TY - JOUR
T1 - Parallel path
T2 - Poliovirus research in the vaccine era
AU - Garfinkel, Michele S.
AU - Sarewitz, Daniel
N1 - Funding Information:
In order to characterize one aspect of the federal government’s selection and funding of research on various aspects of poliovirus biology, we catalogued and classified investigator-initiated projects paid for by the NIH. The NIH’s Computer Retrieval of Information on Scientific Projects (CRISP) database21 comprises biomedical research conducted within the Department of Health and Human Services. In addition to all extramural research funded by NIH, it includes NIH intramural research and relevant (biomedical) research funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The database contains abstracts from 1972 to the present; funding information for extramural research is available from 1992 to the present from the Office of Extramural Research.22 Additional extramural grant information was obtained courtesy of Robert Moore, NIH.
Funding Information:
Any choice entails an opportunity cost, and in the case of polio research, one cost is in research foregone on other viruses or diseases. As a strict accounting matter, these costs are relatively minor. Funding for polio research that can be characterized as aimed at understanding the fundamental biology (our category 1 only) of the virus was about $3 million in FY 2000 (constant dollars), a mere 0.016% of the total NIH budget for that year. On the other hand, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), the NIH institute primarily responsible for infectious disease research, provided funding for poliovirus research at nearly 10% of malaria research funding from about 1996-1999, and nearly 25% of malaria research before that.37
PY - 2003/7
Y1 - 2003/7
N2 - One goal of the scientific research enterprise is to improve the lives of individuals and the overall health of societies. This goal is achieved through a combination of factors, including the composition of research portfolios. In turn, this composition is determined by a variety of scientific and societal needs. The recent history of polio research highlights the complex relations between research policy, scientific progress and societal benefits. Here, we briefly review the circumstances leading to the possibility of eradication of poliovirus, evaluate the research environment that emerged following the introduction of a vaccine, and compare and contrast the current research framework with that for other infectious diseases. From this analysis, policy lessons with general applicability to scientific research are identified.
AB - One goal of the scientific research enterprise is to improve the lives of individuals and the overall health of societies. This goal is achieved through a combination of factors, including the composition of research portfolios. In turn, this composition is determined by a variety of scientific and societal needs. The recent history of polio research highlights the complex relations between research policy, scientific progress and societal benefits. Here, we briefly review the circumstances leading to the possibility of eradication of poliovirus, evaluate the research environment that emerged following the introduction of a vaccine, and compare and contrast the current research framework with that for other infectious diseases. From this analysis, policy lessons with general applicability to scientific research are identified.
KW - Research policy
KW - Scientific responsibility
KW - Societal outcomes
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U2 - 10.1007/s11948-003-0028-7
DO - 10.1007/s11948-003-0028-7
M3 - Article
C2 - 12971292
AN - SCOPUS:0141746083
SN - 1353-3452
VL - 9
SP - 319
EP - 338
JO - Science and engineering ethics
JF - Science and engineering ethics
IS - 3
ER -