Democrat Emerges As Major Stem Cell Patron

[Thurston Howell IV]

Over three decades, Bob Klein amassed a fortune by building and financing low-income housing. After his 14-year-old son was diagnosed with diabetes in 2001, however, he redirected his considerable political clout and business savvy. The longtime Democrat has since become one of the biggest private patrons of human embryonic stem cell research — medical technology that many scientists believe can someday cure a wide range of ailments, including diabetes.
"As a father you can't turn your back on something like this," Klein said. "I'm committed totally to this."

Diabetes researchers say they may someday be able to turn stem cells into insulin-producing cells, which could be implanted in diabetics and eliminate the need for injections.

But stem cell research is contentious, and the issue has become presidential campaign fodder. The Roman Catholic Church, many evangelical Christians and other moral conservatives oppose the research because embryos are destroyed in the process.

With polls showing overwhelming support for stem cell research, Democrat John Kerry has promised to give scientists more freedom than the Bush administration, which has restricted funding of the work, sending stem cell researchers scrambling for financial support wherever they can find it.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=753&e=1&u=/ap/20040919/ap_on_sc/stem_cell_s_biggest_backer