Robert Guthrie
Robert Guthrie | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | June 24, 1995 | (aged 78)
Known for | Inventing the bacterial inhibition assay used to screen newborns for phenylketonuria |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Microbiology Metabolism Newborn screening |
Robert Guthrie, MD, Ph.D. (June 28, 1916 – June 24, 1995) was an American microbiologist, best known for developing the bacterial inhibition assay used to screen infants for phenylketonuria at birth, before the development of irreversible neurological damage.[1] Guthrie also pioneered the collection of whole blood on specially designed filter paper, commonly known as "Guthrie cards" as a sample medium that could be easily collected, transported and tested.[2] Although Guthrie is best known for developing the test for phenylketonuria, he worked tirelessly to raise awareness of the need to screen for treatable conditions and adapted his method to early screening tests for galactosemia and maple syrup urine disease.
Early life
Guthrie received his doctorate from the
Research interests
Guthrie became interested in causes and prevention of mental retardation after his son, John, was born disabled in 1947. Despite his work in the field, the cause of his son's disability was never diagnosed.
The Guthrie test
Guthrie developed a simple method to screen for elevated phenylalanine levels using a bacterial inhibition assay. He cultured
After establishing a test that could identify PKU in whole blood spots,
Patent controversy
Guthrie decided that commercial production would be the most efficient way to manufacture 400,000 test kits, so he approached the Ames Company, a division of Miles Laboratories, which manufactured the older PKU tests. Ames said it would only manufacture the kits if a patent was issued, so Guthrie filed a patent application in 1962 and signed an exclusive licensing agreement with Miles, under which he would receive no royalties and 5% of the proceeds would be divided among the National Association for Retarded Children Research Fund, the Association for Aid of Crippled Children, and the University of Buffalo Foundation.[11]
Miles couldn't produce the kits fast enough, so Guthrie produced his own kits for 500 tests at a cost of $6 each. But in 1963, he found out that Ames planned to charge $262 for the same kit.[11]
Guthrie was appalled, but Ames wouldn't lower their price. Guthrie appealed to the U.S. Children's Bureau, which sponsored the field trial, and the Children's Bureau recommended that Miles not be granted exclusive commercial rights. Most of the funding to develop the tests had come from the Children's Bureau ($742,0000) and the Public Health Service ($251,700). The surgeon general determined that the invention belonged to the United States and abrogated the exclusive licensing agreement.[11]
The dispute was the subject of a May, 1965 hearing by the Monopoly Subcommittee of the Select Committee on Small Business of the U.S. Senate. Committee chair Russell B. Long (D-LA) denounced the award of private patent rights on federally funded research, and said, "when the desire to make monopoly profits at the public's expense can adversely affect the health of our children, it is time to call a halt to this immoral and evil practice."[11]
One of the defenders of Ames was Senator Birch Bayh (D-IN), who, with Senator Robert Dole (R-KS), in 1980 introduced the Bayh–Dole Act which allowed universities and small businesses to retain ownership of inventions developed with federal funding.[11]
Legacy
PKU Day
For the 100th birthday of Robert Guthrie the European Society for Phenylketonuria and Allied Disorders Treated as Phenylketonuria invited Patricia Guthrie to the annual conference[12] to give a speech about her father. In subsequence she launched the Robert Guthrie Legacy Project to honor the efforts of Robert Guthrie to Phenylketonuria. His birthday, June 28, which is the same as the one of Horst Bickel, was taken up to launch the International PKU Day.[13]
International Neonatal Screening Day
On June 28, 2021, IPOPI, ESID and ISNS launched the first International Neonatal Screening Day (INSD) as a tribute to Dr Robert Guthrie. INSD helps raise awareness about the value of neonatal screening, encourages improvements on existing screening programmes and the advancement of scientific developments.
See also
References
- ^ .
- ISBN 978-0-932727-91-6.
- ^ a b Bjorhus, Jennifer (1995-06-25). "Dr. Robert Guthrie, Developer of PKU test". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2012-07-03.
- ISBN 978-0-932727-91-6.
- ISBN 978-0-932727-91-6.
- ISBN 978-0-932727-91-6.
- ISBN 978-0-932727-91-6.
- ^ Heyns, Terri (2010-06-08). "Protected From Birth: Newborn Screening Saves Lives and Futures". The CDC Foundation. Retrieved 2012-07-04.
- S2CID 30689475.
- ISBN 978-0-932727-91-6.
- ^ PMID 23984725.
- ^ "E.S.PKU Conference 2015 - Berlin, Germany". E.S.PKU. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
- ^ "About International PKU (Phenylketonuria) Day, June 28th". www.pkuday.org. Retrieved 2018-11-23.