Critical considerations for public engagement in stem cell-related research.

Public engagement is increasingly recognized as being integral to basic and translational research. Public engagement involves effective communication about research along with the mutual exchange of views and opinions among a wide variety of members in society. As such, public engagement can help to identify issues that must be addressed in order for research to be ethically sound and trustworthy. It is especially critical in research that potentially raises ethical concerns, for example research involving embryos, germline genome editing, stigmatized conditions, and marginalized communities. Therefore, it is not surprising that there have been prominent recent calls for public engagement in the emerging sciences. However, given that there is arguably little agreement about how this should be done and the best ways of doing so, those involved with planning and implementing public engagement can benefit from understanding a broad range of prior experiences on related issues.

Regen Med California Institute for Regenerative Medicine Profile CIRM 2.0.

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine was created by the voters of California in 2004 to accelerate stem cell treatments to patients with unmet medical needs. By the end of its first 10 years, the agency was funding ten projects in clinical trials, including work in heart disease and cancer, HIV/AIDS and Type 1 diabetes. The goal now is to significantly increase that number, adding another 50 clinical trial projects funded by California Institute for Regenerative Medicine over the next 5 years. How we get there may be the biggest challenge the agency has ever faced.