PROFESSOR SIR IAN WILMUT DISCUSSES HIS ONE REMAINING MAJOR AMBITION – TO FIND A CURE FOR MOTOR NEURONE DISEASE
CUIDE RI CATHY – PROFESSOR SIR IAN WILMUT
Monday 5 July at 10.00pm on BBC ALBA
Renowned scientist Professor Sir Ian Wilmut, the man that led the team in the creation of Dolly the Sheep, spends the day with Cathy MacDonald and discusses his career so far and his hopes for future scientific breakthroughs.
In the latest programme of the Cuide Ri Cathy series on BBC ALBA, Sir Ian takes Cathy to witness some of the work that goes on at his laboratory at the Centre of Regenerative Medicine in Edinburgh before they sit down to discuss many of the issues behind the extraordinary scientific research that he undertakes.
Today, Sir Ian still conducts much of his work around stem cell research. It is a controversial subject which raises a number of moral dilemmas and although Sir Ian understands the differing viewpoints on the research, he maintains that a historical perspective is required to consider his work.
Sir Ian said: “We’ve been interfering in the natural order of things since the beginning of time and the question you have to ask is what is the effect of whatever you’re considering on the animals or the people or the society or whatever it is that you’re involved in. To my mind, if you could – and I emphasise could – use technology to correct an error and give a child a healthy life, it would be an exciting thing to think about.”
In talking about his research, Sir Ian reveals he has one major ambition left – to help find a cure for motor neurone disease. Sir Ian met legendary Celtic footballer Jimmy Johnstone shortly before his death from the condition in 2006 and with progress being steadily made on treatment, he would be delighted to play a part in helping to find a solution for those suffering from the illness.
Sir Ian explains: “To understand Motor Neurone Disease and to offer treatment to people who have this disease – I would be very proud of that. It’s a very unpleasant disease and to have something that might contribute to the development of treatment for that, I would find very exciting.”
Sir Ian also discusses many of the events surrounding Dolly the Sheep, which was the world’s first successfully cloned mammal in 1996. He admits that he was sad when Dolly passed away in 2003, especially since those connected with the research came to look upon Dolly as in a similar way as they would with a family pet.
Recounting her death, Sir Ian denies media reports that Dolly’s life was shortened as a result of the cloning process, with a progressive lung disease throughout the flock given as the cause of her death. However, he does confirm where Dolly’s name came from, explaining: “The cell was taken from mammary tissue so she was called Dolly in honour of Dolly Parton. Dolly Parton’s agent was reputed to have said ‘there’s no such thing as baaaaad publicity!”
CUIDE RI CATHY will be broadcast on BBC ALBA on Monday 5 July at 22:00 and is available on Sky channel 168 & Freesat channel 110.