Correction and Apology
Year: 2009
Type: erratum
Abstract: In the Editorial in the August 2009 issue of Molecular Therapy, I mistakenly quoted from a draft memorandum sent to me for review and comment in my capacity as a member of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee by Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, Acting Director of the Office of Biotechnology Activities (OBA) at the NIH. This occurred because, unfortunately, before submitting my editorial, I did not verify that the language on which I was commenting was retained in the final version that was subsequently widely distributed. For example, the final memo did not in fact reference a “Serious Adverse Event,” as I stated in the Editorial, but rather “an event that occurred in a gene transfer study of β-thalassemia Major and Sickle Cell anemia being conducted in France.” A quotation referencing “risk calculus” and discussions with subjects was also not in the final version of the memorandum. The final memorandum actually states: “This event raises important questions about whether the use of lentiviral and modified SIN retroviral vectors containing insulators can, as has been the hope among investigators, decrease the risk of insertional mutagenesis in hematopoietic stem cells. In the coming months, OBA will be gathering additional information about the event, including specifics on the vector used, the dose of cells, transduction conditions, and the clinical course of both subjects, and we will organize a discussion at a meeting of the NIH Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee as soon as further data are available.” I apologize to Dr. Corrigan-Curay and to the NIH Office of Biotechnology Activities for inadvertently framing my editorial around a draft document that I received in an advisory committee capacity and that had not yet benefited from full review or input. I have known and worked with Jacqueline for a number of years and did not intend for my comments to reflect negatively on her. As readers of these monthly editorials for the past 5 years will likely recognize, I do have a strong feeling that the regulatory and funding complexity imposed on the field, particularly in the United States, is problematic, and the editorial in question reflects this opinion. That said, Jacqueline is a person of the highest integrity and works very hard to maintain a balanced and fair approach to the issues that the field faces, and misquoting her in this instance does not accurately reflect her input or the OBA staff's handling of this situation. I also apologize to the readers of Molecular Therapy for this mistake.
Source: Molecular Therapy
DOI: 10.1038/mt.2009.212
Author: David A Williams
Language: English
Subfield: Genetics
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,500
OpenAlex ID: W1983145166