[ExI] Myostatin-inhibitor patron

[Dan]

--- On Mon, 5/25/09, Bryan Bishop <kanzure at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hey all,
> 
> I apologize for not keeping the extropians up on what I've
> been up to.
> One of the projects that I have been working on involves
> myostatin
> inhibitors. Myostatin is a negative regulator of muscle
> mass in the
> human body. Through the inhibition of myostatin, mice,
> bovine, and
> even some mutant humans (through natural recombinant
> effects)
> experience increased muscle mass. In myostatin knock-out
> mice,
> problems show up in tendon health. However, with a proper
> inhibitor
> dosage regiment, the mice shouldn't experience these
> effects.
> 
> As a project, the equipment required isn't outside the
> range of a
> well-equipped somewhat broke college student. Say, perhaps,
> one who
> would be willing to work on this sort of project if there
> was a patron
> interested in the results of such a project. Normally, you
> would go
> through grant bodies for science and engineering, but you
> might also
> be interested more in keeping in tune with the
> transhumanism
> community.
> 
> I was wondering if anyone might know somebody would be
> interested in
> helping fund this project. I do not have a full expense
> schedule at
> the moment (and one could be constructed, although it would
> be more
> speculative than filled with certainties), but if anybody
> has ever had
> pet mice, you have the right idea in general in terms of
> expenses.

Just curious:  What's your current estimate for this project?  (I think it'd require more than just care and feeding of several pet mice -- a control group and a study group at least.  Wouldn't there also be lab fees and the cost of the inhibitors?)

Regards,

Dan