species to species, such as we had thought to be possible only at the 

 hands of the biotechnologist, occurs also as a matter of course in 

 nature. Evidence has been uncovered that such "horizontal gene 

 transfer" can occur between microorganisms, from microorganism 

 to plant, from virus to insect, and even perhaps from insect to 

 insect by way of a third species. This work is only now unfoldmg 

 but appears to be of the utmost importance. 



Genes are traditionally envisioned to flow strictly from parents 

 to offspring and to provide the basis of heredity. That they should 

 also at times flow between unrelated organisms revolutionizes our 

 view of nature and of how we picture evolution unfolding over 

 time. It tells us, basically, that there is much more to nature's ge- 

 netic ingenuity than we had imagined, and therefore much more to 

 be learned from nature, and to be reaped from the biotic world, 

 over the long term. It tells us further that if we are to derive these 

 benefits, we will need to preserve species as parts of functional eco- 

 systems and not as museum pieces. 



The Endangered Species Act is the most comprehensive and pow- 

 erful piece of environmental legislation yet enacted by the United 

 States. Although it falls short in that it does not provide the tools 

 to prevent endangerment, it is of unquestionable merit. Its reau- 

 thorization is essential. 



Thank you. 



Mr. Studds. Thank you, sir. 



I don't know what kind of serendipity it is, but the lights prompt- 

 ly broke upon your being introduced. You should have taken ad- 

 vantage of the awesome power that you have. 



Until such time as they may be corrected, I will take it upon 

 myself and if necessary do my own imitation of a light. 



Thank you. 



Next, Dr. Grever of the National Cancer Institute. 



STATEMENT OF DR. MICHAEL GREVER, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, 

 DEVELOPMENTAL THERAPEUTICS PROGRAM, THE NATIONAL 

 CANCER INSTITUTE, BETHESDA, MARYLAND 



Dr. Grever. Good morning Mr. Chairman and Members of the 

 Committee. I am Dr. Michael Grever, Associate Director for the De- 

 velopmental Therapeutics Program of the National Cancer Insti- 

 tute's Division of Cancer Treatment, at the National Institutes of 

 Health. , ^^ 



With me today are Dr. Gordon Cragg, Chief of DTP s Natural 

 Products Branch, and Dr. Francesca Grifo, a Program Manager in 

 the International Studies Branch of the Fogarty International 



Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today to dis- 

 cuss the NCI's efforts to locate and develop medicinal compounds 

 from plants to combat cancer and HIV infection and its sequelae. 



NCI is exploring and supporting a broad spectrum of ways to 

 combat these two diseases, from prevention and diagnosis through 

 treatment and rehabilitation and psychosocial care of patients. 



Drug development from natural products is just one avenue of 

 emphasis; but until we can completely prevent cancer or HIV in- 

 fection from occurring, it is an extremely important part of our 



