Cell Research Oversight Committee.
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Comments
Every 5 minutes you hear an advertisement for another type of glucose meter or glucose strip and information on how to control glucose levels….. It is past time that a CURE be found for TYPE 1 diabetes… The kind that can not be eliminated by losing weight…. The kind that children get , some at a very young age….
My hope is that a cure can be found before any one else has to live with this illness. The big drug companies are making such large profits, it is unlikely that a cure will be found…. but after 46 years of praying for a cure ,,,, I think it is time…… Get Busy and mean what you say…. FIND a CURE, not a stamp for diabetic awareness…. Imagine that it is your child with this condition.
Margaret Himmelfarb has a child with type 1 diabetes, and has worked tirelessly to fund research to find a cure. There’s not a soul impacted by diabetes, type 1 or type 2, that doesn’t want a cure. For the record, type 2 diabetes cannot be eliminated by losing weight, there is no cure for type 2 either, and type 2 diabetes has a very strong genetic link. Although being overweight may trigger the onset of type 2 diabetes, it is not the sole cause of this devastating disease. There are many myths about diabetes and its causes, and blaming type 2 on the individual is oversimplifying the disease. Research funds are needed to find a cure for all diabetes. As a parent of a child with type 1 diabetes, I wish Mrs. Himmelfarb the best of luck in her new role.
Is there, or will there be any research concerning
Multiple Sclerosis?
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