Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 1998

8

DNA tests removegovernment doubtsover tsar’s bones[MUNICH] Following independent DNAanalyses by Russian scientists, thegovernment has officially declared that bonesfound at the site of the execution of theRussian royal family during the revolution doindeed belong to Tsar Nicholas II.

Previous analyses comparing DNA frombone samples with DNA from blood samplesof distant relatives, conducted in the UnitedKingdom and the United States, had stronglysuggested that the bones were authentic, buthad not been accepted as conclusive inRussia. Russian scientists have nowcompleted analyses of mitochondrial DNAfrom the bones, and of mitochondrial DNAsamples from stored blood of the tsar’snephew, now deceased.

But the Russian Orthodox Church isobjecting to the government’s decision tobury the bones on 17 July, 80 years after theexecution of the tsar and his family by aBolshevik firing squad. Given theimportance of the bones as holy relics, itwants further genetic tests to be conductedto be more certain of their authenticity.

Evgeni Rogaev, director of the Laboratoryof Molecular Brain Genetics of the RussianAcademy of Sciences, and the scientistresponsible for the Russian studies, agreesthat further tests would be appropriate.Mitochondrial DNA is inherited through thematernal line, he points out, so new tests thatcan analyse Y-chromosome microsatellitesinherited through the paternal line would“help narrow things down even further andput a stop to controversy”.

Hawking condemns UScancellation of SSC[WASHINGTON] President Bill Clinton lastweek endorsed the US contribution toEurope’s Large Hadron Collider after alecture delivered by the physicist StephenHawking at the White House.

Hawking characterized the 1993cancellation by Congress of theSuperconducting Super Collider (SSC) inTexas as “short-sighted”. Clinton responded:“This administration opposed thecancellation of the SSC — but we hope thatthe Swiss project will take up the slack.”

Hawking’s lecture was the second in aseries being delivered at the White House byprominent intellectuals in the run-up to theyear 2000. Hawking said there is a 50:50chance that physicists will find a unifiedtheory in the next 20 years, and also crackedjokes about the US political system.

But he may have more in common with USpolitics than he knows: the night before thelecture, Hawking hosted a lavish fund-raising

event for the University of Cambridge atthe British Embassy in Washington, and hisalma mater was repeatedly mentioned inthe lecture itself.

Budget blow to Russia’sscience and schools[MOSCOW] The Russian State Duma, thelower chamber of parliament, has at lastapproved the budget for 1998. Science willreceive 11.2 billion roubles (US$1.9 billion),but this is only 2.65 per cent of all budgetexpenditures, compared to the 4 per centthat is required by law.

Similarly, the total funding for highschools will be 2 per cent of budgetexpenditures — even though the lawdemands that this should be at least 3 percent. And, in practice, funding for scienceand education are likely to be even lower, asthe Duma adopted an amendment to thebudget law allowing the cabinet to reduceany approved figure by up to 8 per cent tocover the state’s debts. One per cent hasalready been deducted for this purpose.

Dutch call a halt to calfcloning experiments[MUNICH] Only ten days after the birth of twogenetically identical cloned calves, the Dutchgovernment last week banned the companyPharming from conducting any furtherexperiments involving nuclear transfer. Thecompany says it now plans to carry outfurther experiments in the United States.

Last year, a law came into force requiringDutch researchers to reapply for licences forgenetic experiments involving animals,including nuclear transfer, and requiringprotocols to be approved by an ethicalcommittee. The agriculture minister, Joziasvan Aartsen, announced that a new licencefor Pharming’s cloning work would not begranted. A newly created national ethicscommittee wants Pharming first to provethat producing therapeutic proteins frommilk results in better drugs than alternativein vitro methods of production.

Marine scientists floatplan for Euro lobby[PARIS] National non-governmentalassociations of marine scientists in Europeare planning to combine their efforts bycreating a European Federation of MarineScience Societies, which will lobby publicbodies involved in shaping marine science, inparticular the European Commission.

The aim, says Jean-François Pavillon,head of the 200-strong Union desOceanographes de France, is to air theopinions of grassroots marine researchers inpolicy-making circles, for example in thetraining of young scientists, the conditions of

use of research fleets, and policies onmanaging coastal ecosystems. A core groupwill meet at the Wimereux marine station inBoulogne sur Mer in April to finalize thegoals of the new body.

Germany strengthensresearch ties with India[NEW DELHI] India and Germany have signedan agreement to boost scientific cooperationthrough an increased flow of scientistsbetween the two countries. The Project-based Persons’ Exchange Programme, whichtook effect on 1 March, is aimed atresearchers in the two countries who arealready working on joint science andtechnology projects, or are planning todevelop such projects.

The agreement will allow researchers ofone country to work for up to three years inresearch institutions of the other, with thehost government providing grants.

Glaxo cuts HIV drug costfor developing world[WASHINGTON] The pharmaceutical giantGlaxo Wellcome is to slash the price of ananti-HIV drug to help improve treatment forpregnant women in developing countries,the company announced last week. Themove follows the announcement two weeksago that a short course of the drug AZT inlate pregnancy reduced perinatal HIVtransmission by 50 per cent in a study inThailand (see Nature 391, 832; 1998).

Glaxo Wellcome will make AZT(Retrovir) available in developing countriesat “significantly lower” prices than in theWest. The company is also committed toslashing the price of another anti-HIV drug,3TC (Epivir), now in trials, if it proveseffective. A long course of treatment withAZT costs about US$800 in the West.

US–French deal to seekgene therapy drugs[WASHINGTON] Maryland-based genomicscompany Human Genome Sciences (HGS)and Transgène, the biotechnology companybased in Strasbourg, France, have announceda 10-year agreement to collaborate on thedevelopment of gene therapy drugs.

The companies will together identify novelgenes of promise for gene therapy from anHGS database.

The French company will have exclusiverights to license and sublicense up to ten ofthese genes, and to develop, manufacture andcommercialize any resulting gene therapyproducts worldwide. Alternatively, thecompanies may choose to co-develop and co-market some or all of the products. Theagreement stipulates that HGS will take a 10per cent interest in Transgène’s equity.

news in brief

118 NATURE | VOL 392| 12 MARCH 1998