Symposium to Focus on Ethical Issues in Biotechnology

Ethical issues in biotechnology are the focus of the second annual International Bioethics Forum in Madison Friday and Saturday, April 25-26. Focusing on medical research and applications, the theme for this year's conference is "Who Decides?"

The two-day event, moderated by R. Alta Charo, professor of law and medical ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will address current controversies in the regulation of human subjects research, innovative reproductive technologies, Canadian perspectives and decisions that may be on the horizon.

Discussion sessions will focus on embryonic stem cells, federal human cloning legislation, integration of race and ethnicity factors into research design, responses to new technologies, reflections from diverse faith perspectives, decision-makers at the Food and Drug Administration, use of cases to facilitate ethics discussions and privacy issues in health care.

In addition to Charo, confirmed speakers include Bill Linton, CEO and chairman, Promega Corp.; Norman Fost, UW-Madison professor of pediatrics; Sean Tipton, director of public affairs, American Society for Reproductive Medicine; Troy Duster, Chancellor's Professor of Sociology and director of the Institute for Social Change at University of California-Berkeley, and professor of sociology at New York University; Dena Davis, professor at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law; Eric Meslin, director of the Indiana University Center for Bioethics and professor of philosophy; and Rick Weiss, Washington Post science and medical reporter.

The Bioethics Forum will be held at Promega's BioPharmaceutical Technology Center, home to its educational nonprofit arm, the BioPharmaceutical Technology Center Institute.

"Building on what we learned last year at our inaugural forum, we are pleased to once again offer a venue for public discussion of these important topics," says Linton, who also serves as president of the institute's board of directors.

Carl Gulbrandsen, managing director of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, agrees. "There is a need to foster thoughtful discussion about scientific advances and their implications for society. WARF is pleased to be included in the list of diverse community organizations supporting this event," he says.

The institute, Promega and WARF are gold sponsors of the event. Silver sponsors include Gehrke & Associates, S.C.; Madison Area Technical College; Michael Best & Friedrich LLP; the Wisconsin Biotechnology Association; and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.

Contributors include Bio-Link National Advanced Technological Center for Biotechnology; Center for Biology Education, UW-Madison; FOTODYNE Inc.; HospiceCare Inc.; LaFollette, Godfrey & Kahn, S.C.; Midwest Ethics Committee Network, Center for the Study of Bioethics, Medical College of Wisconsin; Program in Bioethics, UW-Madison; Wisconsin Chaplaincy Commission; and Wisconsin Technology Council.

The forum is open to the public. The registration fee is $65. The BioPharmaceutical Technology Center is located at 5445 E. Cheryl Parkway in Fitchburg Center, off of south Fish Hatchery Road.

For information, including links to the brochure and online registration, visit the institute's Web site at http://www.btci.org, or contact the institute at (608) 273-9737 to request a brochure.