Gilbert S. Omenn - Böcker

Gilbert S. Omenn Dean, School of Public Health and Community Medicine University of Washington Seattle, Washington 98195 On behalf of the University of Washington , the City of Seattle, the Steering Committee, and the sponsoring agencies, corporations, and organ­ izations, I welcome you. \Ve all expect this Conference to stimulate further what is becoming an important application of biotechnology in an area in which our society experiences considerable frustration and gloom: the management of hazardous wastes. It is an all-too-frequent refrain that technology has its benefits and its risks. To many--in the lay pUblic, at least--the damaging notion has taken hold that we are capable of creating problems but are less capable of finding solutions. Chemical streams from industry, agriculture, municipal operations, and household operations have contaminated groundwater, drinking water, and soils, and have undermined the productivity of agri­ culture and the quality of life. In the meantime, however, we have im­ proved our quality of life in immeasurable ways through some related developments. The challenge is to continue the enhancements while modifying or preventing the damage.

Technologies collectively called omics enable simultaneous measurement of an enormous number of biomolecules; for example, genomics investigates thousands of DNA sequences, and proteomics examines large numbers of proteins. Scientists are using these technologies to develop innovative tests to detect disease and to predict a patient's likelihood of responding to specific drugs. Following a recent case involving premature use of omics-based tests in cancer clinical trials at Duke University, the NCI requested that the IOM establish a committee to recommend ways to strengthen omics-based test development and evaluation. This report identifies best practices to enhance development, evaluation, and translation of omics-based tests while simultaneously reinforcing steps to ensure that these tests are appropriately assessed for scientific validity before they are used to guide patient treatment in clinical trials.

Gilbert S. Omenn Dean, Public Health and Community Medicine University of Washington Seattle, Washington 98195 On behalf of the University of Washington, the City of Seattle, the sponsors and donors, and my co-organizers, I am delighted to welcome all of you to this Conference on Genetic Control of Environ­ mental Pollutants. My only regret is that Dr. Alexander Hollaender, who has inspired so many of us as young scientists and stimulated so many trail-blazing conferences in environmental sciences and in gen­ etic engineering, is ill and was unable to make the trip to Seattle. He sends his warm good wishes for an outstanding meeting and a fine volume. The purpose of this Conference is to identify and assess strat­ egies for more effectively and safely managing wastes and toxic sub­ stances in the environment, in part through use of genetically engi­ neered microorganisms. There is a sense of desperation in our soci­ ety that modern technologies have introduced a bewildering array of potential hazards to human health and to our environment. There is an accompanying sense of frustration that our prodigious basic re­ search capabilities and our technological ingenuity have not yielded practical ways to control many pollutants and waste streams, or-­ better still--to convert them to useful products.