Mission Hospitals Grant Will Enable Bent Creek Institute to Equip the Nation's First Genetic Repository for Medicinal Plants
Mission Health & Hospitals announced today that it has made a $50,000 grant that will enable Bent Creek Institute to equip the nation's first germplasm, or genetic repository, for medicinal plants. Bent Creek Institute is a new, cutting-edge research organization whose mission is to discover medicinal treatments for disease based on plants and other organisms that are native to Western North Carolina, the most biodiverse region in North America. Unlocking the secrets of Western North Carolina's vast biodiversity through documented, peer-reviewed science is expected to provide results for use in alternative and complementary medical treatment of human disease, and to enable the region and its workforce to tap into international natural products commerce.
Asheville, NC (PRWEB) November 29, 2007
Mission Health & Hospitals announced today that it has made a $50,000 grant that will enable Bent Creek Institute to equip the nation's first germplasm, or genetic repository, for medicinal plants.
Based in Asheville, NC, Bent Creek Institute is part of The North Carolina Arboretum. The grant from Mission will be used to purchase equipment for plant propagation, seed storage and processing, and plant tissue culture incubation.
Bent Creek Institute is a new, cutting-edge research organization whose mission is to discover medicinal treatments for disease based on plants and other organisms such as fungi that are native to Western North Carolina (WNC), the most biodiverse region in North America. Unlocking the secrets of WNC's vast biodiversity through documented, peer-reviewed science is expected to provide results for use in alternative and complementary medical treatment of human disease, and to enable the region and its workforce to tap into international natural products commerce. Global natural products sales are estimated to be at $200 billion per year ($55 billion in the United States alone) and growing 14% annually.
"Germplasm is a term used to describe the DNA of an organism," said Cheryl McMurry, executive director of Bent Creek Institute. "This germplasm repository contains core collections of medicinal plant germplasm representing the diversity of species found in the Southern Appalachians. This scientific resource will enable Bent Creek Institute to use biotechnology tools to delve into the complex chemical properties of these plants so their secrets are finally understood. The plants will not be genetically altered -- maintaining the natural integrity of our products will be an important competitive advantage for our region."
Respected Botanist Will Lead the Germplasm Project
On December 15, Dr. Joe-Ann McCoy, a leading botanist, will join Bent Creek Institute and build the extensive collection, which will ultimately include seeds and plant tissue associated with hundreds of native plants. McCoy is best known for her research at Clemson University on growing methods that create sustainable harvesting practices for black cohosh, a mountain-grown plant that contains chemical compounds providing relief for the hot flashes triggered by menopause. Her work has benefited millions of women worldwide.
Mission's Support of Research in Western North Carolina
"Western North Carolina has been a healthcare destination for more than a century," said Joseph F. Damore, president and chief executive officer of Mission Health & Hospitals. "Today through the germplasm project we have the opportunity to contribute scientific data on the use of natural products, something that has the potential of benefiting hundreds of thousands of people. Mission is pleased to support this project, and we hope that our grant will help the Bent Creek Institute secure additional support from foundations and others interested in documenting the benefits of natural products."
The Asheville Hub Is a Catalyst for Collaboration
The Asheville Hub is a nonprofit, community-based effort to promote a new economy for Buncombe County that builds on existing strengths in health care and other sectors.
"The Mission grant to Bent Creek Institute is tangible evidence that the collaboration encouraged by the Asheville Hub within Asheville and Buncombe County's rejuvenation cluster is really happening," said Bent Creek Institute's McMurry. She and Mission's Damore are both members of the Asheville Hub Alliance, the 35-member leadership group whose level of collaboration is unprecedented in the Asheville community. "The pieces of the rejuvenation cluster are starting to fit. We're seeing the good things that happen when our leaders share their visions and their resources with each other. Western North Carolina is on its way to positioning itself as the Napa Valley of natural products."
Building Western North Carolina's Economy
The Mission grant to Bent Creek Institute is being made through the North Carolina Arboretum Society, a nonprofit organization which raises private funds to support the Arboretum's mission and supplement the operational budget provided by the State of North Carolina.
"Donations to the North Carolina Arboretum Society support educational lectures and workshops, regional plant shows, garden enhancements, and training, but they also propel The North Carolina Arboretum's efforts to improve the region's economy," said Russ Martin, president of the Arboretum Society. "Natural products offer a very promising opportunity for Western North Carolinians to sustainably and profitably produce natural products that we can market well beyond our region."
Other donors funding the germplasm project include Buncombe County, which has contributed $150,000, and the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, which has contributed $100,000.
About Mission Hospitals
Mission Health & Hospitals (www. msj. org), based in Asheville, NC, is the regional referral center for Western North Carolina and the adjoining region. It is a not-for-profit, independent community hospital system accredited by The Joint Commission. Mission and its member hospitals are governed by volunteer boards of directors representing the communities they serve.
The main hospital in the system, Mission Hospitals in Asheville, is licensed for 716 beds on its two adjoining campuses, Memorial and St. Joseph. The medical staff has more than 650 physicians representing most specialties and subspecialties. There are some 6,000 employees and nearly 900 volunteers.
About The North Carolina Arboretum and Bent Creek Institute
The mission of The North Carolina Arboretum is to cultivate connections between people and plants. For more information, visit the Arboretum website at www. ncarboretum. org. For more information about Bent Creek Institute, see the backgrounder on the next page.
About the Asheville Hub
The Asheville HUB is a nonprofit, community-based effort to promote a new economy for Buncombe County that builds on existing strengths in technology, health care, creativity and other sectors. Leading the Asheville Hub are the 35 members of the Asheville Hub Alliance who provide leadership for the economic, community and cultural development effort. For more information about the Asheville Hub, visit www. ashevillehub. com.
For more information, contact:
Cheryl McMurry, 828/670-3394, x102
Bent Creek Institute
Merrell Gregory, 828/213-4806
Mission Hospitals
Nancy Foltz, 828/628-1699
Asheville Hub
Bent Creek Institute Backgrounder
The Bent Creek Institute is a cutting-edge research organization whose mission is to discover medicinal treatments for disease based on plants and other organisms, such as fungi. It endeavors to translate research innovations into sustainable economic advantage for the state of North Carolina. As a part of The North Carolina Arboretum, Bent Creek Institute is forming partnerships, collaborations and programs in research, economic development, medical care, product development and commercialization, conservation, marketing and public outreach to bring international attention to Western North Carolina's (WNC) unparalleled biodiversity, exceptional reputation for health and wellness, and cultural distinctiveness.
The Institute's unique approach to research and production of intellectual property will:
--Result in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical product development.
--Provide a foundation for profitable business models for natural product growers and manufacturers statewide.
--Serve as an international repository and clearing house for the study, protection and careful commercial use of Western North Carolina's native plants.
--Develop new tools to help understand the health benefits of natural medicine, as well as complementary and alternative medicine.
--Provide validation for alternative and complementary medicine via clinical trial design and development.
--Create unique research opportunities for post-doctoral researchers, as well as graduate, --Drive informed ecological public policy that protects WNC's unique biodiversity.
Unlocking the secrets of WNC's vast biodiversity through documented, peer reviewed science will not only provide results for use in alternative and complementary medical treatment of human disease, but will help Western North Carolina tap into international natural products commerce, a $200 billion global industry growing 14% annually. Science that demonstrates the efficacy of WNC herbal medicines can be used to brand regional growers' products, support higher raw and finished product price points, establish ancillary processing, manufacturing, marketing and distribution businesses, and launch WNC as an international location for natural product innovation. Bent Creek Institute's program is consistent with the NIH Director's Roadmap for Medical Research and supports the expansion of the increasingly important use of integrative medicine.
For more information, contact Cheryl McMurry at cheryl_mcmurry@ncbiotech. org or at 828/670-3394, x102. McMurry is executive director of Bent Creek Institute and also serves as director of the western region of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center.
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