Wisconsin Governor Doyle Announces World Stem Cell Summit to be Held in Madison

By admin - Posted on March 13th, 2008

March 12, 2008 -- MADISON -- Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle announced today that Madison will host the World Stem Cell Summit on September 22 - 23, 2008, bringing together premier researchers, advocates, investors, and other industry leaders to advance stem cell research and the promising technologies that will save lives.

“Embryonic stem cell research holds the potential to cure some of the world’s oldest and deadliest diseases – from Parkinson’s to Alzheimer’s to multiple sclerosis,” Governor Doyle said. “Stem cell research represents the promise to not only save lives, but to create economic opportunity for innovation and job growth as well. We are at the ground floor of a vastly important field of life science discovery. Wisconsin will continue to blaze the future of stem cells, and the World Stem Cell Summit represents the next frontier of hope for patients and the next generation of businesses for Wisconsin.”

Hosted by WiCell and the University of Wisconsin Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Center, the World Stem Cell Summit is the preeminent gathering for the entire global stem cell community and will provide critical tools for leadership and advancements for the future of regenerative medicine. Regenerative medicine and stem cell technologies are estimated to become a $500 billion industry over the next 20 years.

Since taking office, Governor Doyle has vastly expanded the state’s investment in this critical field to capture 10 percent of the stem cell market by 2015. He also launched a $750 million initiative to develop stem cell research and biotechnology in Wisconsin. The centerpiece of this effort is the construction of the Institutes for Discovery in Madison, featuring public and private research facilities for interdisciplinary research and greater collaboration with industry on the UW-Madison campus. Additionally, Wisconsin’s WiCell was selected as the nation’s first and only National Stem Cell Bank by the National Institutes of Health in 2005.

The World Stem Cell Summit comes to Wisconsin on the 10th anniversary of the breakthroughs of Dr. James Thomson and other UW-Madison researchers who became the first to successfully isolate and cultivate an embryonic stem cell line in 1998.

Source: Wisconsin Governor

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