Posted on 05/08/2008 9:19:07 PM PDT by neverdem
LOS ANGELES — California has awarded $271 million in grants to build 12 stem cell research centers in the state, even as one of the political rationales for the building program might soon disappear.
The awards, announced here Wednesday, represent the largest chunk of money awarded at one time by California’s taxpayer-backed stem cell program, which is slated to spend about $3 billion over about a decade.
The universities and research institutes that are receiving the money have said they would spend an additional $560 million on the laboratory construction, money they are trying to raise from donations. The resulting total of $831 million would add nearly 800,000 square feet of research space to house 2,200 scientists.
One reason the buildings are needed is that the Bush administration now prohibits federal financing of research using any human embryonic stem cells derived after August 2001, because creating such cells entails the destruction of human embryos. That has meant that work involving newer stem cell lines cannot share even a microscope with a project that is federally financed.
At the University of California, San Francisco, for instance, stem cell scientists had to work in rented space off-campus for many years. In December 2002, a huge storm caused power failures in the Bay Area, destroying cell lines that were being grown in incubators. Had the work been conducted on campus, backup generators would have kept the incubators operating.
“Several years of work literally went down the drain,” said Dr. Arnold Kriegstein, director of the university’s stem cell program. The university will now receive $35 million to build a $95 million research center.
But the restrictions might be lifted by a new president as early as next year. All three main presidential candidates have expressed support for expanded financing of human embryonic stem cell...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Bush’s fault!
Geez, I thought we were in a budget crisis.
I know, we are projecting a how many billion deficit?
Stem cell group gets its first building block
$43 million is seed for research center
SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
May 8, 2008
The fundraising has only just begun.
The San Diego Consortium for Regenerative Medicine yesterday received a $43 million grant from the state stem cell institute to help build a research center in Torrey Pines where the region’s scientists will attempt to unlock the mysteries of stem cells and treat disease.
While the consortium members were thrilled to receive the grant, it will cost $115 million to build the research center. During the next several months, the consortium will be looking for other sources of grants, philanthropic gifts and loans to raise the additional $72 million.
The consortium, which includes University of California San Diego, the Burnham Institute for Medical Research, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and The Scripps Research Institute, had asked for $50 million.
The group was one of 12 that were awarded $271 million in construction funding yesterday by the stem cell institute’s board.
Be nice, guys. If Davis was still Governor, the amount would be $1 billion. Just be happy that RINOld kept it to a measly $271 million. He’s cutting spending!
Gee, what kind of stem-cells are we talking about here? Adult stem cells that are already enthusiastically researched by the private sector because they actually work?
Or are these embryonic stem-cells, which are so medically useless - nay dangerous - as to require vast Govt subsidy for their study?
BTTT
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