NIH2003预算翻一番，预防生物恐怖研究独占鳌头

　　

    [生物通讯]美国总统布什将提议美国国家卫生院（NIH)明年的预算为273亿美元，与去年相比增长了16％，达到1998年的2倍。这个数字对于生物医学团体而言是令人满意的，他们过去5年来努力争取NIH预算翻番的目的终于得以实现。但胜利的果实并非如想象的那样甜蜜：NIH2003年预算的新增部分将用于生物恐怖研究，这意味着NIH27个下设研究院中的大多数，其经费的增长率反而减少了。

2003年NIH 预计用于生物恐怖研究的基金
类别	金额 (百万美元)	项目
基础研发	$260	6个院外优秀中心 ($60M)、 病原体基因组学、 蛋白质组学
药物开发	$534	药物筛查、疫苗、诊断、动物模型开发
临床研究	$186	天花疫苗试验
研究基本设施	$580	NIH内部和院外3和4级生物安全防护设施

    布什的基本提议是在1月25日公布的，但预算的详细议案直到2月初才会公布。布什总统的这一议案将使NIH的经费从2002财政年度的236亿美元创历史记录地增加37亿美元。经费资金将使资助项目有所增加，达到36,000项。

    约有15亿美元的新增经费将用于生物恐怖研究项目。“事实上，所有或将近97％的新增经费都将分配给NIH的国家过敏与传染性疾病研究院（National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases，NIAID)，NIAID的主任Anthony Fauci说。与2002年NIAID获得的24亿美元的经费相比，其2003年的预算实在高得惊人。这些项目包括诸如生物恐怖用病原体的基因组测序以及新炭疽疫苗和诊断工具等基础研究（见上表）。

    其它受益于布什新预算议案的领域还有癌症相关研究领域，相关研究大多数由NIH的国家癌症研究院（National Cancer Institute， NCI）进行。NCI将获得55亿美元的经费，比2002财政年度增加了13％。根据美国卫生部和人类服务中心发布的新闻，提高癌症相关领域研究的投入是为了继续保持抗癌几率逐渐增高的势头。

    实现研究经费翻一番”真是一个好消息，”尤其是在诸如新防御体系花费和填补赤字等压力下。”美国医学院校联合会的预算分析家Dave Moore说道。然而，生物医学团体预计，除去生物恐怖和癌症研究经费外，NCI 和NIAID以外的其它研究院经费只有8％的增长。这样并非不公平，但最近几年内大多数研究院的经费增长率大致都要徘徊在13％左右。“我认为这个行情可能会危及到某些业内人士。”

    然而，NIH的执行主任Ruth Kirschstein却对布什总统的议案进行了辩护，她说：“生物恐怖是每个人都意识到应该重点研究的对象。”她还补充说：“布什总统认为NIH的预算经费应该加倍，这也正是我所认为的......我们对此非常满意。”无论如何，国会将于今年秋季评估预算总额及其分配情况。

生物通摘译自SCIENCE NOW

NIH Budget Reaches Doubling Point

WASHINGTON, D.C.--President George W. Bush will propose a National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget of $27.3 billion, a rise of almost 16% that represents a doubling since 1998. The sum is gratifying to biomedical lobbying groups, which have pushed hard to double the NIH budget over 5 years. But the victory isn’t entirely sweet: The bulk of the new money in 2003 would go for bioterrorism, which means most of NIH’s 27 institutes will likely get smaller increases. 　 PROPOSED BIOTERRORISM FUNDING FOR NIH IN 2003 Category Amount (in $ millions) Includes Basic R&D $260 Six extramural centers of excellence ($60M), pathogen genomics, proteomics Drug development $534 Drug screening, vaccines, diagnostics, animal models development Clinical studies $186 Smallpox vaccine trials Research infrastructure $580 Biosafety Level 3 and 4 facilities at NIH campus, extramural Bioterrorism boost. The president’s budget plan proposes hefty spending in bioterrorism research and facilities. CREDIT: ANTHONY FAUCI/NIAID Bush’s intentions for NIH were announced on 25 January but will not be spelled out in detail until the full budget proposal is released in early February. The president’s plan would boost NIH’s $23.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2002 by a record $3.7 billion. The funding will support a slight rise in the number of research project grants to about 36,000. 　 About $1.5 billion of the increase would be devoted to bioterrorism projects. "Virtually all of it," or around 97%, will go to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, says NIAID director Anthony Fauci. It’s a huge amount compared to the institute’s $2.4 billion budget in 2002. The projects will include basic research, such as genome sequencing of bioterrorism agents, as well as work on new anthrax vaccines and diagnostic tools (see table). 　 The other area favored by the Bush plan is cancer-related research, most of which is done by the National Cancer Institute. NCI would receive $5.5 billion, a 13% increase, to pursue "growing opportunities" in fighting cancer, according to a press release from the Department of Health and Human Services. 　 Reaching the doubling "is really good news," especially given "all the other pressures on the budget," such as new defense spending and the return of a deficit, says budget analyst Dave Moore of the Association of American Medical Colleges. However, after subtracting the bioterrorism and cancer funds, institutes other than NCI and NIAID may get as little as an 8% increase, biomedical groups expect. That’s not shabby, but it would fall far short of increases in recent years of around 13% that were distributed roughly equally across most institutes. "I think it will be of concern to some people in the community," says Moore. 　 NIH acting director Ruth Kirschstein, however, defends the president’s priorities, saying, "bioterrorism is a situation that everybody feels should be taken care of." She adds, "The president considers this a doubling and as far as I’m concerned, it’s a doubling. ... We are very pleased." At any rate, Congress will weigh in on the total as well as its distribution this fall. 　 --JOCELYN KAISER