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To: Knight who wrote (9044)	8/26/2002 10:00:55 AM
From: BW	Respond to of 48463

ASTM news, not much to get excited about... Aastrom Biosciences Appoints Alan M. Wright to Management Team-- AastromNames Senior Vice President to Lead Administrative and Financial Operations - ANN ARBOR, Mich., Aug 26, 2002 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASTM) announced today the appointment of Alan M. Wright as Senior Vice President Administrative and Financial Operations. Mr. Wright has served on Aastrom's Board of Directors for the past two years, and is very familiar with the Company's operations and objectives. Upon his appointment to Aastrom's management team, he stepped down as a member of the Board of Directors. In this newly created position at Aastrom, Mr. Wright will report to R. Douglas Armstrong, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Aastrom. "Al has served an important advisory role as a member of Aastrom's Board of Directors over the last two years," said Dr. Armstrong. "We are extremely pleased to welcome him to Aastrom's management team, where his financial acumen and business expertise can actively benefit the Company as we transition into the commercialization phase with our cell-based products and continue building the financial base of the Company." Before joining Aastrom, Mr. Wright, 57, served as Executive Vice President, CFO and Chief Administrative Officer for an energy company, where he was responsible for raising $17 billion in capital during his tenure. Prior to that time, Mr. Wright spent 22 years in financial and management positions of increasing responsibility. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Economics from Cornell University under a General Motors national scholarship. Mr. Wright has completed Stanford University's Executive Program and post-graduate studies in Accounting at the University of West Florida. He has served on the boards of Children's Hospital of New Orleans, LA and the Sparling Dance Gallery Foundation, and currently serves as a director for Ensure Technologies, a privately held company. "After many years securing capital for large companies, I was ready to take on a new challenge, including using my experience in raising capital to fund this growing company," said Alan M. Wright, Senior Vice President Administrative and Financial Operations of Aastrom. "I have always been impressed with the dedication I've seen at Aastrom, not only in the development of cell-based products, but in the desire to move these new medical approaches into standard use. I am thrilled to be an active member of the Aastrom team, and look forward to contributing to Aastrom's financial and operating capabilities."

To: Knight who wrote (9044)	8/26/2002 10:07:01 AM
From: BW	Respond to of 48463

more ASTM news from Friday Stem Cell Setback Fuels Questions on Bush Research Funding Ban By John Lauerman Washington, Aug. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Adult stem cells from bone marrow failed to develop into brain cells in a new study, calling into question a limit on the source of embryo stem cells for research based on the promise of mature cells, researchers said. President George W. Bush decided last year to give federal funding to scientists who use some existing lines of stem cells from embryos, while blocking money for research that would destroy new embryos. The embryo stem cells are thought to have the potential to develop into the widest range of tissues. Scientists can coax stem cells to develop into a variety of types of cells, which may someday be harnessed to replace human tissues destroyed by diseases or trauma. The adult bone marrow stem cells failed to become brain cells, though earlier experiments suggested they would, according to a study published in the Aug. 23 issue of the journal Science. ``We won't close the door on it but it's not a robust phenomenon,'' said study leader H. David Shine, a Baylor College of Medicine neuroscientist in Houston. President Bush limited federal funding to research on 60 lines of stem cells from human embryos, citing studies that indicated cells from adult tissues also can be developed into brain cells, liver cells or other types. ``Many patients suffering from a range of diseases are already being helped with treatments developed from adult stem cells,'' Bush said last year. Researchers said the experiment's failure indicates optimism about the potential of adult stem cells may be premature. ``If blood cells and nerve cells could become cells outside their own lineage, who would need embryonic stem cells?'' said Fred Gage, a geneticist at the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California. ``Now there are reports that show those experiments could be explained by other events.'' Bush Limit Companies such as StemCells Inc. and Aastrom Biosciences Inc. want to harness the power of stem cells. The Bush administration limit has discouraged the drug industry from investigating possible cures for diseases based on embryonic stem cell research, according to Harvard University molecular biologist Doug Melton. ``No major pharmaceutical company or vigorous biotech company has had a full court press in this area,'' he said. The U.S. is lagging behind other countries in stem cell research, and the policy discourages young scientists conducting such studies, he said. ``If you're serious about entering this field, the place where it can be done to the greatest extent is England,'' he said. Dr. Robert Lanza of closely held Advanced Cell Technologies Inc. in Worcester, Massachusetts, said the Bush administration policy has made it difficult for his company to develop treatments from cloned human cells. ``We're going into battle with one hand tied behind our back, and that's not the way we're going to conquer disease,'' he said.