Madison to Host World Stem Cell Summit in September
Hundreds of the world’s top players in the field of stem cell research will gather in Madison for a summit in September.
Up to 1,000 researchers, philanthropists and business representatives are expected to attend the World Stem Cell Summit at the Alliant Energy Center on Sept. 22 and 23.
Genetics Policy Institute founder Bernard Siegel says he chose Madison to host the event because the city has been a launching pad for the field.
He says the event will coincide with the 10-year anniversary of University of Wisconsin-Madison scientist James Thomson becoming the first to isolate human embryonic stem cells.
Thomson will speak at the summit about a new technique in which ordinary skin cells can be turned into stem cells.
WEDNESDAY, March 12, 2008, 11:03 a.m. By Stacy Forster
UW to host stem cell summit this fall.
Madison – Wisconsin’s capital city will host an international stem cell research summit this fall, which will bring up to 1,000 of the world’s top researchers to Madison.
The World Stem Cell Summit, to be hosted by Wi Cell and the University of Wisconsin Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Center on Sept. 22 and 23, will mark the 10th anniversary of James Thomson’s isolation of human embryonic stem cells at UW-Madison.
Thomson is expected to give a keynote address about his latest breakthrough using human skin cells.
Gov. Jim Doyle, a major backer of the stem cell industry in Wisconsin, said the summit helps preserve Wisconsin’s place as a leader in stem cell research.
“In Wisconsin, we are working hard to build innovative centers, to turn research into life-saving treatments in every corner of the state,” he said in a news conference.
Madison beat out New York and Washington, D.C., to host the summit.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office upheld two of WARF (Wisconsin Alumni Association Foundation)-held stem cell patents this week.
The USPTO rejected claims from consumer groups that the discoveries were OBVIOUS given previous research, and thus not patentable.
The claims arose from two non-profit groups, Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights and the Public Patent Foundation, and argue that the patents hinder research.
Dr. James Thomson’s pioneering stem cell discoveries are patentable inventions.
“The stories of five American families living with the painful realities of Juvenile Diabetes, Parkinson’s, and Spinal Cord Injury set against the national debate over embryonic stem cell research.
As the debate continues in Washington and across the country, three generations reveal their challenges, their frustration with the President’s policy, and the hope that more funding for embryonic stem cell research will lead to new treatments and cures to relieve their suffering and save their lives.
Life is for the Living explores the science behind stem cell research and the political debate taking place across the nation.
The film includes an introduction by CBS 60 Minutes’ Mike Wallace and interviews with the nation’s leading scientific researchers, political leaders, and advocates.”
