genetics, much more progress can be made in 

 understanding and exploring the nature of virus 

 particles. They can be seen, cultured, and puri- 

 fied. Their performances can be studied by a wide 

 variety of techniques. Viruses have been linked to 

 the cancer process and also to a variety of pre- 

 sently untreatable degenerative diseases of the 

 central nervous system. These facts alone would 

 demand a high level of endeavor in this important 

 field. In addition, however, because of their rela- 

 tive simplicity of structure and because of the fact 

 that they contain relatively few constituents, they 

 provide an extraordinarily useful model for the 

 study of biological processes in more complex 

 cells which at this time defy analysis. 



Cell biology. In the past 20 years there has been 

 considerable progress in identifying many of the 

 minute structures of cells, which are in turn the 

 units making up all living organisms. There is the 

 beginning of an understanding about how the sev- 

 eral parts of the cell operate and how they relate 

 to each other. The nature of the cell membrane 

 and of the process whereby substances pass in 

 and out of the cell across this membrane are sub- 

 jects of intensive and profitable study. The opera- 

 tion of the structures of the cell — the mitochon- 

 drion, the microsome, the lysosome, the endo- 

 plasmic reticulum, the microtubule, etc. — is an 

 area of most intense and exciting study. It is be- 

 coming possible today to identify the abnormali- 

 ties of these very small structures within the cell 

 and to associate such abnormalities with disease 

 processes in the animal as a whole. A more com- 

 plete understanding of the organization of the 

 cell, its constituents, and the regulatory events 

 involved in its functions is of paramount impor- 

 tance to the continuing development of biomedical 

 science. Such understanding will inevitably contri- 

 bute to knowledge of the biochemical bases of 

 many diseases and their possible correction 

 through such promising approaches as enzyme 

 replacement therapy or gene modification. 



Neurosciences. The spectrum of basic research 

 encompassed by this category is very broad, rang- 

 ing from cell culture experiments on isolated 

 neural tissue, and investigations on the anatomical 

 and functional bases for memory, learning, coor- 

 dination, and higher mental processes, to social 



science studies in man. From these is expected to 

 emerge a fuller understanding of the development 

 of normal and abnormal perception and behavior. 

 Such advances will contribute to better ways of 

 avoiding neurological impairments and of correct- 

 ing those that do occur. 



Postscript 



The gratifying advances of the past and the ex- 

 citing potential of the future do not, of course, 

 imply that the difficult and challenging task of ba- 

 sic biomedical research is nearing its completion. 

 Future success in unlocking the mysteries of dis- 

 ease clearly depends upon continuing investment 

 in research to further understanding of underlying 

 biological mechanisms. 



The question that is often posed in the debate 

 over investments in biomedical research at NIH is 

 what dollar levels should be devoted to basic re- 

 search in the total R&D effort or what should be 

 the relative emphasis on basic research as com- 

 pared to applied research or development. Such a 

 general question cannot be answered in the ab- 

 stract. A clear differentiation between basic and 

 applied research is sometimes not possible, and 

 investments must be made in ways that will take 

 maximum advantage of available opportunities, 

 given the state of the field of research at the time. 

 Promising clinical applications must be pursued, 

 but the waste of resources that results from pre- 

 mature emphasis on targeted work must be guard- 

 ed against in research areas where the necessary 

 knowledge infrastructure has yet to be adequately 

 developed. Specific investment decisions for both 

 basic and applied biomedical research at NIH are 

 a function of several conditions: (1) the "ripe- 

 ness" of science advancements; (2) the availabili- 

 ty of specific ideas, applications, and proposals 

 from the scientific community; and (3) the judg- 

 ments that have been made regarding priorities of 

 particular disease areas, and the relevance and 

 potential contributions of the research to such 

 areas. All of these considerations need to enter 

 into judgments and decisions for support of re- 

 search, and both the scientific community and the 

 public must be engaged— in their appropriate 

 roles — in the decisionmaking process, it is out of 

 such deliberations by all concerned parties that 

 research at NIH is continuously shaped. 



NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION 



The National Institute of Education (NIE) was 

 established by Congress in August 1972 under the 

 General Education Provisions Act of 1972 (Public 



110 HEALTH, EDUCATION AND WELFARE 



Law 92 318). It took over most of the research 

 functions of the Office of Education. 



