WSU to Study Iraq Toxins' Effect
Spokesman-Review
by Bert Caldwell
Research to examine how exposure might damage offspring of soldiers
Washington State University scientists will use a $1.7 million grant to study what multi-generation genetic damage might be done by toxins U.S. troops could encounter in Iraq.
The research using laboratory rats, not humans, will be the first for the military to examine the epigenetic effects of pesticides, herbicides and other compounds, said lead scientist Michael Skinner, director of the university's Center for Reproductive Biology.
Previous studies have looked at the health effects of other substances, notably the Agent Orange used to defoliate jungles in Vietnam, on the soldiers directly exposed, he said, not on their children or grandchildren.
"The science really had not caught up with the trans-generational stuff," said Skinner, one of several WSU pioneers in the field of epigenetic, or multi-generational, inheritance.
Besides herbicides and pesticides – which and in what combinations has not been determined – the study also will look at the effects of explosives residues, he said.
The four-year study will allow researchers to see how any changes in genetic chemistry that develop are passed along through two subsequent generations of rats, he said, noting that only the first two years of research have been funded.
Among the problems that might develop are kidney disease, or changes in the male and female reproductive organs, he said.
If any genetic markers are identified in rats, Skinner said, follow-up research could look at whether they might show up among members of the military as well.
That would be of particular interest to Dave Holmes, interim chief operating officer of the Institute for Systems Medicine, which was awarded the U.S. Department of Defense grant passed through to Skinner.
Holmes' son, Tim Hammond, did two tours in Iraq with the U.S. Marine Corps.
"They sprayed all kinds of stuff on them," Holmes said.
Although the grant money, the first awarded ISM, will fund work in Pullman, he said the organization's supporters hope any subsequent clinical studies will be done in Spokane.
"There's a lot of excitement about making it happen," he said.
"Fighting for Our Veterans-Supporting Our Troops"
Proudly Serving All Branches & All Eras Since 1999
Search Veterans' Voice Site Below
Entire web
Ackerman Bill Seeks To Aid Vets Blocked From Appeals Process And Denied Benefits
http://www.qgazette.com/news/2010-04-
By John Toscano
Legislation has been introduced byCongressmember Gary Ackerman to fix a broken appeals process that is denying more than 200 war veterans the chance to appeal for their benefits after missing “a rigid and arbitrary deadline” set by the U.S.Court of Appeals for Veterans’ Claims, known as the Veterans Court.
U.S. Senator Arlen Spector (D–Pennsylvania) recently introduced a bill similar to Ackerman’s in the Senate.
The Fair Access toVeterans Benefits Act would require the U.S.Court of Appeals for Veterans’ Claims, Veterans Court, to hear appeals of administrative decisions denying veterans benefits when circumstances beyond their control—often the very service-connected disabilities that entitle them to benefits—render them unable to meet the deadline for filing an appeal, said Ackerman (D–Bayside/Long Island).
Additionally, the bill requires the Veterans Court to reinstate untimely appeals already dismissed as a result of that court’s failure to extend the filing period for a good cause, Ackerman added.
The legislation was triggered by a recent decision by the U.S.Court of Appeals for the federal circuit, which ruled against allowing a veteran to pursue his appeal because he missed a deadline.
“We need to change the appeals process so that it works for veterans rather than against them,”Ackerman said. “It is unconscionable that veterans with service-connected disabilities are being denied the right to appeal VA(Veterans Administration) decisions because of an arbitrary deadline that many are incapable of meeting due to the very service-connected disabilities from which they suffer. We can never thank our veterans enough for the sacrifices they made, and now we must do all we can to help them receive the benefits that they rightly deserve.”
The plaintiff,David Henderson, suffered from paranoid schizophrenia as a result of his active-duty service in the Korean War, Ackerman said.
The government denied Henderson’s benefits claim in 2004 and dismissed his appeal because he missed a filing deadline by just 15 days, Ackerman said. Hendererson then asked the Veterans Court to excuse his late filing because it was caused by his service-connected disability, a claim his psychiatrist supported under oath.
The VeteransCourt refused to do so, and a divided federalcourt affirmed its decision.
Last week,Congressmember JohnAdler (D–New Jersey), a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, sent a letter to House VACommittee Chair Bob Fisher, demanding an investigatory hearing into the U.S.Department ofVeterans Affairs ClaimProcessing System.
