California institute designed to funnel money to embryonic stem cell research now providing more grants for non-embryonic stem cell work

In November of 2004, voters in California approved the creation of CIRM (the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine) to provide $3 billion in funding for stem cell research. CIRM was sold to the voters of California by promising miraculous cures using embryonic stem cells. Proponents of CIRM believed the almost unheard of funding levels would help California scientists cure disease after disease with embryonic stem cells.

Fast forward 8 years and a review of CIRM's recent grants show that CIRM is slowly abandoning human embryonic stem cell research as it hopes to move research into clinical trials and have something to show for the billions given it.

The California Stem Cell Report notes that in a recent round of grants worth $113 million, only one of the six grants involved embryonic stem cells and the one grant winner using embryonic stem cells was given the lowest scientific score of all the winning grants.

Only one of the grants approved by reviewers involves research with human embryonic stem cells, which was the critical key to creation of the California stem cell agency. California voters established the agency in 2004 on the basis that it was needed because the Bush Administration had restricted federal funding of human embryonic stem cell research.

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