Briefing: UMass Stem Cell Bank
After it was launched in 2008 with $7.7 million in state funding, a University of Massachusetts stem cell bank in Shrewsbury will close at the end of the year, according to the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), which provided the funding for the bank and stem cell registry that accompanied it. The center said it will continue to fund the registry.
Why is the stem cell bank closing?
A spokesman for the MLSC, Angus McQuilken, said multiple sources for stem cell lines have cropped up since 2009, making the bank's services less useful.
Restrictions on federal funding for stem cell research were still in place in 2008 when the bank opened. The center provided a state-funded way for researchers around the country to access stem cell lines for their work. When the Obama administration lifted the restrictions in 2009, center officials were at first enthusiastic that it would create an opportunity for the state to get more federal research dollars. But it didn't turn out that way.
"The full impact of the removal of the federal restrictions could not be fully predicted when they were lifted," said Edward Keohane, UMass vice chancellor for communications.
What about the registry?
The MLSC said it would continue to fund the registry, which provides information on stem cell lines and their potential applications. The registry launched in 2008 with $570,000 in state funding. The center renewed that commitment in 2009 with another $695,000.
McQuilken said the center's advisory board determined that the registry remains "a valuable resource for stem cell researchers across the world and the center feels the investment in this resource should continue."
What will happen to the employees and equipment?
UMass said the nine employees who work at the bank will be let go. Keohane said they will be welcomed to apply for other positions at UMass. The equipment will mostly go to the University of Massachusetts Medical School's newest building, the 500,000-square-foot Albert Sherman Center, which is slated to open later this year.
Read more
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments