The Center for the Biology of Chronic Disease

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Lynn C. Yeoman, PhD

Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Baylor College of Medicine

REVIEW

This book provides an expansive review of a prodigious amount of published scientific data and results, but from a unifying perspective that puts forth the hypothesis that many chronic conditions and diseases are caused by a molecular imbalance introduced by foreign DNA, which is introduced by viruses.

While the role of viruses in infectious disease and their causative role in the development of cancer are not new ideas, the shift in emphasis for causation from viral protein to viral DNA represents a different view. The predictions made, the mathematical rigor provided for the models proposed and the proposed role that viruses may play in bringing about a range of subclinical chronic health problems is most fascinating.

Whether Polansky has truly achieved the goal he set for himself, i.e., to apply the scientific method to a host of biological findings in a manner similar to that achieved by Watson and Crick, remains to be answered by others. It is not known whether time will tell us that microcompetition is an equivalent in theoretical construction to the structure proposed for DNA.

Clearly, this is not a "light read" and will tax the concentration and stamina of even the most gifted scientific minds. I believe that reading, studying and discussing the hypotheses and predictions that Polansky has put forth are useful exercises, much like practicing the Hanon musical exercises can be useful for an aspiring pianist.

The value of Polansky's thinking and his reorganization of others' work truly must be tested in the laboratory. While I personally found some of the examples provided in the chapter on treatment to fall short of my expectations, the value of the hypotheses and predictions put forth may have more immediate value. For example, they could be integrated into the world of bioinformatics as it is currently being applied to drug design and drug discovery.

In summary, Polansky challenges the reader to examine and reexamine the results provided in a wide variety of scientific reports that have been published by chemists, biochemists, biologists, cell biologists, molecular biologists, geneticists and physicians. If he achieves this goal, then he has probably met his mark.

BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Lynn C. Yeoman took his baccalaureate training in chemistry at DePauw University and received his doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. After completing a postdoctoral fellowship in Cancer Biology at Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Yeoman joined the faculty and subsequently rose to the rank of Full Professor. During his career as a research scientist and educator, Dr. Yeoman has authored 167 publications, invited papers, review articles and book chapters. He served as Associate Director for Cell and Molecular Biology in the Oncology Drug Discovery Program at Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. in Wallingford, Connecticut. A Faculty Associate in Baylor's Huffington Center on Aging since 1995, he is also a Professor of Pharmacology and Medicine. In addition, Dr. Yeoman is the Director of the College's Integrated Problem Solving (Problem-Based Learning) course, the Curriculum Database Program and also serves as Executive Director of the College's Education Resource Center. Dr. Yeoman currently serves as Chairman of the CATCHUM Project's Problem-Based Learning Task Force, a National Cancer Institute funded program in cancer prevention education at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston. He also serves as Chairman of the United States Pharmacopeia's Committee of Experts on Biotechnology and Natural Therapeutics and is a member of the Complex Actives Division Executive Committee. Dr. Yeoman is a member of the Center for Clinical Pharmacology planning team; a founding member of the Board of the Clinical Pharmacology Consortium of the Texas Medical Center; and a member of the Board of Advisors of ProteEx, Inc., a proteomics biotechnology corporation located in The Woodlands, Texas. He is listed in numerous biographical publications, including Who’s Who in the World, and recently received both the 2003 Distinguished Faculty Award from the Baylor Medical Alumni Association and the 2003 Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. Faculty Excellence Award for Educational Research from Baylor College of Medicine.

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