The Tri-Institutional Stem Cell Initiative, composed of three biomedical research institutions -- Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, The Rockefeller University, and Weill Medical College of Cornell University -- has announced the first wave of stem cell research projects to be funded through last year's $50 million gift from The Starr Foundation.
Seventeen projects received funding for a total of $6.7 million over two years. The Initiative specifically sought grant applications for highly collaborative research involving cooperation among scientists from at least two of the three institutions. The investigators will explore the basic biology or therapeutic potential of human embryonic stem cells (those registered by the federal government and those that are not) as well as adult, fetal, cancer, and experimental animal stem cells.
The selection process for the projects included researchers from each of the Tri-Institutional partners, four external reviewers with expertise in various aspects of stem cell sciences, and the Executive Committee of the Tri-Institutional Stem Cell Initiative.
In accordance with the Guidelines for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research issued by the National Academy of Sciences, a number of projects selected for funding have been reviewed by an Embryonic Stem Cell Research Oversight Committee (ESCRO) because they entail use of human embryonic stem cells.
