States race to lead stem-cell research

This could mark society's next forward step as it moves from the information age to the bioscience era.

One important catalyst of this movement is stem-cell research - a controversial, new scientific field that analyzes the building blocks of life. Some people even envision an entire new medical field - which would involve thousands of jobs that could not be easily outsourced.

Seeing this potential, a number of states are beginning a race to fund the stem-cell field. Yesterday, the governor of New Jersey, in his budget proposal, said he wanted to spend $6.5 million a year over five years. Wisconsin, which considers itself a leader in the field, is already paying salaries and funding laboratories. A group is trying to get a ballot initiative in California that would commit the state to spend almost $300 million a year on such research.

"In 20 years, you can't imagine a major university without a stem-cell program," says Andrew Cohn, a spokesman for the WiCell Research Institute, a research organization associated with the University of Wisconsin.

The field is growing so fast that last year there were 71 bills introduced in 29 states that could potentially affect embryonic or fetal stem-cell research, says Alissa Johnson, a senior policy specialist at the National Conference of State Legislatures in Washington. Only five bills were actually enacted, but there are 34 bills being carried over in 13 states. So far this year, 11 new bills have been introduced in six states, she says.

"At this point most states are looking to regulate embryonic research via cloning," she says.

But, not all states are trying to enact regulations that limit research.

New Jersey's Gov. James McGreevey signed legislation Jan. 4 that would legalize stem-cell research. In fact, the Garden State feels it has a natural advantage over the competition. It already hosts the operations of such companies as Johnson & Johnson, Pharmacia, Ciba-Geigy, and Merck.

"We have more PhDs per square mile than anywhere [else] in the country," brags Micah Rasmussen, a spokesman for Gov. James McGreevey. "That's a reason why so many pharmaceutical companies have located here, and people make these type of decisions every day."

To encourage stem-cell research in the Garden State, last month the governor signed a law legalizing the field, including work with cells that cannot be used with federal funds. The state's $6.5 million expenditure will be supplemented with $3.5 million of private funds. "We plan to hire researchers from around the world," says Mr. Rasmussen.

The states' battle for talent can be seen in Minnesota. Last fall, Medtronic, the world's largest medical instrument device company, created a special chair, supported by more than $8 million in endowments, at the Stem Cell Institute at the University of Minnesota to attract Dr. Doris Taylor, who had been at Duke University. Her specialty will be helping hearts heal themselves.

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