LOS ANGELES (AP) California has transformed into a powerhouse player in stem cell research, but the taxpayer-funded institute responsible for that needs an overhaul, a report released Thursday found. The review by the Institute of Medicine lauded the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine for making the state a leader in the field by funneling research money with an eye toward stem cell therapies. But the report found too many members of the governing board represented schools that won funding and recommended a restructuring to avoid the appearance of conflict of interest. California voters in 2004 passed Proposition 71, a state ballot initiative that created CIRM, at a time when there were federal restrictions on human embryonic stem cell research and such work was opposed by some on religious and moral grounds because embryos have to be destroyed to harvest the cells. The agency was given broad power to distribute $3 billion in bond proceeds to promising research. So far, it has awarded $1.3 billion to nearly five dozen universities that went mostly to new buildings and basic research. The team of experts that reviewed the stem-cell agency's operations did not judge the merits of individual studies because it would have … Continue reading →

LOS ANGELES (AP) California has transformed into a major player in stem cell research, but the taxpayer-funded institute responsible has "significant deficiencies" in how research dollars are distributed, experts said Thursday. A report by the Institute of Medicine found too many members on the board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine represented schools that won funding and recommended a restructuring to avoid the appearance of conflict of interest. California voters in 2004 approved Proposition 71, a state ballot initiative that created CIRM, at a time when there were federal restrictions on human embryonic stem cell research and such work was opposed by some on religious and moral grounds because embryos have to be destroyed to harvest the cells. The agency was given broad power to distribute $3 billion in bond proceeds to promising research. So far, it has distributed more than $1 billion to some five dozen universities that went mostly toward investments in new buildings and basic research. The team of 13 experts that reviewed the stem-cell agency's operations did not judge the merits of individual studies because that was outside the scope of the report and it would have been too time-consuming and costly. But they raised … Continue reading →