The text of the proposed tobacco tax
initiative that would fund the California stem cell agency has
vanished from its location last week on the attorney general's Web
site. We are attempting to query the attorney general's office about
the matter. We will also post the full text on this Web site shortly.
With more than 3.0 million page views and more than 5,000 items, this blog provides news and commentary on public policy, business and economic issues related to the $3 billion California stem cell agency. David Jensen, a retired California newsman, has published this blog since January 2005. His email address is djensen@californiastemcellreport.com.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Tobacco Taxes and Stem Cells: Backers Still Not Talking, Questions Raised
Backers of a proposal that could rescue
the $3 billion California stem cell agency from financial oblivion remained mum
today as questions arose about the viability of the possible ballot
measure.
The plan would raise roughly $700 million annually by increasing tobacco taxes, channeling about $200
million to the stem cell agency through a ballot initiative that
would have to be approved California voters. The stem cell agency is
scheduled to run out of cash for new awards in 2017 and is casting
about for new sources of funding.
However, CIRM, as the agency is known,
was largely caught by surprise last week by the release of the
details of the proposal, which was filed by prominent Orange County
attorney Frank Barbaro, former chairman of the county's Democratic
Party.
Barbaro has not responded to email
requests for more information about the backers of the plan and their
financial commitment to an electoral campaign. Backers of a similar
proposal that was narrowly defeated in 2012, Prop. 29, said they knew nothing about the effort.
The latest measure could go on the
November ballot this year or the general election ballot in 2016 if
it qualifies. The timeline for November is daunting. Responding to a
query from the California Stem Cell Report, Sacramento political
consultant Jeff Raimundo said in an email,
“Sounds like most people didn’t know this was coming. An Orange County attorney filing an initiative with no known backers? Hmmm…formula for failure?
“If stem cell agency folks didn’t know about it (and there’s no real reason to believe they did) and the cancer-fighting community had no knowledge, it’s hard to figure out how proponents are going to muster support from voters who only two years ago rejected a similar proposal from a more transparent and credible group. Prop. 29 barely failed, but it had a big push from advocacy organizations.
“Too many questions right now to get a good handle on how effective such a campaign might be -- who the REAL sponsors are, who would put up the money for the campaign, whether the OC attorney is a shill for someone else, whether those who back CIRM and its research role can be persuaded to back a new proposition. Many more initiative proposals are filed than are ever circulated. And many more are circulated than ever actually make the ballot in Californa. They’ve got a long way to go and not a lot of time to get there.”
The agency said last week that it has
not endorsed the plan. Directors have not yet had a chance to
consider it during a public meeting.
But CIRM Director Francisco Prieto, a
Sacramento physician, told the California Stem Cell Report,
“I wasn’t aware of the tie-in to CIRM funding before (Friday). I don’t think they asked us first, but I’d be happy to see it pass, of course. I’m in favor of so-called 'sin taxes' – including those I pay when I support California’s wine industry. Raising the price of tobacco is one of the single most effective things that we can do to reduce smoking rates, especially among young people who are the most price sensitive. As the guy who has to sign the death certificates, I’m in favor of anything we can do to reduce smoking.”
Another CIRM director who responded to
our queries, Jeff Sheehy, a communications manager at UC San
Francisco, said that conceptually the proposal could make sense.
"It's a better source of funds. However, it does create a well-funded opposition campaign. Still trying to figure out if this is a good thing or not," Sheehy said.
Other board members as well said they had no advance knowledge of details of the measure.
Robert Klein, the former chairman of
the agency, also responded, saying that that he was not involved in
the proposal. He said he questioned the structure and funding
approach but declined to elaborate.
Earlier last month we asked Klein about talk in
the California stem cell community that he was involved in another
bond measure effort for CIRM. Bonds are the current source of funding
for the agency.
A spokeswoman for Klein replied,
“There is no campaign. We have done a single one scientific briefing on the progress of Proposition 71(the measure that created CIRM in 2004). It is strictly informational and does not constitute a campaign. We will decide in late 2015 what the next steps will be based on the scientific research at that time.”
Our take: In terms of the financial
structure, Barbaro's tobacco tax proposal has at least one downside
for CIRM. If the measure is successful in its goal of reducing
smoking, the amount of money it raises from tobacco consumption will
decrease. That, of course, would mean a dwindling amount of cash for
the agency.
Launching a campaign for next fall's
ballot would require a prodigious effort at this late stage even if
some of the millions needed are already nailed down. The groups that
backed the measure in 2012 are not likely to jump aboard immediately
given their surprise at the latest proposal. They also may have other
priorities as well at this point. Organizationally, work would have
to begin now even though there is the possibility that not enough
signatures could be gathered by the end of May to qualify for the
fall ballot.
Opposition from the tobacco industry
would be fierce. It raised $47 million in 2012 for its campaign compared to $12.3 million from the backers of the tobacco tax.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Nine Years on the California Stem Trail: A Look Behind the Curtain
Back in November 2004, the re-election
of President George Bush dominated the news throughout the nation. But out in
California, there was talk of a new gold rush, triggered by
a measure buried deep on the ballot that month.
The latter-day argonauts were not
expected, however, to be scratching out nuggets. Instead they would
be fiddling with stem cells, particularly human embryonic stem cells.
It all looked like big bucks for the biotech industry -- $3 billion from a new state agency.
That was when the idea for this blog
began to percolate. A few weeks later -- nine years ago this month -- the first item appeared on the California Stem Cell Report.
It now seems a likely occasion to reflect on the scope and
purpose of what appears here and to discuss readership and other
matters.
David Jensen Editor California Stem Cell Report |
California history. It operates with unusual autonomy. The governor and the legislature cannot touch its funding or direct its research. It survives on $3 billion borrowed by the state, which will roughly double the cost of the research to $6 billion or so because of the interest on the borrowing. It also marks another first with its use of California state debt to pay for scientific research.
At one point, CIRM was the world's
largest single source of funding for human embryonic stem cell
research. The agency has lured top researchers from other states and
countries. And it represents a unique mash-up of government,
politics, big business, big science, big academia, morality, ethics,
life and death and even sex.
Since 2005, the California Stem Cell
Report has been read by researchers, policy makers and other
interested parties around the world. They log in from Singapore and
Great Britain, Canada and Korea as well as institutions ranging from
the NIH and Harvard to Stanford, UC San Francisco, Scripps and
Sanford Burnham and more.
I estimate that only a few thousand
persons around the world are deeply interested on a regular basis in stem cell research,
making the potential audience for this Web site rather small. But
Google reports that as of today 729,841 page views have been
registered during the life of the blog. (I have posted 3,608 items.) Last month, which was slow
because of the holiday, the California Stem Cell Report chalked up
16,878 page views, which are the basic Internet standard for
measuring readership.
The items that seem to grab the most
attention involve individuals as opposed to the nuts and bolts of
either science or policy. When CIRM directors considered election of
a new chairman in 2011, readership jumped. Machinations involving
selection of new presidents at the agency draw readers. Of course,
reports about dubious activities or problems also are of significant
interest. The lure of stories about people nonetheless is not much
different than seen in the mainstream media, based on my 35 or so
years in the news business.
Another matter that has drawn an
extraordinary amount of interest involves money:
specifically the expected cost of stem cell therapies. In 2010, I
posted on Scribd a study financed by CIRM -- one that the agency was not
trumpeting -- that examined the issue of costs. Since then, it has been read 14,096 times, the most of any document that I have posted on the
Scribd service, which provides a way to mount documents and link to
them via the blog.
In its initial years, the blog
primarily surveyed California media reporting on the stem cell
agency, providing links and commentary with some original reporting.
But today the focus is mostly on original reporting with analysis and
commentary. The agency and its doings have slipped off the radar of
the mainstream media, where they probably will remain short of a major
scandal or a massive PR effort by the agency.
One of my goals was to provide detailed
information, news and analysis about California's unusual research
effort – far more than could be done by print media. The idea was
to exploit one of the unique characteristics of the Internet-- the
capability of publishing nearly unlimited amounts of information.
Newspapers constantly cut, squeeze and trim stories because of both
cost and their desire to publish a large number of articles about
many different subjects. With the Internet, there is virtually no
limit on the amount of content, a feature that is both good and
not-so-good. Another goal was to go beyond the official
handouts and to provide a guide to where useful information can be
found.
The California Stem Cell Report differs from the mainstream media in another regard. The blog carries
the remarks of representatives of the agency and other interested
parties VERBATIM, even when they sometimes involve harsh attacks on
the conduct of the blog. Major media almost never allow such access.
I have a couple of biases that
underpin what I do. One is the assumption that it is beneficial
generally for the government to fund scientific research. The other
and more important principle is that government agencies should
operate with maximum openness and transparency and that their first
obligation is to the people – not the researchers that they fund or
the institutions that have something at stake.
While readers can judge for themselves
the success of the blog, the scope of the readership from the NIH to
California's biotech hot spots suggests it is well-received.
Mainstream media reporters as well as science writers often use the
California Stem Cell Report as a reference and starting point. The blog has also served as a springboard for acceptance of my own occasional freelance articles in such places as The Sacramento Bee and Wired
News. And in 2012, I testified before the Institute of Medicine, at its invitation, during preparation of its $700,000 report on the stem cell agency.
As for how the work is done, the
writing and reporting are performed largely from a sailboat in Mexico and Central America, on which my wife and I live
full-time. Sometimes that has presented difficulties, but as cellphone and Internet service has improved over the years, the task has
become easier. We make visits back to California regularly during
which I meet with agency officials and others and attend CIRM's
public meetings.
I have focused largely on the policy and business aspects of the agency because that is where my knowledge and background lies. During my career, I have covered and edited stories from the state Capitol for United Press International and spent 10 years as the business editor of The Sacramento Bee along with editing prize-winning investigative projects, including the 1992 Pulitzer Prize-winning series, “The Monkey Wars,” by Deborah Blum, who now teaches at the University of Wisconsin. I also served two years and one week with Jerry Brown during his 1974 campaign for governor and into his first term.
I have focused largely on the policy and business aspects of the agency because that is where my knowledge and background lies. During my career, I have covered and edited stories from the state Capitol for United Press International and spent 10 years as the business editor of The Sacramento Bee along with editing prize-winning investigative projects, including the 1992 Pulitzer Prize-winning series, “The Monkey Wars,” by Deborah Blum, who now teaches at the University of Wisconsin. I also served two years and one week with Jerry Brown during his 1974 campaign for governor and into his first term.
As for my financial interests, my wife
and I have never had any investments in any enterprise that could
benefit financially from the activities of the stem cell agency
except for possibly through index-based mutual funds over which I
have no control. But like most of world, my family has suffered from
conditions that theoretically could benefit from development of stem
cell therapies.
I am always interested in thoughts and
comments from readers, critical or otherwise. My skin is reasonably thick. I have always told
reporters who have worked for me that if you perform your act in a
public place you should be prepared for any sort of reaction. I
welcome suggestions for stories and improvements.
Feel free to contact me at
djensen@californiastemcell.com. Or if you prefer to withhold your
identity, you can leave a comment anonymously via the “comment”
function at the end of each item.
Sunday, January 12, 2014
Irv Weissman and Reader Comment
Stanford researcher Irv Weissman was
mentioned in a comment on Jan. 3 on the California Stem Cell Report on the "Growing Stem Cells..." item.
It is the practice of this Web site to
inform people who are mentioned in comments that something has been
said about them and making it clear that they have an opportunity to
add to the dialogue.
In this case, Weissman had difficulty
in filing his comment directly via the “comment” function on the
blog, so we are filing it here.
Among other things, the anonymous
reader said, “Is it not clear that Irv Weissman is CIRM's puppet
master?”
Weissman's response via email:
“Anonymous need not remain anonymous.”
Friday, January 10, 2014
Stem Cell Agency Financing Proposal a Mystery to Some
A proposed ballot measure that could
mean the financial survival of the $3 billion California stem cell
agency was little known to the agency itself until early this week
and is a mystery to backers of a similar tobacco tax proposal
in 2012.
Kevin McCormack, senior director for
communications at the agency, said,
“Individuals at CIRM did hear about the possibility of another tobacco tax measure but did not know any of the details, including the 30 percent provision for us, until the initiative was filed on Tuesday.”
He told the California Stem Cell Report
in an email,
“As for being in support of the plan, the board has not yet had a chance to consider this measure and therefore we do not have any position on it.”Some of the agency's board members also indicated that they were not involved with the proposal and learned of it only today.
Jim Knox, vice president for advocacy
of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network in Sacramento,
said in a telephone interview that none of the groups that backed the
unsuccessful Prop. 29 in 2012 was involved in the latest effort.
The proposed initiative was filed
Monday by Santa Ana attorney Frank Barbaro, the former chairman of
the Orange County Democratic Party. It would impose a $1.00-a-pack
tax on cigarettes to fund brain research and related illnesses,
raising roughly $700 million annually. Thirty percent would be routed
directly to the stem cell agency, which will run out of money for new
grants in 2017.
Barbaro has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Barbaro has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Knox, who was involved in the 2012
campaign, described the situation involving the latest initiative as bit of a mystery and “strange.” He said “no one has heard” about the proposal. He
said the language, however, was clearly adopted from the Prop. 29
initiative. "They stole all our language," he said.
Knox said the proposal was filed very
late to qualify for the November 2014 ballot. He said Barbaro will
not get his proposal back from the attorney general's office until
February sometime, leaving him a very short period to gather
signatures by the end of May. That is the usual deadline for
qualifying measures for the November ballot.
Knox said it is possible that
signatures could be gathered in time but that it would be expensive.
Roughly one million signatures are needed at a cost that could run as
high as $5 or so.
Knox said the Barbaro initiative could
be held until the November 2016 general election.
Labels:
cirm financing,
cirm future,
tobacco initiative
Tobacco Tax Looms as Financial Rescue for California Stem Cell Agency
California's stem cell agency, which is
facing near financial death in 2017, could be rescued by a proposed
ballot initiative that could channel roughly $200 million a year to
the research effort.
Frank Barbaro OC Register photo |
The latest proposal would increase
taxes on cigarettes by about $1 a pack and raise roughly $700 million
a year, based on estimates for the 2012 initiative, Prop. 29.
Barbaro's proposal would set aside 30 percent of that revenue to flow
directly to the stem cell agency for research into a wide range of
brain disorders and “dysfunctional conditions,” including spinal
cord injury, heart disease, stroke, autism, cancer and much more.
Fifty percent of the funds would go to
a new California Brain Research Citizen's Oversight Committee
(CBRCOC), which would consist of 11 members, of whom four would be
appointed by the governor. The others would be top executives of the
University of California and its campuses. The new brain research
operation would be similar to that of the state stem cell agency and would be
able to award grants and loans and fund buildings and equipment.
Barbaro submitted the 14-page
initiative to the state attorney general's office on Monday for
preparation of a title and summary. The immediate hurdle for the
measure is to collect roughly 1 million signatures to qualify it for
the ballot, presumably November of this year. In 2012, hiring persons to collect signatures cost anywhere from $1 for each
signature to as much as $5 to $6.
The California Stem Cell Report has
queried Barbaro via email for additional comment on the measure, its
backers and sources of funding. We will carry his comments when they
are received.
The $3 billion California stem cell agency, which subsists on money borrowed by the state, is slated to run out of cash in 2017 for new awards. It has been considering some sort of public-private effort to generate additional funding.
The 2012 tobacco tax initiative was
rejected by voters by an exceedingly slim margin, 50.3 percent to 49.7
percent, a difference of less than 30,000 votes. Political gamblers are
likely to bet that the latest measure would win approval next fall,
although the tobacco industry is likely to mount a tough fight.
Labels:
cirm future,
strategic roadmap,
tobacco initiative
Thursday, January 09, 2014
California Gov. Brown's State Stem Cell Spending Figures
California Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed
budget contains numbers for the state's stem cell agency although he
can do nothing legally about its spending, even if he wanted to.
That's because the agency was created
in such a manner that neither the governor or the legislature can get
their fingers on stem cell research dollars. The idea was to protect
research from politics. So Prop. 71, the 10,000-word ballot
initiative that created the agency, made changes in both the state constitution and state law that gave the California Institute for
Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) unique autonomy.
Brown's proposed budget does cast CIRM
spending in a different light than seen in the agency's budget
presentations. It shows that CIRM spending is expected to rise from
$213 million in 2012-13 to $293 million in 2014-15, nearly all of
which goes for research awards. The agency has legal authority to tap
$300 million a year from money that the state borrows and that goes
directly to the agency.
The proposed budget also projects 59.5
employees at the San Francisco-based agency in 2014-15 compared to
56.7 in 2012-13. Projected operating expenses amount to $15.6 million
for 2014-15, compared to a $13.8 million in 2012-13.
Both figures are interesting in light of CIRM's figures that show that its operational
budget for the current fiscal year exceeds $17 million. No reason
for the discrepancy was immediately available, but we suspect it is
probably a case of different methods of accounting or perhaps off-the-mark figures from the stem cell agency to the state Department of Finance, which compiles the state spending plan.
The agency operates under a spending cap
of 6 percent of its total expenditures, also imposed by Prop. 71. It
will run out of cash for awards in 2017 and is currently trying to
devise a way to finance its future operations. Another bond issue,
which requires voter approval, has not been ruled out, but most of
the discussion focuses on some sort of public-private partnership at
a level much diminished from $300 million annually.
While Brown cannot chip away at CIRM
spending by the usual state process, the agency does take notice of
his desire for sharp-eyed budgeting. A few years ago, the agency cut
back on out-of-state travel after Brown announced restrictions for
other state agencies.
Wednesday, January 08, 2014
Knoepfler and Capricor Score Big This Week
Capricor's stock price has soared since Monday. Chart from Google Finance |
On Dec. 29, Knoepfler predicted a “big
announcement from Big Pharma” in 2014. He did not have to wait
long to add some shine to his crystal ball.
On Monday, he wrote about the news that
Johnson&Johnson was pumping $12.5 million into Capricor
Therapeutics' stem cell therapy for heart disease. Capricor could see another $325 million from J&J if all goes well in
its stage two clinical trial, which is being supported by $20 million
from the California stem cell agency.
“I'd call that big money,”
Knoepfler wrote. He also noted in his blog he has no financial interest in either company.
Investors liked the news as well.
Capricor's stock closed at $7.05 today, more than double its $3.40
close on Friday, the business day just prior to J&J announcement.
Tuesday, January 07, 2014
Big Pharma's J&J Buys Into California Stem Cell Therapy Research for Heart Disease
California's $27 million investment involving a Beverly Hills stem cell firm is paying off once again as
the business attracted a major, financial vote of confidence from Big
Pharma's Johnson&Johnson.
The firm, Capricor Therapeutics, last month received approval for a phase two clinical trial for its heart disease therapy. Yesterday, it announced that the Janssen Biotech arm of Johnson&Johnson was immediately pumping $12.5 million into the product with the potential of $325 million more, depending on the outcome of the phase two trial.
John Carroll of Fierce Biotech wrote that the move marked a “rare Big Pharma gamble on a field that is
trying hard to mount a comeback.” The California stem cell agency,
which is funding the phase two trial, said the news was “heartening”and a represented a “very good start” to the year for Capricor.
Linda Marban, CEO of Capricor, told Fierce Biotech that J&J had been probing Capricor for a year. She said,
The firm, Capricor Therapeutics, last month received approval for a phase two clinical trial for its heart disease therapy. Yesterday, it announced that the Janssen Biotech arm of Johnson&Johnson was immediately pumping $12.5 million into the product with the potential of $325 million more, depending on the outcome of the phase two trial.
Linda Marban Capricor photo |
Linda Marban, CEO of Capricor, told Fierce Biotech that J&J had been probing Capricor for a year. She said,
“One of the reasons why I was motivated to work on this deal is because of the statement it makes in the field. It says, OK, somebody very large and powerful is taking a look at this technology and saying there's something there, and that's the most exciting thing for me."
Interest from the “large and
powerful” is of major importance not only to Capricor but to the
stem cell agency, which runs out of state money for new research
grants in 2017. It is slowly trying to develop other sources of
revenue, and it has yet to bring a therapy to market despite promises
to voters during the 2004 ballot campaign that created the agency.
Votes of confidence from Big Pharma will go a long way in
encouraging investment in the agency and the stem cell field
generally.
Investors indeed were more than
encouraged by the yesterday's news, which sent Capricor's stock
soaring 48 percent. It closed at $5.06 yesterday, up from $3.40 on
Friday. Marban has said the firm hopes to be profitable by 2018.
Johnson&Johnson's investment is not the first tied to a key executive at Capricor, Frank Litvack, who is executive chairman of the firm. Litvack, who unsuccessfully ran in 2011 against Jonathan Thomas for the chairmanship of the stem cell agency, sold Conor MedSystems to J&J for $1.6 billion in 2006.
Johnson&Johnson's investment is not the first tied to a key executive at Capricor, Frank Litvack, who is executive chairman of the firm. Litvack, who unsuccessfully ran in 2011 against Jonathan Thomas for the chairmanship of the stem cell agency, sold Conor MedSystems to J&J for $1.6 billion in 2006.
Bradley Fikes of the San Diego U-T
discussed the Capricor research late last month in some detail. One
of the phase one trial sites was at Scripps Health. Fikes wrote,
“Mark Athens received Capricor’s treatment on Sept. 25, about a month after having a moderate heart attack. The Encinitas resident was the last treated under Phase 1, said Scripps cardiologist Richard Schatz, who performed the procedure. It will take about six months to know whether the treatment worked, Schatz said.”
Fikes continued,
“'All their previous work showed that the scar got smaller and the muscle tissue around it got more robust,' Schatz said. 'So two things happened: The viable tissue got bigger and the scar got smaller. And that should translate into some sort of clinical benefit down the road.'”
Here are links to the press release from Capricor and other stories in story Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News and PharmaTimes.
Labels:
capricor,
cirm future,
litvack,
phase two,
strategic roadmap
Monday, January 06, 2014
Bloomberg Reports on the WARF hESC Patent Challenge
The California-based challenge to the
WARF patents involving hESC research drew national media coverage
this week on Bloomberg News.
Susan Decker of Bloomberg described the heart of the matter as a dispute over who profits from stem cell
research. She wrote,
“'What we’re asking the government to do is say WARF has no right' to the patent, said Dan Ravicher, executive director Public Patent Foundation in New York, which is handling the challenge for Consumer Watchdog(of Santa Monica, Ca.) 'It’s like the government sent a check to WARF they didn’t deserve.'”
Dan Ravicher and Jeanne Loring at Post Office when they filed the patent challenge July 17, 2006. The photo was taken by an anonymous woman at the Post Office with Loring's camera. |
Decker said the issue is no small
matter and involves major developments in medicine. She reported,
“'The next paradigm shift in medicine will be advances in cell therapy -- it’s under way,' said Jason Kolbert, senior biotechnology analyst with Maxim Group LLC in New York. He said pharmaceutical makers such as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA) of Petach Tikva, Israel, and Pfizer (PFE) Inc. of New York are working with stem-cell researchers on new therapies.”
Decker reported that written arguments
from the U.S. Patent Office are scheduled to be delivered Jan. 17 to the federal district court of appeals in Washington, D.C.
Friday, January 03, 2014
Growing Stem Cells and Raising Cash in California
California's nearly 10-year-old effort
to develop therapies from stem cells is riding a technology wave that
some folks are saying will pick up considerable momentum this year.
That is good news for the state's $3 billion stem
cell agency, the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, which
will run out of cash for new grants in 2017 and which is looking for
new sources of revenue from the private sector.
The latest outlook for regenerative
medicine was posted on re/code, a new technology Web site led by a couple of well-known refugees from the Wall Street Journal, Walt
Mossberg and Kara Swisher. One of their writers, James Temple,
weighed in with a piece on Jan. 1 about technology forecasts for 2014.
He said “five clear themes emerged”
and one involved regenerative medicine. Temple, a former San
Francisco Chronicle columnist, quoted James Canton, CEO of the
Institute for Global Futures, as saying “major strides” are in
the offing for 2014. In an email to Temple, Canton said,
“The most significant trends and breakthroughs in 2014 will be in regenerative medicine: The use of human stem cells to grow new organs, repair tissues (and) heal patients with numerous cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases.”
Another one of Temple's “futurists,”
David Houle, author of “The Shift Age,” said that “sometime
between now and 2020, 'our replacement parts will be superior to
the parts we are born with.'”
Temple yesterday looked back to 2013 via a
report by the National Venture Capital Association and Thomson
Reuters. It said that the biotech industry accounted for 42 out of 82
venture-backed initial public offereings last year. The figure was
five times more than the biotech sector offerings in the last five
years.
Temple's pieces followed other stem cell forecasts from UC Davis researcher and blogger Paul
Knoepfler, who is also optimistic. Knoepfler even predicted a “big
announcement from Big Pharma” on stem cells or regenerative
medicine.
Whether the forecasts are correct or
whether the IPO trend will continue is a bit beside the point for the
stem cell agency. What they can profit from is the fact that this
kind of news generates excitement among investors and among those who
might be willing to make a major bet on the Golden State's stem cell
agency. Fund-raising becomes easier when the public rhetoric is more
than optimistic. The band wagon effect takes hold. The visions of
hope that entranced 59 percent of California voters in 2004 when they
created the stem cell agency seem much closer to reality.
Catching this wave, however, is no easy
matter, and the agency's 29 directors stalled last month when faced with a plan for a new financial future. Whether they can act with
dispatch on this issue remains to be seen.
Thursday, January 02, 2014
Job Opportunities at the California Stem Cell Agency
The $3 billion California stem cell
agency has begun the year looking for several good people to help
turn stem cells into cures.
On the top of the list, of course, is
the position of president, which pays up to $561,959 annually. The
impending vacancy has been known for some time, but the agency
recently posted the official job opening on its Web site.
The agency is also looking for a senior
medical officer to “manage a portfolio of grants, loans and
contracts primarily focused on IND enabling and clinical development
projects.” This is a key position that requires an M.D. or Ph.D.
in biomedical science and substantial experience. The job pays up to
$232,891.
Newly open is the position of communications manager for the agency's Web site and social media
efforts, which are the chief public faces of the agency. Amy Adams
held the position for several years, but has returned to Stanford to
help with their science PR efforts. That position has a top salary of
$136,306.
Additionally open is the job of grants management officer, who supervises management of the agency
grants. Amy Lewis has left the post to become deputy to the chairman
of the agency for public finance and governance. The top salary for
the position is $153,316. Helping out the grants management officer
will be a new grants management specialist with a top salary of
$99,887.
The agency currently has only 57
employees to oversee its research portfolio and to initiate new
rounds of awards for research. Additional employment information can be found here.
Monday, December 23, 2013
Golden State Milestone: Stem Cell Agency Announces its First Phase Two Clinical Trial
The California stem cell agency today
scored a first with the announcement that one of its projects – a
heart disease therapy -- has now advanced to a phase two clinical
trial after successfully completing a phase one safety trial.
In a press release, Jonathan Thomas,
chairman of the $3 billion research effort, hailed the Allstar trial
by Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., of Beverly Hills. He declared,
"This is a highly significant announcement for us at CIRM as it's the first time we have funded a therapy into a Phase 2 clinical trial.
"Heart disease claims around 600,000 American lives every year, so clearly there is a huge need for new approaches and more effective therapies. We are hopeful this is the first of many treatments to turn the tide against this disease, and that this will be the first of many projects we are funding to get to a Phase 2 trial."
The adult stem cell therapy “uses
unrelated donor-derived stem cells, called cardiosphere-derived
cells, that are then infused into a patient’s artery with the aim
of reducing scarring caused by heart attacks,” CIRM said.
Capricor Therapeutics, which has
its roots in Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, describes itself as as “a
diversified heart failure biotechnology company.” It came into
being last summer as the result of the merger of Capricor and Niles
Therapeutics. The company has benefited from about $27 million in
support from the stem cell agency, including $6.9 million for early
work by one of its founders Eduardo Marbán at Cedars-Sinai.
The company's stock price closed at
$2.48 today, down 17 cents. Its 52-week range is from $2.48 to $2.65.
The firm's CEO, Linda Marbán, said
the move into phase two was a “giant leap” for the firm and the
heart therapy field.
The executive chairman of the firm is
Frank Litvack, a heart surgeon who was the only other candidate for
chairmanship of the stem cell agency when Thomas won the job in 2011.
The announcement today is a milestone
for the stem cell agency, which is aggressively seeking results that
will help to generate financial support after 2017, when its current
state funding runs out.
The CIRM news release said,
“The next phase will involve an estimated 300 patients who have had heart attacks, and they will be evaluated in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. This will be further broken down into two groups: one will include patients 30-90 days post attack, the second will be 91 days to one year after the incident.”
The phase two trial is to determine the
therapy's effectiveness and further study its safety. If successful,
it can move into a phase three trial to confirm its effectiveness,
monitor side effects, compare it to common treatments and
collect information that will allow the drug or treatment to be used
safely.
Here is a CIRM video in which Eduardo
Marbán discusses some of the issues involved in the therapy. Here is
a link to a 2011 presentation to the CIRM governing board about the
early research – a presentation that generated some excitement on the board.
Labels:
capricor,
cirm funding,
cirm future,
phase two
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Cost-saving Stem Cell Cuts Puzzle California Scientists
Jeanne Loring, the head of the Scripps stem cell program, reflected last
week on the move by the $3 billion California stem cell agency to
scuttle a program that she and other scientists believe is critical to the
research effort.
Writing on ipscell.com, she discussed the effort to save the “shared” labs program at 17 institutions around the state. Continuation of the program was axed by directors last week in a cost-saving move. The agency is down to its last $600 million or so, and the governing board was feeling the pressure last week of having to deal with competing interests.
The board has 29 members, but only six in attendance could vote on the program because of the board's longstanding conflict-of-interest problems. Four approved the recommendation by CIRM staff and its Scientific Advisory Board to halt the lab program. That was all it took – the votes of four directors out of 29.
Loring and 11 other scientists attended last week's board meeting in an unsuccessful effort to the save the labs. She later wrote,
Writing on ipscell.com, she discussed the effort to save the “shared” labs program at 17 institutions around the state. Continuation of the program was axed by directors last week in a cost-saving move. The agency is down to its last $600 million or so, and the governing board was feeling the pressure last week of having to deal with competing interests.
The board has 29 members, but only six in attendance could vote on the program because of the board's longstanding conflict-of-interest problems. Four approved the recommendation by CIRM staff and its Scientific Advisory Board to halt the lab program. That was all it took – the votes of four directors out of 29.
Loring and 11 other scientists attended last week's board meeting in an unsuccessful effort to the save the labs. She later wrote,
“We are back home now, but still puzzled about why CIRM would destroy one of its most successful programs. The irony is that the board would like to continue to support training. The training is done in the shared labs. There are no more courses without the shared labs.
“We aren’t giving up; we’re just taking some time to think. Meanwhile, the positive side: we did an amazing thing: we are normally very competitive with each other, but on Wednesday we came together from all over California to support a single cause that is dear to our hearts. That will remain a high point for me, even though I also feel a profound sense of loss.”
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Bad Link Repaired
A bad link in the "$61 Million" item has been fixed, thanks to an anonymous reader who called it to our attention. The link is to the list of all the applications in that round.
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Wish List on Criteria for New President of $3 Billion California Stem Cell Agency
Directors of the $3 billion California stem cell agency today
moved closer to possibly selecting a non-scientist as the new president of the
nine-year-old research enterprise.
On a unanimous voice vote with no discussion, they approved criteria that did not make it mandatory that a scientist fill the position being vacated by Alan Trounson, a noted IVF researcher who is returning to Australia.
Instead, the governing board decided that candidates should have “experience with and personal commitment to medical and scientific research including familiarity with stem cell research.”
In terms of academic credentials, the criteria state that the new president have either or both an M.D. or Ph.D. degree or “equivalent industry experience or similar body of knowledge developed in professional roles.”
The criteria that was approved was not available to the public today on the CIRM Web site prior to board action. It had been altered on Tuesday night from an earlier version that was posted on the Web site.
Here is the text of what appear to be the only alterations (all additions) in the new criteria.
CIRM Chairman Jonathan Thomas said yesterday that the agency is on verge of signing a contract with a search firm, Korn Ferry, to help in finding the new president. Directors have been emphatic about the need for speed in finding the new president.
Trounson has agreed to stay on for an unspecified period, but he could leave at any point. If he leaves before a new president is chosen, presumably Ellen Feigal, senior vice president at the agency, would pick up his duties temporarily, as she did earlier this year for three months.
She is also likely to be a candidate for the top spot, and if she is not selected after serving again on an interim basis, she might well decide to look for opportunities elsewhere.
On a unanimous voice vote with no discussion, they approved criteria that did not make it mandatory that a scientist fill the position being vacated by Alan Trounson, a noted IVF researcher who is returning to Australia.
Instead, the governing board decided that candidates should have “experience with and personal commitment to medical and scientific research including familiarity with stem cell research.”
In terms of academic credentials, the criteria state that the new president have either or both an M.D. or Ph.D. degree or “equivalent industry experience or similar body of knowledge developed in professional roles.”
The criteria that was approved was not available to the public today on the CIRM Web site prior to board action. It had been altered on Tuesday night from an earlier version that was posted on the Web site.
Here is the text of what appear to be the only alterations (all additions) in the new criteria.
- "Comfort working in the public sector, including an awareness of the need to comply with the laws that govern them, such as transparency, conflict of interest, and public accountability laws."
- "Experience dealing with, and commitment to, diversity and gender equality in the workplace."
CIRM Chairman Jonathan Thomas said yesterday that the agency is on verge of signing a contract with a search firm, Korn Ferry, to help in finding the new president. Directors have been emphatic about the need for speed in finding the new president.
Trounson has agreed to stay on for an unspecified period, but he could leave at any point. If he leaves before a new president is chosen, presumably Ellen Feigal, senior vice president at the agency, would pick up his duties temporarily, as she did earlier this year for three months.
She is also likely to be a candidate for the top spot, and if she is not selected after serving again on an interim basis, she might well decide to look for opportunities elsewhere.
California Stem Cell Agency Board Quits for the Day
The governing board of the California stem cell agency adjourned its two-day meeting in Los Angeles at 2:40 p.m. PST today. We will have an item coming up shortly on approval of the criteria for selection of the new president. The board approved a revised criteria that was not available to the public prior to board action. It is unclear whether any of the changes were substantive.
Stem Cell Agency Identifies Grant Recipients
The California stem cell agency has posted its press release on this week's meeting of its governing board. The press release includes the identities of the grant recipients. All of the recipients are affiliated with institutions represented on the CIRM board. Here is a link to the press release.
$61 Million Approved for Stem Cell Clinical Trials
Directors of the California stem cell agency today handed out $61 million in its ambitious disease team program that is designed to push stem cell research into clinical trials.
Action on the six awards followed yesterday's move by the board to set aside $200 million to beef up its efforts for stage one and two clinical trials. The agency is focusing ever more intently on commercializing its research.
The $3 billion program is expected to run out of cash for new grants in 2017. Its efforts to develop a new stream of funding depend a great deal on showing results that resonate with the public and possible funding sources.
This grant round was originally budgeted for $100 million, but directors today were loath to approve additional funding. They noted that the agency is now living an era of financial limits.
Today's awards are aimed at cancer (three grants), sickle cell anemia, macular degeneration and severe airway obstruction. Size of the awards ranges from $20 million to $4.4 million. Terms range up to four years.
The agency did not immediately release the names of the winners, in keeping with its policy of secrecy until after the board votes. However, the names of the applicants could be determined by a knowledgeable person searching articles in the various fields. A CIRM news release is expected shortly with the names of the researchers and institutions. (Here is a link to the press release. All of the recipients are employed at institutions represented on the governing board.)
Thirteen applications, including one from a business, were considered by reviewers.
Here are links to the information provided by CIRM staff on the grant applications: summaries of the grant reviews, staff justification for funding tier two applications, Power Point presentations to be made to directors on the applications, including the range of scores on individual applications. However, the range of scores on the rejected applications was not provided.
Action on the six awards followed yesterday's move by the board to set aside $200 million to beef up its efforts for stage one and two clinical trials. The agency is focusing ever more intently on commercializing its research.
The $3 billion program is expected to run out of cash for new grants in 2017. Its efforts to develop a new stream of funding depend a great deal on showing results that resonate with the public and possible funding sources.
This grant round was originally budgeted for $100 million, but directors today were loath to approve additional funding. They noted that the agency is now living an era of financial limits.
Today's awards are aimed at cancer (three grants), sickle cell anemia, macular degeneration and severe airway obstruction. Size of the awards ranges from $20 million to $4.4 million. Terms range up to four years.
The agency did not immediately release the names of the winners, in keeping with its policy of secrecy until after the board votes. However, the names of the applicants could be determined by a knowledgeable person searching articles in the various fields. A CIRM news release is expected shortly with the names of the researchers and institutions. (Here is a link to the press release. All of the recipients are employed at institutions represented on the governing board.)
Thirteen applications, including one from a business, were considered by reviewers.
Here are links to the information provided by CIRM staff on the grant applications: summaries of the grant reviews, staff justification for funding tier two applications, Power Point presentations to be made to directors on the applications, including the range of scores on individual applications. However, the range of scores on the rejected applications was not provided.
Stem Cell Board Nixes $13.4 Million to Help Cure Cartilage Disorders
Directors of the California stem cell agency today rejected a $13.4 million proposal that would have been the first disease team research that it has backed that would deal with cartilage disorders.
The project would have built on earlier research funded by CIRM. The agency staff cited work at UC Davis by Kyriacos Athanasiou and at Scripps by Peter Schultz. Funding of the application was supported by the CIRM staff, which did not identify the applicant.
However, the governing board, however, went along, on a 10-1 vote, with arguments by Director Jeff Sheehy and others that the agency had finite resources and had to make difficult decisions. He noted that many alternative treatments exist for cartilage problems. Sheehy said,
While Klein did not mention it, older persons participate in elections to a much greater degree than younger persons. They would be an important group in winning support for another bond issue to fund CIRM, which runs out of cash for new grants in 2017.
The project would have built on earlier research funded by CIRM. The agency staff cited work at UC Davis by Kyriacos Athanasiou and at Scripps by Peter Schultz. Funding of the application was supported by the CIRM staff, which did not identify the applicant.
However, the governing board, however, went along, on a 10-1 vote, with arguments by Director Jeff Sheehy and others that the agency had finite resources and had to make difficult decisions. He noted that many alternative treatments exist for cartilage problems. Sheehy said,
"We are here to make progress on serious diseases and conditions."Former Chairman Robert Klein, in an unusual appearance as a member of the public, urged approval of the grant. He said that it would address conditions "very prevalent in the older population." Klein told the board that the research would be a "very important milestone that will help you get more money in the future."
While Klein did not mention it, older persons participate in elections to a much greater degree than younger persons. They would be an important group in winning support for another bond issue to fund CIRM, which runs out of cash for new grants in 2017.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)