Stem Cell Stocks to Grant Writing: One Researcher's Perspective

The president of the United States has his “state-of-the-nation” perspective but one California researcher has a somewhat more modest view of a smaller world.

Paul Knoepfler of UC Davis gave something of a “state-of-the-stem-cell-world” overview earlier this week on his blog, ipscell.com. He covered everything from grant writing to his investments in a stem cell company.

He wrote,

“Doing this blog for 5+ years has made it really sink in just how crucial the commercial side is to all of our shared goals. This means that things like stocks, patents, etc. are really important for us all to think about including academics, patients, students, and more.”

 He noted that he made a “very small” investment in Ocata Therapeutics, formerly known as Advanced Cell Technology.

But he said that the firm has been “getting its bell rung this year and in particular more recently it has dropped off a (small) cliff.”

On winning grants to continue his research, he said,

“In my 2+ decades in science in various positions I’ve never seen it quite this bad. These days it seems like I’m always working on at least one grant and sometimes several simultaneously. It eats up a lot of time, focus, and energy, but that seems to just be the new reality.”

 There is more. You can read it all here. Plus here is his perspective on other wide-ranging matters and his predictions about developments involving stem cells.