Last week, GlaxoSmithKline announced it will buy Sirtris Pharmaceuticals for $720 million, giving weight to the claim that antiaging biotech firms can be a good bet. This is good news for Americans, given that a recent Harvard-affiliated study showed that some parts of the country have seen declines in expected longevity. Sirtris, located in Cambridge, Mass., is focused on developing drugs based on resveratrol, a chemical found in red wine, in order to fight diabetes and other diseases associated with aging.
Arrison observes that a new drug "may help Americans in pockets around the country where life expectancy took a beating" but glosses over the fact those pockets are dirt poor [http://www.sowhenareyougoingtoretire.com/?q=node/105 ]. is Sitris going to give the drug away to Appalachian women? somehow I doubt it. there aren't a lot of sushi restaurants and organic produce stands in the southern plains; are these women "choosing an unhealthy lifestyle they enjoy," or unable to afford much besides fast food for their families? different classes in America face very different choices. Arrison's elitism is ignorant at best and racist at worst.
Ashton Applewhite
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Longevity as a Commodity
Posted by: Sonia Arrison May 2, 2008 04:00 AMLast week, GlaxoSmithKline announced it will buy Sirtris Pharmaceuticals for $720 million, giving weight to the claim that antiaging biotech firms can be a good bet. This is good news for Americans, given that a recent Harvard-affiliated study showed that some parts of the country have seen declines in expected longevity. Sirtris, located in Cambridge, Mass., is focused on developing drugs based on resveratrol, a chemical found in red wine, in order to fight diabetes and other diseases associated with aging.
Ashton Applewhite
It will be interesting to see if GlaxoSmithKline will market SRT501, or one of the NCE's.