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By BBC News Online science editor Dr David Whitehouse

The Labour peer and pioneering fertility expert Lord Winston has warned of what he perceives as an "international crisis in science," brought about by irresponsible protesters, the media, and even fellow scientists.

Speaking to the Bioindustry Association, a group representing the biotechnology industry in the UK, he said the growing suspicion of science in Britain was putting the nation's economic growth in jeopardy.

Concerning the recent debate about the ethics of therapeutic cloning, Lord Winston lambasted some members of the press for printing "absolute nonsense" about stem cell research.

Paul Drayson, chairman of the Bioindustry Association, emphasised Lord Winston's comments: "If we do not get better at communicating the benefits to society of what we do we run the risk of losing public support."

Public understanding

"The public reaction to GM foods is a sober warning of what happens when we get it wrong," added Mr Drayson.

Protest BBC

GM crops: A lesson in understanding science?

Lord Winston also accused scientists of being too reluctant to engage with the media to defend scientific research.

Aisling Burnand of the Bioindustry Association said: "With the power and potential of genome research achieving discoveries almost every day, we have to be aware that it is difficult for the public to keep up with what is going on. Everyone in this vital industry must be engaged in explaining what it means."

But referring to the funding crisis at Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS) brought about by anti-vivisection protesters last week, Lord Winston asked his colleagues: "Who put their head above the parapet?"

Animal labels

Paul Drayson added: "HLS got very near to closure and this should serve as a stark warning. The UK Government must take more serious steps against people who use intimidation and violence to stop animal testing of medicines, particularly when it is government regulation that requires such testing to be carried out."

Both scientists pointed out that new medicines cannot be developed without animal research. It is an essential part of the development process, they said.

Lord Winston even suggested that the government might consider putting a label on drugs saying they had been developed only thanks to animal testing. "Maybe that's something that Parliament might considering," he said.

Last year, Lord Winston was given the Michael Faraday Award by the Royal Society in recognition of his contribution to the public understanding of science. When he received the award, he said he was troubled by the superficial public debate about genetics and other issues, notably the use of animals and early-stage human embryos in research.

As well as presenting several landmark TV series on medicine, his scientific credentials include the first successful experimental tubal and ovarian transplant in 1974, which led to the first "test-tube" fertilisation programme. His work also led to the first successful diagnosis of genetic disease in the human embryo.