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You Can't Get Those Guys to Do Anything Together

Aug 11, 2008

It's been four years and the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine is barely off the ground. In June, its newest director, Alan Trounson, allotted $23 million in funding for research on human embryonic stem cells as well as iPS adult stem cell lines, according to the Wall Street Journal. Next, Trounson will fund teams to focus on specific diseases and he hopes to take those therapies to clinical trials within five years. The biggest challenge, however, might be getting academic researchers, state legislatures, and pharmaceutical companies to work together to make that goal a reality.

Breaking News
The Scan

Pig Organ Transplants Considered

The Wall Street Journal reports that the US Food and Drug Administration may soon allow clinical trials that involve transplanting pig organs into humans.

'Poo-Bank' Proposal

Harvard Medical School researchers suggest people should bank stool samples when they are young to transplant when they later develop age-related diseases.

Spurred to Develop Again

New Scientist reports that researchers may have uncovered why about 60 percent of in vitro fertilization embryos stop developing.

Science Papers Examine Breast Milk Cell Populations, Cerebral Cortex Cellular Diversity, Micronesia Population History

In Science this week: unique cell populations found within breast milk, 100 transcriptionally distinct cell populations uncovered in the cerebral cortex, and more.